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Tag: Soil Science Society of America (SSSA)

  • How do tidal marshes store carbon?

    How do tidal marshes store carbon?

    Newswise — January 2, 2023 – Tidal marshes are wetlands that are covered with incoming tidal water twice a day. These marshes may be as small as narrow fringe along a tidal creek or miles across in estuaries with adjacent flat landscapes. There are nearly 40 million acres of tidal marshes along the Atlantic, Gulf, and Pacific shores of the US. The Soil Science Society of America’s (SSSA) January 1st Soils Matter blog explores how tidal marshes store carbon and why they are an important part of surrounding landscapes.

    Tidal marshes are also common in many estuaries such as the Chesapeake Bay and along rivers that enter these coastal estuaries. Tidal marshes are some of the most productive ecosystems on the planet. They are an important part of the landscapes because they provide flood protection, erosion control, wildlife food & habitat, water quality support, and many other benefits.

    Comparative to forest soils (that hold about 65% of the carbon held in a forest, with the rest of the carbon stored in plant life), tidal marshes store 3 to 5 times that amount in the soil.

    But why do tidal marshes store so much more carbon?

    According to Dr. Mark Stolt of University of Rhode Island, there are two major factors – the plant life, and the soil conditions.

    Marsh grasses and shrubs are drenched with full sunlight and the soils are rich in nutrients. This results in prolific plant growth above the ground. There is also growth below the ground in the form of roots and rhizomes. Marsh plants thrive in saturated conditions.

    Tidal waters that flood marshes bring in organic matter via sediment that is suspended in the flooding waters. That carbon-rich sediment is trapped by the marsh grasses. It settles to the bottom becoming part of the marsh peat.

    With twice-daily flooding, the soils are constantly under water, or saturated. Because the soil is under water, soil microbial activity is inhibited by the limited amount of oxygen. Without oxygen, soil microbes can’t decompose organic matter as well as oxygen-rich environments. This is the big reason why tidal marshes can accumulate much more carbon than forest soils.

    To read the entire blog please visit: https://soilsmatter.wordpress.com/2023/01/01/how-do-tidal-marshes-store-carbon/

    Follow SSSA on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/SSSA.soils, Twitter at SSSA_Soils. SSSA has soils information on www.soils.org/discover-soils, for teachers at www.soils4teachers.org, and for students through 12th grade, www.soils4kids.org.

    The Soil Science Society of America (SSSA) is a progressive international scientific society that fosters the transfer of knowledge and practices to sustain global soils. Based in Madison, WI, and founded in 1936, SSSA is the professional home for 6,000+ members and 1,000+ certified professionals dedicated to advancing the field of soil science. The Society provides information about soils in relation to crop production, environmental quality, ecosystem sustainability, bioremediation, waste management, recycling, and wise land use.

    American Society of Agronomy (ASA), Crop Science Society of America (CSSA), Soil Science Society of America (SSSA)

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  • Starting small to better understand key steps in the carbon cycle

    Starting small to better understand key steps in the carbon cycle

    Newswise — December 14, 2022 – Earth’s carbon cycle works on a global scale. But it can be affected by the tiniest of organisms: soil microbes. These microbes decompose organic matter like plant litter and dead organisms, and create simple carbon compounds. These simple carbon compounds can then be used by other organisms, or turned into gases (like carbon dioxide) and released into the atmosphere.

    Much like us, soil microbes can be picky about where they live and work. “Just as we may prefer a certain range of temperature and humidity, soil microbes have their preferable conditions too,” says Alyssa Kim, a researcher at Cornell University.

    Kim is the lead author of a new study that explores how soil conditions, like moisture level and pore size, can affect soil microbes. Understanding how different soil conditions impact microbial activity can give researchers a better handle on ways to increase soil health and fertility, and help combat climate change. For example, “it can be a critical part in reducing greenhouse gas emissions from agricultural fields after harvests,” says Kim.

    Kim recently presented her work at the 2022 ASA-CSSA-SSSA annual meeting, held in Baltimore, Maryland.

    Kim and her colleagues at Michigan State University compared microbial activity near corn and switchgrass leaf litter. Corn is a vital crop, and farmers in the United States planted nearly 90 million acres in the 2022 growing year. Switchgrass is a promising bioenergy crop with an expanding footprint. “Also, corn and switchgrass have different litter characteristics,” says Kim. “Litter chemistry affects how easily microbes can decompose different litters. The physical characteristics like texture can affect the water and air environment near litters.”

