Carbon

Carbon credits from sequestering carbon in soils and vegetation (such as warm season grasses) already have value and are being traded publicly through the Chicago Climate Exchange as well as through several other brokerage services. Speculation is rampant regarding the value of carbon credits when and if the United States institutes a carbon cap-and-trade system or a carbon tax system. Carbon sequestration in soils is highly variable and depends on past land use, soil type, climate, vegetation, and soil amendments. Current rules of thumb regarding carbon sequestration in soils are almost certainly underestimating their capacity to fix carbon. With support from the USDA Conservation Innovation Grant program, CMI will use the warm season grass monitoring sites to quantify soil carbon capture. If you are interested in participating in this monitoring please see the following invitation contact Dr. Glen N. Stevens, Conservation Management Institute, 1900 Kraft Dr. Suite 250, Blacksburg, VA 24061. 540-365-4554 or email at glsteven@vt.edu.