In Regenerative Agriculture there are multiple practices that combine to tackle the problem of soil loss and degradation-no tilling, the use of compost and multi-species cover crops, etc.-but Dr. It means that by adopting farming practices that regenerate the soil by working with nature and mimicking how ecosystems naturally work, we could potentially reverse this situation. That’s the bad news but it also the point of opportunity.

In other words, the fertilizers that were once believed to be a miracle cure for crop production have become part of the problem. But, while that works tremendously well to improve crop production temporarily, the microorganisms in the soil that decompose organic matter and help turn it into new topsoil start to die, the soil degrades even faster, and eventually can fall prey to erosion. It is also the secret behind having a nutrient-rich enough environment for food crops to thrive without the use of synthetic fertilizers.ĭegraded topsoil is actually one of the main reasons farmers have turned to synthetic fertilizers. This matter is essential in creating a soil structure that holds water and is resistant to erosion due to wind and rain. Organic carbon is the measurable component of soil organic matter-a combination of minerals, decayed organic matter, and living organisms like bacteria, fungi, nematodes, protozoa, earthworms, and living plant roots. As a result our agricultural soils contain 25%-75% less organic carbon than soil in undisturbed or natural environments. Each year.įactors that have created this situation involve a wide range of human activities, particularly deforestation and most conventional agricultural practices (tillage, biomass burning, excessive use of chemical fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides and fungicides, destructive grazing practices, etc.). That’s about 38,610 square miles- an area about the size of Iceland. It is estimated that we lose about 10 million hectares of cropland each year (opens in new window). Research by University of Sheffield’s Grantham Centre for Sustainable Futures (opens in new window) estimates that the world has lost a third of its arable land just in the last 40 years alone. But while the organic matter in the land typically holds about three times more carbon than the atmosphere, our topsoils have been rapidly depleting and eroding away. Normally, CO 2 in our atmosphere is cycled back into the land and oceans via natural processes like photosynthesis. We need to reverse the damage we’ve been doing to our soil. Now some of the latest research is starting to show that nurturing the living biology of the earth-the biology of the very soil beneath our feet-is exactly what we might want to do to address climate change and the cataclysmic co-catastrophes coming with it: food insecurity and shortages of clean drinking water. Indigenous people the world over have always described the earth as a living organism that must be honored and protected. We now need effective ways to to pull excess carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere as well.Īnd that’s where one of the oldest religious concepts-honoring and respecting Mother Earth-meets the most up-to-date modern science and holds hands.

But we’ve passed the point where that strategy alone will solve the problem. It’s about lowering emissions that contribute to global warming-and that’s essential. When a person starts to embrace the importance of climate change, the first thing that comes to mind certainly isn’t the earth beneath our feet.

Living earth soil