Discover the latest available knowledge on ways to reduce CO2 in the atmosphere! The problem of quickly mounting CO2 emissions in the fast-developing Latin American region was addressed in a symposium held in Piracicaba, Brazil, in June 2004. Carbon Sequestration in Soils of Latin America presents the latest available knowledge in soil C
PHYSIOGRAPHY AND BACKGROUND: Soil Ecoregions in Latim America; Challenges and Opportunities of Soil Carbon Sequestration in Latin America; Soil Carbon Sequestration in Latin America; Soil Carbon Stocks in Soil Ecoreions of Latin America. SOIL CARBON SEQUESTRATION IN DIFFERENT BIOMES OF LATIN AMERICA: Soil Carbon Sequestration in Western Mountain Ridges and Deserts of South America; Carbon Sequestration in Soils of the Western Moutain Ridges and Desertes of Argentina; Soil Carbon Sequestration in Mexico and Central America (Biome A); Potential of Soil carbon Sequestration in Costa Rica; Above-and Belowground Carbon Sequestration Under Various Land-Use Systems and soil Types in Costa Rica; Soil Organic Carbon Sequestration in the Caribbean; Carbon Sequestration Potential of the Neotropical Savannas of Colombia and Venezuela; Potential of Soil Carbon Sequestration in the Amazoniam Tropical Raiforests; Carbon Sequestration Potential of Pasture and agro-silvo-Pastora Systems in Tropical Andean Hilsides; Soil Carbon Storage and Sequestration Potential in the Cerrado Region of Brazil; Potential of Carbon Sequestration in Soils of the Atlantic Forest Region of Brazil; Potential of Soil Carbon Sequestration for the Brazilian Atlantic Region; The Potential for Soil Carbon Sequestration in the Pampas; Effects of Environmental and Management Practices on the Potential for Climatic Change Mitigation in the Pampas of Argentina. SOIL CARBON ASSESSMENT METHODS: Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy and Applicatios for Soil Carbon Measurement; The Potential of Spectroscopic Methods for the Rapid Analysis of Soil Samples; In Situ Noninvasive Soil Carbon Analysis: Sample size and Geostatistical Considerations; Methods and Tools for Desingning a Pilot Soil Carbon Sequestration Project; Advances in Models to.
The objective of IFAD/FAO consultation was to bring together experts in order to review the state-of-the-art knowledge in carbon sequestration for the land management programmes IFAD and FAO in Latin America and the Caribbean. The main objectives addressed were: how to stabilize the atmospheric concentration of CO2; how to increase agricultural productivity and reduce rural poverty; in view of the Global Mechanism for Desertification Convention, how to activiate the flow of new funds for the benefit of Convention implementation through carbon sequestration, i.e. its binding and neutralisation. It is believed that carbon stock in soils is either stable or increasing and that it is was a major source of global carbon emission, a major cause of global climate change
An overview of carbon sequestration in soils of Latin America; Review of soil organic matter research in Puerto Rico; Organic carbon content of the soils of Puerto Rico; Recommendations for future soil carbon research in Puerto Rico.
During the last decades, soil organic carbon (SOC) attracted the attention of a much wider array of specialists beyond agriculture and soil science, as it was proven to be one of the most crucial components of the earth’s climate system, which has a great potential to be managed by humans. Soils as a carbon pool are one of the key factors in several Sustainable Development Goals, in particular Goal 15, “Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss” with the SOC stock being explicitly cited in Indicator 15.3.1. This technical manual is the first attempt to gather, in a standardized format, the existing data on the impacts of the main soil management practices on SOC content in a wide array of environments, including the advantages, drawbacks, and constraints. This manual presents different sustainable soil management (SSM) practices at different scales and in different contexts, supported by case studies that have been shown with quantitative data to have a positive effect on SOC stocks and successful experiences of SOC sequestration in practical field applications. Volume 2 includes a description of hot spots of SOC stocks. This manual defines hot spots of SOC as areas that represent a proportionally little of the global land surface but on which SOC storage is highly effective; bright spots as large land areas with low SOC stocks per km2 that represent a potential for further carbon sequestration.
