For new climate change solutions, look down
As the negative effects of climate change become more prevalent in our daily lives, writes Jennifer Soong , one direction we should look to find solutions is down—at the soil beneath us.
Soils play a fundamental role in Earth’s climate, absorbing about one quarter of carbon dioxide emissions. In addition to playing this critical role in supporting planetary health, soils help local ecosystems by supporting crop production, filtering and storing water, fostering biodiversity, and recycling nutrients and energy.
Regenerative agriculture can restore soil carbon and improve soil health through techniques such as reducing tillage, keeping soil covered, and diversifying crop rotations, and could sequester 4–8 gigatons of carbon dioxide per year (one gigaton is equal to one billion metric tons).