Agricultural Soil as a Carbon Sink
Abstract:
Aims: CO2Fixator is the commercial name given to a microbiological preparation consisting of a mixture of bac terial strains, consisting of Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus licheniformis, Nitrobacter, Lactobacillus plantarum, Thioba cillus denitrificans, and Methilococcus capsulatus; and a fungal strain Trichoderma viride. The bacterial strains metabolize organic soil substrates, fixing carbon in the soil and reducing carbon emissions in the form of gaseous CO2. Additionally, Trichoderma viride promotes the development of new plants. The aim of this study is to demon strate that a bacterial and fungal mixture can be used in sustainable agricultural practices to reduce the carbon footprint of agriculture: carbon and nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus are fixed in the soil, greenhouse gas emissions are reduced by limiting carbon volatility, and the water retention capacity and cation exchange capacity of the soil increase.
Methods: This method involves the use of CO2 sensors and laboratory analyses to quantify substances present in the soil and verify that CO2 fixation has occurred.
Results: This study provides evidence to demonstrate that CO2Fixator increases the quantity of soil carbon and soil quality.
Conclusions: The mixture transforms agricultural soil into a carbon sink while improving soil quality.
Discussion: Organic substances are metabolized by bacteria normally present in the soil, with CO2 as a catabo lite. The element of greatest interest in this study is organic carbon, a component of soil that essentially consists of carbon present in organic compounds, which includes carbon in molecules such as carbohydrates, proteins, lipids and nucleic acids.