The purpose of this publication is to show how conservation agriculture can increase crop production while reducing erosion and reversing soil fertility decline, improving rural livelihoods and restoring the environment in developing countries. Soil organic matter and biological activity in the rooting zone, stimulated by continual additions of fresh organic material (crop residues and cover crops) are the basis of conservation agriculture, as described in the first chapter.
The purpose of this report is to improve the knowledge base for facilitating investments in land management technologies that sequester soil organic carbon. While there are many studies on soil carbon sequestration, there is no single unifying volume that synthesizes knowledge on the impact of different land management practices on soil carbon sequestration rates across the world. A meta-analysis was carried out to provide soil carbon sequestration rates in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. This is one important element in decision-making for sustainable agricultural intensification, agro-ecosystems resilience, and comprehensive assessments of greenhouse mitigation potentials of Sustainable Land Management (SLM) practices. Furthermore, the ecosystem simulation modeling technique was used to predict future carbon storage in global cropland soils. Last, marginal abatement cost curves and trade-off graphs were used to assess the cost-effectiveness of the technologies in carbon sequestration. The remainder of the report is organized as follows. Chapter two provides a brief review of soil organic carbon dynamics and the methods for soil carbon assessment. The chapter concludes with brief information on carbon assessment in The World Bank's sustainable land management projects portfolio. Chapter three reports the increase in soil carbon for selected sustainable land management practices in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Chapter four reports the estimates from ecosystem simulation, while chapter five concludes with the benefits and costs of adopting carbon sequestering practices and a discussion of policy options to support climate smart agriculture in developing countries. The report will provide a broad perspective to natural resource managers and other professionals involved in scaling up Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA).
There is an increasing consensus in the scientific community that climate change is a real and present threat. Despite the large uncertainty on the timing, magnitude and even the direction of some of the physical and economic effects of this phenomenon, it is widely accepted that the differences are regional and that developing countries as well as lower income populations tend to suffer the most. In this context, it is critical for Latin American countries to develop strategies for adapting to the various impacts of climate change, and for contributing to global efforts aimed at mitigation. Climate Change in Latin America contributes to these efforts by addressing a number of questions related to the causes and consequences of climate change in the case of Latin America. What are the likely impacts of climate change in the region? Which countries and regions will be most affected? What can governments do to tackle the challenges associated with adapting to climate change? What role can Latin America play in the area of climate change mitigation? While the book does not attempt to provide definitive answers to these questions, it contributs new information and analysis that could help to inform the public policy debate on this important issue.
This book addresses the importance of soil processes in the global carbon cycle.Agricultural activities considered responsible for an increase in CO2 levels in our atmosphere include: deforestation, biomass burning, tillage and intensive cultivation, and drainage of wetlands.However, agriculture can also be a solution to the problem in which carbon can be removed from the atmosphere and permanently sequestered into the soil. Management of Carbon Sequestration in Soil highlights the importance of world soils as a sink for atmospheric carbon and discusses the impact of tillage, conservation reserve programs (CRP), management of grasslands and woodlands, and other soil and crop management and land use practices that lead to carbon sequestration.
"The increasing scientific consensus on global warming, together with the precautionary principle and the fear of non-linear climate transitions is leading to increasing action to mitigate global warming. To help mitigate global warming, carbon storage by forests is often mentioned as the only or the best way to reduce the CO2 concentration in the atmosphere. This book presents evidence that tropical grasslands, which cover 50% of the earth’s surface, are as important as forests for the sequestration of carbon. Results are reported of a large five year on-farm research project carried out in Latin America (Colombia, Costa Rica). Soil and vegetation carbon stocks of long-established pasture, fodder bank and silvopastoral systems on commercial farms were compared with those of adjacent forest and degraded land. The objective was to identify production systems that both increase livestock productivity and farm income and, at the same time, contribute to a reduction of carbon accumulation in the atmosphere. The project was carried out in four ecosystems: the Andean hillsides of the semi-evergreen forest in Colombia; the Colombian humid Amazonian tropical forest ecosystem; the sub-humid tropical forest ecosystem on the Pacific Coast of Costa Rica; and the humid tropical forest ecosystem on the Atlantic Coast of Costa Rica. The book is recommended reading for research and teaching scientists and policy makers with an interest to mitigating global warming."
