Pulse Brain · Growing Health Evidence Index
Tier 4 — Narrative / commentaryPeer-reviewed

Put more carbon in soils to meet Paris climate pledges

Cornélia Rumpel, Farshad Amiraslani, Lydie‐Stella Koutika, Pete Smith, David Whitehead, Eva Wollenberg

Nature · 2018

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Summary

This Nature commentary argues that increasing carbon storage in agricultural soils represents a viable pathway for meeting Paris Agreement climate targets. The authors synthesise evidence on soil carbon dynamics and identify key scientific, policy and practical challenges to implementing soil carbon sequestration at scale. The paper suggests that coordinated agricultural and land-use policy could unlock significant climate mitigation benefits, though substantial barriers to deployment remain.

UK applicability

UK agriculture and land management are increasingly subject to climate commitments and net-zero targets; this analysis of soil carbon sequestration pathways and policy levers is directly relevant to UK farm-scale and national policy design. However, the commentary's global scope means specific recommendations may require contextualisation to UK soil types, climate and existing policy frameworks.

Key measures

Soil carbon sequestration rates; feasibility of scaling soil carbon approaches; policy and implementation barriers

Outcomes reported

The commentary examines the potential for increasing soil carbon storage in agricultural soils to contribute to international climate commitments. It synthesises evidence on soil carbon dynamics and identifies scientific, policy and practical challenges to scaling soil carbon sequestration globally.

Theme
Climate & resilience
Subject
Climate & greenhouse gas mitigation
Study type
Commentary
Study design
Narrative review
Source type
Peer-reviewed study
Status
Published
Geography
Global
System type
Mixed farming
DOI
10.1038/d41586-018-07587-4
Catalogue ID
BFmowc2b4w-t88u4x

Topic tags

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