It would benefit states like Maryland, where farmers are pushed by water-quality goals to set new environmental standards. Storing more carbon permanently involves some uncertainties for farmers. Plowing, for example, is a major no-no. Within minutes after spring plowing, carbon begins combining with air to form CO2, a process that continues for weeks, Lal says. Many farmers plant without plowing for a few years at a time, but most plow some years to help manage weeds and pests.
Organic farmers depend heavily on plowing to manage weeds without herbicides.
But that offsets most of the gains in carbon storage, Lal says. So farmers will need compensation. But anything that combats global warming and cleans up the Chesapeake Bay ought to be worth something. Off limits to most humans, Aberdeen Proving Ground has become a wildlife refuge.