Terra Preta: The Microbial Reef

Filed in archive Earth Science on September 23, 2006

Professor Johannes Lehmann of Cornell University believes that "The global importance of a bio-char sequestration as a byproduct of the conversion of biomass to bio-fuels is difficult to predict but is potentially very large.". What this means is that many biofuel production methods could incorporate the production of bio-char for added sustainability!
For example, using bio-char to supplant fertilizer qualifies good soil management but also qualifies an as effective environmental pollution strategy. Using bio-char may help retain nitrogen in the soil, make other macro and micro-nutrients more available, thus increasing agricultural productivity. But is it all that?

Apparently not. It looks like there is a whole world of ecology in Terra Preta soils that is being discovered and understood as each day passes. Terra Preta soils may be creating a terrestrial carbon reef at a microscopic level that provides safe haven to microbes and fungi that facilitates in soil creation and improvement. Imagine, millions of microbes feeding off on carbon dioxide from the air, converting this to fertile soil, which is then used for producing food crops.

The combination of microbial carbon sequestration and agricultural-based carbon sequestration could be tremendous. According to Professor Kevin G. Harrisonof the Geology and Geophysics Department of Boston College, carbon dioxide fertilization may be slowing down the expected accumulation of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere through increased carbon sequestration into the soil and existing vegetation.