The dilemma began when we challenged ourselves to solve the elemental issue of food security about a century ago. We assumed that the climate would not change, but unknowingly we created numerous environmental issues through industrial agriculture causing the degradation of the natural resources such as soil. We thought focusing on the interdependent human needs – water, energy and food is enough to address the current and future challenge of sustaining humankind while protecting and addressing environmental concerns. But, the continuous degradation of the soil as the human needs interacted showed we were, and still are, obviously getting nowhere fast. If we do not recognize the role of soil as a critical component of food, energy and water security, we are treading on dangerous grounds!
Regrettably, agricultural activity is a major cause of soil degradation and moving agriculture towards a sustainable path has not been easy. This is because the application of mineral fertilizers to increase crop productivity has influenced soil health negatively over the years. Also, the landfill issues such as insufficient land tract and greenhouse gas emissions from waste disposal arising due to the growing global population and its increasing demand for food, feed and fibre combined with a changing climate have been associated with multiple environment issues.
How can these issues be tackled? One of the potential ways to address these issues is the adoption of biobased residues (BBR) approach – The application of diverted, recycled and processed wastes from organic waste chains into agricultural lands. The product generated is called biobased residues- an organic matter- and nutrient-rich soil amendment that can enhance soil health and crop productivity and can also contribute to the circular bioeconomy. However, the question of assessing the efficacy of the products in relation to improving soil health under a changing climate is important so as to assess the potential of the approach in addressing soil degradation and securing the soil.
My PhD research investigates the impact of BBR on soil health under a changing climate. The research will 1) quantify and compare temporal greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions on various BBR products such as composted food waste, biosolid and anaerobic digestate applied on Quebec and Ontario soils 2) Evaluate the impact of winter events through a freeze thaw study on GHG emissions in Quebec and Ontario soils receiving different BBR products 3) also quantify and compare changes in soil health and soil organic carbon (SOC), using responsive indicators such as soil structure, organic matter, pH, microbial activity and GHG fluxes, and quantify grain yield and biomass in Quebec and Ontario soils. With this research, we will be able to contribute to soil and agronomic management and also predict future changes in SOC and GHG emissions.
Therefore, it is important for us all to consciously remind ourselves that land will be a luxury with time and the most viable solution to increasing productivity, and we have to explore alternatives to address its management and that is what BBR approach has offered us.
For further reading
Hatfield, J. L., Sauer, T. J., & Cruse, R. M. (2017). Soil: The forgotten piece of the water, food, energy nexus. In Advances in Agronomy (Vol. 143, pp. 1-46). Academic Press.
Ho, A., Ijaz, U. Z., Janssens, T. K., Ruijs, R., Kim, S. Y., de Boer, W., ... & Bodelier, P. L. (2017). Effects of bio-based residue amendments on greenhouse gas emission from agricultural soil are stronger than effects of soil type with different microbial community composition. Gcb Bioenergy, 9(12), 1707-1720.
Lal, R. (2011). Soil health and climate change: an overview. In Soil health and climate change (pp. 3-24). Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg.
United Nations (UN) (2015). Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (https://sustainable development.un.org/post2015/transformingourworld)