    Kim and her colleagues found that corn and switchgrass litters differ in how they change moisture levels in the soil near them. “We found distinct moisture depletion 0.1 to 1.5 millimeter away from switchgrass residues,” says Kim.

    To study this moisture distribution, Kim used a method called X-ray and Neutron computed tomography. This method works very similarly to medical CT scans. “It’s a very promising, non-destructive way to study soils and water in them,” says Kim.

    It turns out, moisture content is one of the most important factors influencing soil microbial activity. That’s because one way that microbes decompose organic material, like leaf litter, is by releasing chemicals called enzymes. Different enzymes break down different materials. For example, an enzyme called beta-glucosidase can break down plant cell walls. Another enzyme called chitinase can break down the exoskeletons of insects and some fungi. Once the enzymes break down their target materials into simpler chemicals, soil microbes can feast.

    “When soil moisture levels are optimal for microbes, they tend to produce more enzymes,” says Kim. That can lead to faster decomposition of leaf litter and the release of larger amounts of carbon dioxide. That’s exactly what Kim and her colleagues observed. Soil moisture levels were higher near corn litter, and decomposing corn litter released more carbon dioxide quicker than switchgrass litter.

    Although the study focused on millimeter-scale observations, it has large-scale implications. “Studying these microscale dynamics can help us to understand what is actually happening in our vast corn fields, and also, in promising bioenergy cropping systems like switchgrass,” says Kim.

    Kim also tested how soil pore size affects microbial enzyme activity. These pore sizes ranged from 10 to 30 micrometers, slightly smaller than the thickness of a single strand of most human hair. “It is crucial to study soil pore structures because that’s where soil microbes live,” says Kim.  Kim used a method called Zymography, to map the activity of different enzymes. “We add some chemicals onto the soil surface. Such chemicals show fluorescence when decomposed, and that is how we detect the location of enzymes.”

    Soil pore size affects different enzymes differently. Beta-glucosidase – the enzyme that breaks down plant cell walls – worked more efficiently in soils with smaller pores. On the other hand, chitinase enzyme activity was higher in soils with larger pore sizes. “These contrasting results tell us that what is decomposed in soils can depend on soil pore architecture,” says Kim. “That’s because there are different microbes living in pores of different sizes, producing different enzymes.”

    Soils in farm fields have a mix of large and small pores, which indicates a mix of moisture levels and different microbes. “In the future, I would like to look at soil pores and moisture levels on larger scales and test how differences in moisture distribution affects the decomposition process,” says Kim.

    This research was supported by Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center, U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Science, Office of Biological and Environmental Research (Award DE – SC0018409); National Science Foundation Long-term Ecological Research Program (DEB 1832042) at the Kellogg Biological Station; Michigan State University AgBioResearch; and special thanks to Dr. Sasha Kravchenko and Kravchenko Lab at Michigan State University, as well as Anders Kaestner at Paul Scherrer Institute in Switzerland.

    American Society of Agronomy (ASA), Crop Science Society of America (CSSA), Soil Science Society of America (SSSA)

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  • What is a soil carbon credit?

    What is a soil carbon credit?

    Newswise — November 15, 2022 – The agricultural industry is one of the largest sources of greenhouse gas emissions. Incentivizing climate-smart farming practices by creating “soil carbon credits” is one way to reduce the impact of agriculture on the environment. The Soil Science Society of America’s (SSSA) November 15th Soils Matter blog discusses soil carbon credits and carbon markets.

    Carbon can be stored in soil in many ways. One very important type of soil carbon is organic matter, which is made of decayed materials from living things like plants, animals and microbes.

    With a soil carbon credit system, carbon becomes a valued commodity for growers to gain additional revenue. One soil carbon credit represents 1 metric ton of carbon dioxide or an equivalent greenhouse gas emission that has been reduced, avoided, or removed from the atmosphere.

    Soil carbon credits are produced through carbon farming – using best practices that are known to hold carbon in the soils. Other practices that may receive credits might reduce nitrous oxide emissions. The practices vary by field but may include reduced tillage or no till, adding cover crops, rotational grazing, diversifying crop rotations, and reduced fertilizer usage.

    The new additional practices slow the rate in which carbon is released into the atmosphere and increases the storage of organic carbon in the soil. In a sense, carbon becomes a new crop.

    Growers “harvest” this crop through the collection and submission of data and records. They sell them to a new type of market, the carbon market.

    To ensure that the soil carbon credits are high-quality and the practices that generate them are environmentally beneficial, the credits must undertake a thorough vetting process. A project developer brings growers together and conducts all data collection and reporting. The project is then brought to a registry, which has established a set of standards for soil carbon projects.

