THORSBY, Alta. — There is tremendous potential to store carbon in grasslands but that ability is under appreciated, says a University of Alberta researcher.
Grasslands store 10 to 30 percent of the world’s organic carbon.
Temperate grasslands contain more than 300 gigatons of carbon. About nine gigatons are found in plants and the rest is stored in the soil. A gigaton is one billion metric tons.
“This represents a very significant benefit to society that this carbon is being retained in the ground where it should be,” said Ed Bork at a recent drought management workshop in Thorsby, Alta.
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Soil carbon improves fertility and does not contribute to emissions in the atmosphere.
He and others are researching the capability of grasslands to store carbon as well as the possible environmental correlation with managed livestock grazing.
Plants take in solar energy, convert it to carbon and store it in the soil. His work shows there is about 80 tonnes per hectare in prairie grasslands while cropland stores 60 tonnes per hectare.
About 90 percent of the parklands region of the prairies has been cultivated so carbon was released into the atmosphere.
“Much of the carbon in the atmosphere is also attributed to land use change, not just in North America but in other parts of the world,” he said.
Alberta charges heavy emitters $15 per tonne for carbon dioxide equivalents. That will increase to $30 a tonne in January.
Crop farmers can earn money by adopting practices like minimum tillage in the carbon trading market but those activities never return the element to its original state.
Bork contends grazing and carbon storage are linked and his research is looking at which system is most beneficial.
Preliminary results showed more methane stayed in the soil when the grassland was exposed to grazing.
Assessments are done with special monitors to measure gas emissions on selected sites.
Researchers noticed intensive, continuous grazing, or mob grazing with high intensity but low frequency, results in more methane uptake by the soil.
“Our grazing system can actually reduce greenhouse gas footprints by taking methane out of the atmosphere,” he said.
Government needs to develop a policy to reward producers who maintain grasslands because of the link between greenhouse gas reduction and grazing, he said.
However when crops like canola are high value, farmers make different choices.
“Economics are going to drive everything. When you have got $11 canola, that is going to drive decisions.”
