GMOs, chemical agriculture release billions of tons of carbon into atmosphere

GMOs, chemical agriculture release billions of tons of carbon into atmosphere





Tuesday, May 13, 2014 by: Jonathan Benson, staff writer
Tags: GMOs, chemical agriculture, carbon emissions
(NaturalNews) The next time somebody tries to tell you that cow farts, cars or too many people are the impetus behind disastrous changes in the climatic norms of the planet, you may want to point them to a new analysis paper published in Yale University's Yale Environment 360 that unveils two of the actual causes of man-made climate change that the mainstream media refuses to talk about: genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and chemical-based, industrial agriculture.

The paper, entitled Soil as Carbon Storehouse: New Weapon in Climate Fight?, points to unsustainable agriculture -- this includes the planting of millions of acres of land with GM soy and corn, and the regular spraying of this land with toxic pesticides and herbicides -- as a major cause of excess carbon release. Healthy soils, it turns out, naturally sequester carbon and preserve it for the benefit of humans and the environment, but modern agricultural practices have destroyed much of it, creating a serious imbalance.

Many of America's former tall grass prairies, according to the analysis, have been converted into vast growing fields for government-subsidized commodity crops, which heavily tax the earth and create vast amounts of pollution. These crops are also planted in isolation using a monoculture format, which further depletes soil minerals and microbes and leads to a situation where natural soil carbon content is altered.

As a result, these damaged soils end up releasing stored carbon into the air, where it oxidizes and turns into carbon dioxide. And this constant and increasing release, say some experts, is what is truly responsible for disrupting normal climate patterns and possibly creating a situation where entire ecosystems are now at risk of collapse.

"Recognition of the vital role played by soil carbon could mark an important if subtle shift in the discussion about global warming, which has been heavily focused on curbing emissions of fossil fuels," wrote Judith D. Schwartz for Environment 360. "Reducing emissions is crucial, but soil carbon sequestration needs to be part of the picture as well."

Planting hemp, cannabis can reverse the soil damage caused by many decades of chemical agriculture
One way to go about accomplishing this is to abandon the chemical-intensive farming techniques that have taken over modern agriculture and return to the systems of old, including organic polyculture techniques that restore soil health by returning atmospheric carbon back to where it belongs -- in the soils!

"Scientists say that more carbon resides in soil than in the atmosphere and all plant life combined," added Schwartz, noting that the natural process of plant photosynthesis pulls CO₂ out of the atmosphere and returns it back into the soil. "[T]here are 2,500 billion tons of carbon in soil, compared with 800 billion tons in the atmosphere and 560 billion tons in plant and animal life."

Those involved in the movement to end the prohibition of both hemp and cannabis are also helping this process along, whether they realize it or not. The soil-restorative benefits of cannabis are virtually unmatched in nature, as this miracle plant naturally pulls in far more carbon dioxide than virtually any other tree, shrub or plant known to man.

"A field of medicinal weed will sequester around 22 tonnes of carbon dioxide per hectare," explains Carbon Planet, highlighting the benefits of industrial cannabis farming that are already occurring throughout Europe. "A typical crop is grown on 100+ hectare lots in Europe... and using crop rotation to keep the soil nice and fertile you can get two decent dope crops per year... so that's a sequestration rate of around 5000 tonnes per year."


http://www.naturalnews.com/045106_GMOs_chemical_agriculture_carbon_emissions.html