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Created: Feb 23, 2008
Updated: Nov 20, 2009
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Sequestering CO2 in Soil
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John Schendel took the January 2008 Earth Activist Training course. Since then, he has done some literature searching and analysis on sequestering carbon dioxide in soil using various approaches including permiculture techniques, namely no-till agricultural practices. Two people, Abe Collins and Darren Dougherty, have reportedly asserted that humans can reduce atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations to pre-industrial levels by increasing the soil organic carbon (SOC) content in the top one foot of the world's agricultural topsoil by 1.6 percent annually over a ten-year period. This assertion is reportedly based on the work of Allan Yeomans and his book Priority One. John reviewed the assertion and discusses his findings in the document above. His findings are based on assumptions about how the assertion made by Mr. Collins and Mr. Dougherty was derived. John is interested in feedback on his write-up and whether or not it accurately reflects the basis of the assertion. Any feedback is welcome.
Hey, John: I have other comments to make on the mechanics of your paper, but despite that, the idea of re-sequestering previously sequestered fossil Carbon is like rationalizing a deadly drug habit, or to put it more nicely, 'having your cake and eating it too'. The difference between an individually self-destructive addiction and our cultural addiction is the huge difference in consequences of not acting to break the habit.
Despite the inherent value of "no-till" and similar practices, which should stand on their own, using this or anything else to rationalize our human Western model of addiction to fossil Carbon misses the point. What is needed is to stop using Carbon--period. All else is self-delusion, laziness, greed, politics, rationalization, stupidity, ignorance, and other negative influences as revealed on a case by case basis.
I do not mean this as criticism of you, since you conclude the proposal in your paper does not work. What I would invite you and everyone else to do is to examine the problem at its root. We have a habit of manipulating the world to correct problems we perceive and ignore the negative impact on other unperceived or ignored problems. 'Robbing Peter to pay Paul' is the popular expression, and it needs to be kept firmly in mind.
Thanks for the opportunity to comment.
David
Messages done with sustainable energy, with Wind and Sun!