Scientists created a new portable, affordable, and reliable method for measuring soil carbon, using a new device, developed by EMBRAPA-Agricultural Instrumentation, that employs laser-induced optical techniques to measure the carbon levels and their stability in whole soil samples. The device is so light and convenient that it can be used directly in the field.
The device has been tested for a variety of agricultural and land use systems in southern Peru, which represent the most common agroecosystems found in worldwide tropical areas.
“We have tools and means to help mitigate these effects, and to transform an environmental risk into an opportunity for retaining soil carbon while improving the livelihoods of poor farmers,” said CIP principal investigator Roberto Quiroz.
According to the CIP website, scientists and farmers are working on three strategies: “developing more stress-resistant crops, so that farmers can continue to grow them in existing fields at lower elevations; using crop management techniques (e.g., mulching, water management) and diversified farming systems that balance soil carbon losses with methods to capture and retain soil carbon; and implementing financial incentives and other techniques that reward farmers for improved stewardship of natural carbon sinks and soils.”
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