Carbon 101

Soil is one of our most precious natural resources, and we believe that producers should get value from protecting it. To understand why sequestering carbon and paying farmers for doing so is so important, we should first dig into what carbon actually is.

Carbon is the basis of life

Carbon is a naturally occurring element that makes up every living thing. Carbon dioxide is a gas that is added to the atmosphere through natural events such as the decay of plants and animals, forest fires, and volcanic eruptions.  Carbon dioxide is vital to the health and growth of plants. They take it out of the atmosphere during photosynthesis, the process where plants convert the energy from the sun into a chemical carbohydrate molecule that they then use to grow. Plants therefore “sequester” carbon; they store it in their biomass and also in the soil. Carbon is a vital element in healthy soil, and regenerative agriculture practices can increase the amount of carbon that plants can store in the soil.

Organic Matter

Carbon and plant growth are intrinsically linked.  Adding organic matter is an example of an influential regenerative practice that increases the amount of carbon in the soil. Adding organic matter such as manure to the soil surrounding growing plants fertilizes them, causing them to grow larger and store more carbon. Fertilizing plants with organic matter also eliminates the need for synthetic fertilizers which are made from fossil fuels and create their own GHG emissions. Soils are the largest carbon reservoir in the carbon cycle as they hold more carbon than both the atmosphere and all vegetation. Carbon storage in soils is the balance between the input of dead plant material such as leaves, root litter, and decaying wood and losses from the decomposition of organic matter. When measuring carbon stocks, the quantity of carbon in the system, the amount of organic matter is often measured as it is more than half carbon. The amount of carbon measured can be converted into an estimate of organic matter, showing how strong the relationship is between the amount of organic matter and carbon in the soil.

Soil Aggregation

Another important factor in storing carbon in the soil is soil aggregation. Good soil aggregation leads to the physical protection of soil organic carbon within aggregates, groups of soil particles that bind to each other. Regenerative practices cause soil aggregation, increasing the carbon storing ability of soil. An example of a regenerative practice that encourages this is planting cover crops. By having roots in the ground instead of exposing soil to the elements, cover crops protect soil aggregates from water and wind erosion. Another practice that improves soil aggregation and soil carbon content is reduced or no till. Tilling prepares the soil for planting by overturning it. This sounds like a good thing, but over tilling negatively impacts the structure of the soil and disrupts soil aggregation.

By adopting regenerative practices such as applying organic matter, growing cover crops, or reducing tillage, the health of the soil can be restored and more carbon will be sequestered. Since these practices protect the health of soil, we believe that farmers should be properly rewarded for adopting them. Carbon credits provide one tool to get farmers paid for the carbon they create in their soil.

The amazing thing about soil carbon credits is they represent carbon dioxide that has been removed from the atmosphere permanently. Unlike avoided emissions which result from improved practices that avoid emitting CO2 in the first place, carbon removal actively pulls carbon out of the atmosphere and stores it in the soil all the while producing crops on the land. 

To receive credits for sequestering carbon, a farmer must have already implemented or plan to implement one or more regenerative practices. Farmers provide us with their farm record data, and the farmers practices are verified by a third party. Then, a registry issues carbon credits which are sold to buyers and farmers make a profit. The transition to regenerative practices can be costly, and without higher valued carbon credits, farmers won’t be influenced to change.

Carbon Yield enables farmers to get real value from carbon markets by providing them access to attractive markets that can pay them a premium price for their credits. We negotiate offset sales agreements with sustainable brands that pay farmers the price they deserve for their efforts.

The standard for high-quality carbon credits is that they represent reductions in carbon emissions that are permanent, additional, and verifiable. Additionality means that by purchasing carbon credits, one is actually adding to the carbon reduction in the world instead of supporting a reduction that already happened.