    There are even third-party verifiers who ensure the data, methods, and results are accurate. They check that the results adhere to the registry’s standards. Once verified, the registry approves the project results and issues carbon credits that can be sold on a carbon market. Then, other companies, such as a manufacturer, can buy these credits to offset their carbon footprint.

    To read the entire blog, visit: https://soilsmatter.wordpress.com/2022/11/15/what-is-a-soil-carbon-credit/

    Follow SSSA on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/SSSA.soils, Twitter at SSSA_Soils. SSSA has soils information on www.soils.org/discover-soils, for teachers at www.soils4teachers.org, and for students through 12th grade, www.soils4kids.org.

    The Soil Science Society of America (SSSA) is a progressive international scientific society that fosters the transfer of knowledge and practices to sustain global soils. Based in Madison, WI, and founded in 1936, SSSA is the professional home for 6,000+ members and 1,000+ certified professionals dedicated to advancing the field of soil science. The Society provides information about soils in relation to crop production, environmental quality, ecosystem sustainability, bioremediation, waste management, recycling, and wise land use.

    American Society of Agronomy (ASA), Crop Science Society of America (CSSA), Soil Science Society of America (SSSA)

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  • Why Do Farmers Need to Test Their Soils?

    Why Do Farmers Need to Test Their Soils?

    Newswise — October 24, 2022 – The nutrients in the food we eat is a vital component to supporting a healthy lifestyle. But did you know that most of the nutrients in our food comes from the soil it is grown in? The October 22nd Sustainable, Secure Food Blog explains why farmers need to regularly test soils to ensure optimum levels of nutrients.

    Plants need 17 essential nutrients to function and carry their routine physiological processes. Of these nutrients, three are found in air and water: carbon (C), hydrogen (H), and oxygen (O). The remaining 14 nutrients come from the soil. Since humans cannot see, touch, or count nutrients through their naked eyes, they rely on scientific instruments found in soil testing laboratories to measure them.

    That is why every fall, after the harvest of cash crop, farmers collect representative soil cores from 4 to 6 inches depth at several locations on their farm. They send them a soil testing laboratory for analysis.

    Once a soil testing laboratory receives the soil, the lab dries, grinds, and sieves the sample to make it uniform before running the tests. Then they perform the requested tests designed to quantify nutrients in the soil. The results provide information on the soil’s nutrient supplying capacity primarily phosphorus, potassium, and micronutrients.

    Rishi Prasad, a scientist at Auburn University, explains that after soil scientists evaluate the soil test results, they can make recommendations on what is present in the soil and how much additional fertilizer would be needed to achieve optimal crop yields. Maintaining a record of soil test reports also provides valuable information on long-term changes in soil fertility. This allows farmers to make better decisions on fertility management to get optimum yields.

    To read the entire blog, visit: https://sustainable-secure-food-blog.com/2022/10/22/why-do-farmers-need-to-test-their-soils/

    About us: This blog is sponsored and written by members of the American Society of Agronomy and Crop Science Society of America. Members are researchers and trained, certified professionals in the areas of growing the world’s food supply while protecting the environment. Members work at universities, government research facilities, and private businesses across the United States and the world.

    American Society of Agronomy (ASA), Crop Science Society of America (CSSA), Soil Science Society of America (SSSA)

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  • Monitoring soil moisture to protect forest and wildland systems

    Monitoring soil moisture to protect forest and wildland systems

    Newswise — October 20, 2022 — A solid understanding of the water cycle is crucial to understanding landscape response under a changing climate. Soil moisture is a vital component of the water cycle with interactions and feedbacks that greatly affect the Earth’s critical zone. These topics will be discussed at the “National soil moisture monitoring network – focus on forest and wildland systems” symposium for the Communication and Public Engagement for Healthy People and a Healthy Planet ASA, CSSA, SSSA International Annual Meeting in Baltimore, Maryland.

    The meeting is sponsored by the American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America, and the Soil Science Society of America.

    Presentations include:

    • Modeling soil moisture – approaches in forested landscapes, Carlos Quintero, Oak Ridge Institution for Science and Education
    • Strategies for improved soil moisture monitoring and coordination in the United States, Michael Cosh, USDA
    • Using soil moisture information to better understand and predict wildfire danger, Tyson Ochsner, Oklahoma State University
    • Investigating the usefulness of forest soil moisture, Russell Briggs, SUNY-Syracuse
    • Soil moisture applications for informed decision making, John Bolten, NASA

    For more information about the Communication and Public Engagement for Healthy People and a Healthy Planet ASA, CSSA, SSSA International Annual Meeting, visit https://www.acsmeetings.org/. Media are invited to attend the conference. Pre-registration by October 25, 2022 is required.

