On the state and tasks of soil organic carbon management

Abstract

Goal. To determine strategic measures in the field of balanced management of soil organic carbon, and reproduction of soil fertility, taking into account the voluntary national task to achieve a neutral level of land degradation in terms of maintaining the content of organic matter/humus in soils. Methods. Analysis — for evaluating the index of soil organic carbon and carbon dioxide emissions; expert — for identifying the main principles of soil organic carbon regulation; theoretical generalization — for the generalizing world and national experience, development, and implementation of complex management solutions and legislative initiatives in the field of soil organic carbon management. Results. Legislative, regulatory documents, and literary sources regarding the principles, approaches, and mechanisms of soil organic carbon management at the national and international levels are analyzed. The role of individual provisions of international strategic initiatives regarding the preservation of soil organic carbon and the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere, where the emission of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere plays a key role, and voluntary national tasks to achieve a neutral level of land degradation in terms of maintaining the content of organic matter/humus in soils is shown. Indicators of the content of humus in the arable layer of the soil, their changes compared to the indicators of humus in the soil during the time of V.V. Dokuchaiev, as well as standards for mineralization of humus and humification of organic materials (plant residues, cider crops, etc.). The influence of cultivation technologies on the emission of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere is determined by the example of drained sod-podzolic gleied light loamy soil. The implementation of the international initiative of the Global Soil Partnership (UN FAO) regarding the assessment of soil organic carbon reserves and other international initiatives related to greenhouse gas emissions, in particular, CO2, and binding (sequestration) of soil carbon is shown. Scientific approaches and directions for the management of soil organic carbon sequestration processes are considered. Conclusions. The leading role of soils as a source of organic carbon in the context of climate change is shown. National and international initiatives regarding the climate policy of greenhouse gas emissions and carbon sequestration by soils are summarized. An assessment of the parameters of the content of organic matter/humus in soils was carried out to solve the voluntary national task of achieving a neutral level of soil degradation. Proposals regarding the need to develop methodological principles for determining indicators of organic matter/humus content and carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere in the soil monitoring system are outlined. It is proposed to improve regulatory, informational, and technological provision of organic carbon management in the land use system.