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Grasslands more reliable carbon sink than trees
Unlike forests, grasslands sequester most of their carbon underground, while forests store it mostly in woody biomass and leaves. When wildfires cause trees to go up in flames, the burned carbon they formerly stored is released back to the atmosphere. When fire burns grasslands, however, the carbon fixed underground tends to stay in the roots and soil, making them more adaptive to climate change…
“In a stable climate, trees store more carbon than grasslands,” said co-author Houlton, director of the John Muir Institute of the Environment at UC Davis. “But in a vulnerable, warming, drought-likely future, we could lose some of the most productive carbon sinks on the planet… We really need to start thinking about the vulnerably of the ecosystem carbon, and use this information to de-risk our carbon investment and conservation strategies in the 21st century”…
Why are America’s farmers killing themselves?
“It is dark in the workshop, but what light there is streams in patches through the windows. Cobwebs coat the wrenches, the cans of spray paint and the rungs of an old wooden chair where Matt Peters used to sit. A stereo plays country music, left on by the renter who now uses the shop…”
Michigan farmers, residents, praise wind power
Farmers are committing suicide in record numbers—in the US and around the world. Crop and water disasters are a major part of this, resulting in loss of income, massive debt, and unending despair. For some, “farming energy” with solar and wind, along with more traditional agricultural products, may avoid the unhappy reality of selling for development.
“For those committed to farmland conservation programs, Mills said, wind farms and wind turbines help keep farmers living on their farm lands, help attract and retain younger people, and help provide diversified funding streams…”
This farmer turns manure into clean water and it may be the future of farming
Austin Allred is so devoted to dairy farming that he switched over to it after growing up as a crop farmer. He now runs Royal Dairy, located in central Washington, where cows are a powerful tool in an astonishing process that creates bio-rich soil and clean irrigation water while cutting down greenhouse gases.
That’s because as much as Royal Dairy cares about what goes into the cows, visitors will quickly realize that their operation is equally concerned with what comes out of them…
This new solar farm combines clean energy and bee hives
For pollinators, sprawling solar plants can provide space for much-needed habitat. (By the spring of 2019, when the new native plants are more established, the Eagle Point solar farm will offer 41 acres of new habitat.)
For nearby farms growing crops that rely on pollinators–at a time when thousands of wild pollinators are at risk of extinction, and beekeepers are still struggling to maintain their populations of honeybees–this type of project can also play a role in supporting the food supply…
California is turning farms into carbon-sucking factories
In a grand experiment, California switched on a fleet of high-tech greenhouse gas removal machines last month. Funded by the state’s cap-and-trade program, they’re designed to reverse climate change by sucking carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere. These wonderfully complex machines are more high-tech than anything humans have designed. They’re called plants.
Seriously though…
Global warming can turn monarch butterflies’ favorite food into poison
Louisiana State University researchers have discovered a new relationship between climate change, monarch butterflies and milkweed plants.
It turns out that warming temperatures don’t just affect the monarch, Danaus plexippus, directly, but also affect this butterfly by potentially turning its favorite plant food into a poison…
Combining solar panels with agriculture makes land more productive
Climate change enhanced extreme weather, pests, and fungus is already causing additional stress on agriculture; solar and wind payments may play a critical role in keeping more farmers and ranchers on the land…
Understanding the views and actions of U.S. farmers towards climate change
Cornell Institute for Climate Change and Agriculture (CICCA) teamed up with the USDA to provide a summary of research related to farmers’ perspectives on climate change, revealing:
Farmers’ beliefs and concerns about climate change are related to their willingness to adopt climate change adaptation and mitigation practices. Farmers who believe in climate change are more likely to support and/or adopt adaptation practices…
Timing is key in keeping organic matter in wet soils, new study finds
When it comes to keeping organic matter contained in wet soils, timing is everything. At least, that’s what a new study led by an Iowa State University ecologist suggests…
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