    For more specific information about this symposium, visit https://scisoc.confex.com/scisoc/2022am/meetingapp.cgi/Session/23282.  

    To speak with one of the scientists, contact Susan V. Fisk, [email protected] to arrange an interview.

    American Society of Agronomy (ASA), Crop Science Society of America (CSSA), Soil Science Society of America (SSSA)

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  • Cleaner Wastewater Makes for Healthier Rivers

    Cleaner Wastewater Makes for Healthier Rivers

    Newswise — October 19, 2022 – Have you ever thought about where your waste goes? For people living in cities, it goes to a treatment plant. However, treated wastewater ultimately finds its way into a local waterway. This means it could end up in your nearby stream, river, or lake.

    Although wastewater treatment reduces the threat of disease, another problem remains: nutrients. Wastewater contains a lot of nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorus), including from pee and poop.  All plants and animals need nutrients to grow and thrive; however, too much of a good thing is a big problem, particularly for waterways. Rivers get sick when too many nutrients impair the ecosystem. One of the worst offenders is excess ammonia.

    “Ammonia is a nitrogen compound produced by the breakdown of organic matter in sewage. Discharge of ammonia into waterways can have direct toxic effects but also cause significant oxygen depletion that threatens the survival of aquatic life, including fish,” says Helen Jarvie. A professor of water science at the University of Waterloo in Canada, Jarvie studies how these nutrients affect waterways.

    The study was published in the Journal of Environmental Quality, a publication of the American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America, and Soil Science Society of America.

    Jarvie and her team studied what happened when two Canadian cities upgraded their wastewater treatment plants. Waterloo and Kitchener both sit along the Grand River. The Grand River is Canada’s largest river draining into Lake Erie. Over the last decade, the two cities began a program called ‘nitrification’ at their wastewater treatment plants. Nitrification turns ammonia into other types of nitrogen.

    “This ultimately reduces the amount of ammonia in the wastewater that’s discharged into waterways,” says Jarvie.

    Thanks to these upgrades, there was a massive drop in the amount of ammonia going into the river. Before the changes, the two wastewater plants discharged more than 90 metric tons of ammonia a month. In just one year, the Kitchener treatment plant reduced its ammonia release by 80%. A decade later, the total ammonia output had dropped to less than one metric ton a month, a 99% decrease. Nitrogen was still flowing into the river, but it was now in an amount and form that is less problematic for dissolved oxygen levels and fish.

    Jarvie’s team studied how this drop in ammonia from wastewater affected the river. One of the biggest signs of waterway health was the increase in the amount of oxygen in the water. Too much ammonia depletes oxygen, killing aquatic life. So, the Grand River Conservation Authority put sensors in the river to measure how these vital dissolved oxygen levels changed.

    River oxygen levels vary between daylight hours when plants produce oxygen, and the nighttime when oxygen is consumed. The scientists used the oxygen data to assess the overall metabolism of the river, which is the balance between how much organisms produce and how much they consume. When organisms consume too much, they use up a lot of oxygen.

    When ammonia levels were really high, the river oxygen levels were depleted overnight. The effects were greatest during the summer when the river was most biologically active. On nearly 90% of summer days before nitrification treatment, nighttime oxygen dropped below the levels needed to support aquatic life.  By the end of the study, nighttime oxygen dropped below levels needed to support the most sensitive creatures on only about 6% of summer days.

    “This represents an important improvement in the ecosystem health of the Grand River, as a result of the reductions in effluent ammonia loads,” says Jarvie.

    The river’s metabolism rebalanced, and oxygen levels improved. After upgrades to the wastewater treatment plants, the reduced consumption of oxygen meant the river was in better overall health.

    “This is a great success story,” says Jarvie. “We have shown how investments in wastewater management have yielded important improvement to the ecological health and water quality of the Grand River.”

    Improving our waterways will mean tackling all sources of excess nutrients. Jarvie emphasizes that wastewater is only part of the equation. “Agriculture is another very important contributor of nutrients to the Grand River, ultimately to Lake Erie and to other waterways.”

    The funding for this research was supported in part by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Council of Canada (NSERC) Discovery Grant Program, RGPIN-2022-03331.

    This year, 2022, is the 50th anniversary of the Clean Water Act. To learn more about research related to clean water, visit https://www.soils.org/clean-water-act.

    American Society of Agronomy (ASA), Crop Science Society of America (CSSA), Soil Science Society of America (SSSA)

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