...could speed climate change, report warns

by Michael Smith

Poor soil management could worsen climate change, a new report by the European Commission warns.

On a worldwide scale, soils contain around twice the amount of carbon in the atmosphere and three times the amount found in vegetation, so soil is both "a source and a sink of greenhouse gases", says the report.

Describing the balance between the two functions as "very delicate", it says: "If carbon is released from soil to the atmosphere or if methane and nitrous oxide emissions increase, climate change will be exacerbated.

"On the other hand, if more carbon is accumulated in soil and the emissions decrease, climate change will be retarded."

Europe's soils are a massive carbon reservoir, containing between 73 and 79 billion tonnes.

Read on: http://greenreview.blogspot.com/2009/04/poor-soil-management-could-speed...

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