The UN climate summit, Cop30, is currently taking place in Belém, Brazil, a region with some of the most carbon-dense soils on Earth: the Amazonian dark earths. These deep, dark and exceptionally fertile soils are thought to have been intentionally enriched with carbon.
Ancient Indigenous communities likely spread ash and organic waste on the land to enhance fertility and support crop production. Now, some conservation groups like Conscious Planet are calling for countries to commit to intentionally enhancing soil carbon the world over as a key part of international climate action. As a soil carbon scientist, I’m here to explain why.
Soil is a vital component of the climate system. It is one of the largest stores of organic carbon on Earth – containing more carbon than both the atmosphere and vegetation combined. This makes soil both a climate risk and an opportunity.
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