HOPE BELOW OUR FEET: Earth Day Call for More Soil to Fight Global Warming
Seth Itzkan
HOPE BELOW OUR FEET: Earth Day Call for More Soil to Fight Global Warming
Soil4Climate and Tufts Global Development and Environment Institute Release Earth Day Policy Brief Highlighting Climate Solution Role of Soil and Trees
http://www.ase.tufts.edu/gdae/Pubs/climate/ClimatePolicyBrief4.pdf
Medford, MASSACHUSETTS -- April 22, 2017 -- Soil4Climate and the Tufts University Global Development and Environment Institute (GDAE) today announced the release of a policy brief focusing on soil carbon drawdown and reforestation as necessary components of a comprehensive climate action plan.
Called “Hope Below Our Feet: Soil as a Climate Solution,” the policy brief, co-authored by GDAE and Soil4Climate, includes a summary of international programs and local legislation supporting the transition to regenerative agriculture or so-called “carbon farming.” Improved management of cropping and grazing has been identified as necessary to close the Emissions Gap identified in the 2015 Paris Climate Accord, that is, the need for negative emissions to actively remove carbon from the atmosphere in order to limit warming to 2°C or lower by the year 2100. The brief is available at http://www.ase.tufts.edu/gdae/Pubs/climate/ClimatePolicyBrief4.pdf
As spelled out in climate scientist James Hansen’s 2016 paper, “Young People's Burden: Requirement of Negative CO2 Emissions,” cutting fossil fuel emissions, though essential, is inadequate to avoid potentially catastrophic climate disruption. Hansen’s work emphasizes carbon must be extracted from the atmosphere through the participation of the agriculture and forestry sectors. Ancillary societal benefits of soil restoration and reforestation include local cooling through improved hydrology, increased wildlife habitat, flood prevention, drought resilience, and more nutritious crops.
“It is now clear soil restoration and reforestation both need to be part of the climate solution,” stated Tufts Professor Bill Moomaw, co-director of GDAE and former lead author of numerous reports published by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
“Soil can sequester carbon for millennia that would otherwise be warming the planet or contributing to ocean acidification,” said Seth Itzkan, co-founder and co-director of Soil4Climate. As noted in the brief, “If combined with other atmospheric CO2 removal efforts, such as reforestation, yearly additional carbon capture in soils and forests could be as high as 5 gigatons per year. When combined with deep cuts in fossil fuel emissions, this could lead to a substantial overall reduction in atmospheric carbon dioxide.”
The Global Development And Environment Institute (GDAE) is a research institute at Tufts University dedicated to promoting a better understanding of how societies can pursue their economic and community goals in an environmentally and socially sustainable manner. GDAE pursues its mission through original research, policy work, publication projects, curriculum development, conferences and other activities.
http://ase.tufts.edu/gdae/
Soil4Climate, a Vermont-based nonprofit educational organization, advocates for soil as a climate solution by promoting science, policy, communications, and practices to improve soil health. Soil4Climate has chapters in three countries and a Facebook group with over 4600 members worldwide. Its Advisory Board includes leading soil and climate scientists and restorative land practitioners. Soil4Climate serves as a research partner to the Tufts University Global Development and Environment Institute.
http://www.soil4climate.org
https://www.facebook.com/groups/Soil4Climate/
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Media Contact: Karl Thidemann, Soil4Climate, Email karl.th...@gmail.com, Tel 617-620-6151
