It is the European Joint Program EJP-Soil project, which in Spain is coordinated by the CEBAS-CSIC
MURCIA, 10 (EUROPA PRESS)
Researchers from the Segura Center for Applied Edaphology and Biology (CEBASCSIC) participate in a project of the European Joint Program EJP-Soil, which seeks to determine the most suitable soil management strategies to improve agricultural productivity but which, in turn, serve to mitigate climate change by turning the land into a storehouse of carbon dioxide (CO2).
The project is coordinated by CREA of Italy (Consiglio per la Ricerca in Agricoltura e l’Analisi dell’Economia Agraria) and has 13 scientific institutions belonging to 9 European countries, including three CSIC centers: the CEBAS of Murcia, the Instituto of Agrarian Sciences (ICA) of Madrid and the Experimental Station of Aula Dei (EEAD) of Zaragoza.
The principal investigator of the EJP-Soil in Spain and member of the Group of Enzymology and Bioremediation of Soils of CEBAS-CSIC, Felipe Bastida, explains that “the objective of this project is to determine the soil management strategies that favor the sequestration of ‘C ‘in the soil and, in turn, reduce the flux of greenhouse gases, such as nitrous oxide or methane, at the continental level. The sequestration of’ C ‘is the ability of the soil to absorb, through from plants, CO2 from the atmosphere. ” ORGANIC FERTILIZATION BY REGION
The CSIC researchers involved in this project defend that the reuse of organic waste (composts, digested, biochar, etc.) is a fundamental strategy to increase soil fertility and productivity, while providing a rational and sustainable way out of the accumulation of residues and the sequestration of ‘C’ is favored.
However, the response of the soil to these organic materials depends a lot on the characteristics of the material, the type of climate and soil, as Mariluz Cayuela, a researcher at CEBAS-CSIC and participant in the EJP-Soil project, points out.
For this reason, Cayuela adds that “the impact of organic fertilization on the greenhouse gas balance must be studied for each specific region.”
In particular, the objective of this international research is to evaluate what type of organic amendments, as well as where, in what quantity and at what moment are associated with an increase in carbon sequestration in the soil, but at the same time, reducing the emission nitrous oxide and methane; both greenhouse gases closely associated with agricultural soils and with a warming potential much higher than that of CO2.
Bastida specifies that “each area has its own nutritional requirements, crops and climate. Therefore, the management of fertilizers and soil must necessarily be different.”
In addition, the project aims to identify the biotic (microorganisms, plants or crops) and abiotic (soil, climate) factors that govern said ‘balance’, also including aspects related to the soil microbiota and the quality and chemical composition of organic waste.
According to Bastida, “initiatives of this type are fundamental to generate an agriculture that is an economic engine, but at the same time with a high respect for the environment and that contributes to fight against climate change.
It is an ambitious project that will provide vital knowledge to end users and administrations, and will be essential to protect a critical non-renewable resource for humanity and future generations: soil. “
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