Soil Carbon Sequestration and Algae

Our planet is at the brink. As the human population continues to grow the amount of resources our communities demand from the planet also continues to grow. Carbon dioxide emissions (CO2) are a natural byproduct of human industrial activity. Everything from agriculture and power generation to server centers produces CO2. While innovations in these fields have brought about incremental reductions to emissions output, an unhealthy amount of CO2, methane, and other harmful contaminants continue to impact our planet’s atmosphere and ecosystems.

While not a panacea (cure-all), algae provides an opportunity to help us mitigate some of these emissions. Algae grow and are cultivated by humans all over the world. Most algae species are great at taking carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and using it to multiply. The carbon dioxide gets stored within the walls of the algal cells during the photosynthesis process and when the algae die the carbon dioxide remains in the water column or sinks to the floor of the water body and is stored there. On land, the opportunity to store carbon captured by algae is in our soils.

What is Soil Carbon Capture

Soil carbon sequestration is an important process that can help mitigate climate change. Soil carbon capture is the process of soil taking excess or waste carbon dioxide and holding it within the soil. This process occurs naturally when plants and microorganisms within the soil take carbon dioxide from the air and use it to grow. The CO2 captured will remain in the soil…