For more than 500 million years, plants have been taking carbon dioxide
from the atmosphere and converting it into carbon based molecules
that are the foundation of life on Earth. Nearly all of that carbon that plants fix is converted back into CO2 or methane gas. When the organic molecules
that the plants produce are broken down by microbes in the environment
or inside other organisms. But a small fraction of this carbon
forms are longer lived, persisting in the environment
for centuries or eve
n longer,
and thereby staying out of the atmosphere. Historically, this has led to vast amounts
of carbon being stored in soils. However, much of this has been lost
as a result of human activities like agriculture and urban development
that alter ecosystems. We want to know
how stabilized forms of carbon are created and how to restore the long-term
sequestration capabilities of the soil so we can reduce atmospheric carbon
using the tools that nature has given us. This research center called REST
OR-C is part of the Carbon
Negative Earthshot to develop methods
to store large amounts of carbon at low cost, for a long time periods,
that can be deployed within a decade. We plan to do this by studying
how plants and soil microbes work together to make different carbon based molecules
and how environmental conditions like soil minerals, rainfall, and temperature affect how long they persist
before returning to the atmosphere. Our toolkit at the center includes
tiny chambers called EcoFABs, wh
ere individual plants will be grown
with precise control over their miniature environment,
down to the specific strains of bacteria, fungi
and viruses present around the roots. To understand plant environment systems with more complexity,
we'll be using our EcoPOD. A MINI Cooper-sized vessel with room for multiple plants
and multiple layers of soil. The EcoPOD is equipped with air
conditioning, irrigation, lights, and a variety of advanced sensors. It can be sealed shut
so researchers can study
how the plants and soil organisms within react
under different simulated conditions and get an exact accounting
of where carbon that enters the system ends up over time. These lab-based experiments
will be complemented with findings from field experiments
in California and New Mexico, and as the biologists and earth scientists
on the team generate huge datasets about soil chemistry
and gene expression. Computational researchers
will use machine learning tools to identify the different compounds,
model
where they came from, and predict which carbon products
are likely to last 100 years or more. Our goal is to identify which plant genes, microbes and soil and climate conditions lead to the production
of persistent carbon forms. Someday in the near future
these findings can be used to develop crop plants and beneficial microbes
that rapidly restore soil organics. Such approaches,
if broadly used, could help store massive amounts of excess carbon
dioxide for generations. We're looking to t
he future, one
with healthy ecosystems and a stable climate,
by looking at the ground.
Comments