A new study by The National Soil Project at Northeastern University in the United States, in collaboration with the Organic Center, concludes that organic agricultural practices build healthy soils and can be part of the solution in the fight on global warming.

One of the key findings is that on average, organic farms have 44% higher levels of humic acid (the component of soil that sequesters carbon over the long term) than soils which are not managed organically.

The Organic Center contacted organic farmers who acted as “citizen scientists” to collect organic soil samples from throughout the country to compare with the conventional soil samples already in the National Soil Project’s data set. Altogether, the study measured 659 organic soil samples from 39 states and 728 conventional soil samples from all 48 contiguous states. It found that that all the components of humic substances were higher in organic than in conventional soils.

“This study is truly groundbreaking,” said Dr Jessica Shade, Director of Science Programs for The Organic Center. “We don’t just look at total soil organic carbon, but also the components of soil that have stable pools of carbon – humic substances, which gives us a much more accurate and precise view of the stable, long-term storage of carbon in the soils.”

Photo Caption: Dr Jessica Shade

Photo Credit: Audubon

The post Is organic production better for the climate? appeared first on Hort News on 28 Sept 2017.