Can soil help solve our climate problem?
The idea that farmers can capture carbon and improve their bottom lines at the same time is gaining ground in the agriculture community and among business leaders and policymakers. They would like to pay farmers for adopting practices, such as using cover crops and low-till methods, that take carbon from the atmosphere and store it, presumably for centuries, in the soil. Large-scale adoption of so-called carbon farming, proponents say, can transform the industry from a greenhouse gas emitter to a global carbon absorber.