It doesn’t matter what kind of agriculture you are involved in, soil carbon is the lifeblood of your farm or ranch. Soil microbes feed on it and in exchange soil becomes fertile and productive. This process also provides a valuable service of sequestering carbon dioxide from the atmosphere in the ground.
The science behind soil carbon sequestration is evolving and not always easy to understand, so we are running a field day on how measuring soil carbon levels work and how to increase those levels on your land.
Rural Routes to Climate Solutions has teamed up with Food Water Wellness Foundation, Pachaterrae, Foothills Forage and Grazing Association and the Wrays Farm for a workshop on how soil carbon sequestration works on agricultural land and how you as a producer can promote it on your land and benefit from it.
Along with a ranchland ecologist and soil microbiologist, we will explore reasons as to why different management practices sequester carbon at different rates. We will taking core samples that day to see what is happening below ground and understand the system in measuring soil carbon.
Doug and Linda Wray run 300-plus cows and over the years, they have developed year-round grazing strategies such as rotational grazing, early grass varieties, stockpiled grass, bale grazing, swath grazing, and the right mix of livestock. In 2016, Doug Wray was awarded Canadian Forage and Grassland Association’s 2016 Leadership Award.
Much is made of agriculture adverse impact on climate change. Promoting soil carbon sequestration is agriculture’s chance to change that narrative to one where farmers and ranchers are playing a leading role reducing greenhouse gas emissions and restoring our depleted soil.
A field day like this doesn’t come around very often. We hope you can be there!
