Carbon sequestration is a topic worth exploring for its potential impact in Iowa and its benefits to Iowa producers, which include improving agricultural production, restoring environmental quality, and fostering long-term sustainability. Today, the Kyoto Accord has fundamentally changed the game.
Carbon is an essential element for almost all plant and animal life.
Carbon flowed through this cycle more or less in balance until the late 1880s. The burning of fossil fuels and deforestation, tilling of the soil, and draining wetlands have decreased the fixed, organic carbon and dramatically increased the atmospheric CO 2 . With the recent, sudden spike in CO 2 in the atmosphere, it is likely to be one of the culprits behind potential global warming. Sequestering carbon in the soil provides for an opportunity to reduce the amount of CO 2 in the atmosphere. In addition, carbon sequestration could help to ensure that productive land in Iowa is used to produce row crops, whereas marginal land is enrolled in conservation programs or converted to permanent cover.