WHAT IS CARBON FARMING? CARBON FARMING It’s a way to capture excess carbon from the atmosphere and store it in the , through managing agricultural land to improve and restore its carbon content. With A PRACTICAL carbon farming, farmers and ranchers restore balance within the . SOLUTION HOW DOES SOIL STORE CARBON? Through photosynthesis, plants naturally pull carbon in from the air. With help from the sun and water, they convert carbon into carbohydrates. Then they pump some of these carbohydrates down through their roots to feed microorganisms, who use that carbon to build soil. Over the last century, we have released or burned much of the carbon stored underground. Plants can help bring that carbon back by pumping it down from the air through their roots and storing it in the soil.

Unlike in the atmosphere where too much carbon is creating problems, more carbon in the soil makes it

© ANDREW HILL healthier, full of nutrients and able to hold much more water. In healthier soil, plants are able to:

1) grow, becoming more productive and increasing photosynthesis (which in turn pulls in more carbon)

2) develop stronger and longer root systems, making the plant more efficient in uptaking water and nutrients and helping it store more carbon

3) pump carbohydrates down through their roots to feed microorganisms that in turn use carbon to build healthier soil

Carbon farming creates an ongoing positive feedback loop. Each year, plants grow stronger, bringing more and more carbon into the soil, making the soil healthier, helping the plants grow even better.

THE CARBON CYCLE WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO THINK ABOUT HOW DOES CARBON FARMING HELP? CARBON? Even as we replace fossil fuels with renewable energy sources, Earth’s carbon is stored in five main pools: , ocean, we have to draw down the excess already atmosphere, biosphere, and fossils. Carbon flows between released in the atmosphere. To mitigate the worst effects these pools in an exchange called the carbon cycle -- shifting of climate change and stabilize the climate, we must rapidly carbon out of one pool and putting it in another. sequester carbon back in the soils.

Currently, there’s too much carbon in the atmosphere and The most effective mechanism for doing this is through plants. not enough in our soils. An estimated 50-70% of the world’s Certain agricultural practices increase plant growth and cultivated soils have lost their original carbon stock due to soil enhance photosynthesis. That’s carbon farming -- a natural tilling, , and other practices that leave soil bare. solution to . So we have two problems: not enough carbon in soils (making them less healthy) and too much carbon in the atmosphere

(creating a greenhouse effect that is warming the atmosphere © ANDREW HILL and destabilizing the climate).

WHAT’S CAUSING THE IMBALANCE?

When humans began extracting fossil fuels from the ground and using them for power, we started to disrupt the carbon cycle balance. Each time we burn or release fossil fuels for transportation or to make electricity , we agitate the cycle more. In addition, the way we historically managed the land and produced food has moved even more carbon from the soil into the atmosphere. LOOKING AT ROOT GROWTH AFTER Recently, carbon dioxide levels surpassed 400 parts per million APPLICATION for the first time in recorded history -- moving us toward levels that is expected to create a climate unsuitable for animal and Carbon farming enhances root growth and human life. Humans face increasing intensity and frequency helps plants grow deep, strong roots. Roots of of extreme weather events, such as violent storms and severe some plants can extend 10 feet or drought. Extreme heat, changes in weather patterns, and more below ground, with a potential for carbon cycles of drought and flooding all affect farming and food storage ranging from .30 - 1.7 metric tons per production. acre per year just from the roots alone. © ELLIOTT LOWNDES ELLIOTT © dioxide. dioxide. million per of carbon parts level to ahealthy atmosphere of 350 return farming our can use, fuel of fossil carbon reduction the with Combined in coming decades. atmosphere the hundreds of billions from sequester the of of tons carbon to If applied globally, have capacity the practices these loop. feedback positive the off setting pull soil into and the plants increasing of carbon amount the longer and roots, of stronger plants growth the support They inground. the in and the to leave matter plant strive farming practices Carbon shelterbelts). (called of fieldsedges tillage) to planting trees along the of tilling conservation (called which farming range practices, from new methods carbon 34 acknowledges District USDAThe Natural Resource Conservation through their down roots. bringing carbon and photosynthesis conducting would be which otherwise living and organisms, soil healthy than covered plants with into the air as carbon dioxide air (CO into the as carbon which releases it to oxygen, in soil. soil Tillage carbon exposes of carbon –lower plantings amount the soil bare in between –such as tilling farming practices Common orleaving land the FARMING CARBON FARMING? IS HOW OTHER DIFFERENT THAN 2 ). Bare soil emits more carbon Bare more). soil carbon emits waves. waves. like severeclimate effects, drought heat and change its and improve greatly farming can ’sCarbon resilience to stronger plants. plants. stronger thingsAll these lead to and healthier soil healthier, FARMING CARBON INCLUDE: OF BENEFITS onger and more vigorous roots, better at storing storing at onger more and vigorous better roots, erosion and soil runoff educed • reater water-holding capacity • • ncreased availability nutrient aerationroved and soil structure • •

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© JORDAN BEN SHEA

Anna OlsenAnna 805.868.4013 District Director Cachuma Resource Conservation District [email protected] What’s more, scientific scientific models show that applying compostmore, this What’s just oncekickstarts a plant growth have thatwill a level to lastingeffect for 20 or 30 years. The amount carbon of stored cars off the every road taking 11,350 like is a result the as in soil two for over year decades. converting addition, In and trimmings food yard waste, byproducts agricultural compost organic into rich this keeps creates methane it where a landfill, in up ending from material – a powerful greenhouse With banning now gas. California foodregion waste disposal, our waste and green landfill from position a unique close to the in loopis on the carbon by cycle, waste compost soil into organic turning rebuild it to and using andsequester atmospheric carbon. The agricultural sector Santa in Barbara can shift from a contributor to climate to a vital change part of the solution. To learn more, please contact: more, learn To

Emily MillerEmily 805.963.0583 [email protected] Community Council Environmental Food and Climate Program AssociateFood Program and Climate

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