Increase Carbon Capture
Carbon dioxide (CO2) is the most important GHG in the Earth’s atmosphere. Global
atmospheric CO2 concentrations reached 422 parts per million (ppm) in 2024 and have been
increasing at an average rate of 2.3 ppm per year since 2009. Approximately two-thirds of the total increase in atmospheric CO2 is derived from fossil fuel combustion. The other one-third is the result of land-use change - conversion of natural vegetation to managed land and a small amount from the use of lime on agricultural soils. In Ireland in 2022 agricultural CO2 accounted for 0.751 MTCO2e or 3.3% of agricultural GHG emissions. Within the Land-use, Land-use change and Forestry Sector agricultural grasslands were a source of 2.48 MTCO2e and forestry was a sink of 2.44 MTCO2e (EPA, 2024).
Priority Research Questions
- What are the baseline carbon emissions and sequestration fluxes from mineral, organomineral and peat soils?
- What is the impact of forestry and forestry management on biomass and soil carbon fluxes?
- What is the impact of grassland, tillage and on farm tree management practices on farm carbon fluxes and balances?
- How does water table management influence soil carbon emissions from agricultural and rough-grazed peat soils?
- What are the best agricultural and LULUCF models to quantify carbon fluxes and
sequestration for inventory development and to support carbon farming?
Anticipated Research Outcomes
- Establishment of baseline carbon emission and sequestration fluxes from agricultural soils.
- Development of models that allow carbon sequestration to be measured/ estimated at a field/farm level across Ireland.
- Improved mapping of soil types, land management, land-use, peat soil areas and improve activity data for soil emissions and sequestration.
- Inclusion of carbon sequestration and carbon emission from soils in AgNav to support carbon farming.
- Reduced inventory uncertainty through refined national CO2 emission factors associated with lime and fertilisers.
Gary Lanigan
Carbon Pillar Lead
Research Snapshots
Measuring Soil Carbon and Above Ground Carbon Stocks on Signpost Farms
The National Agricultural Soil Carbon Observatory (NASCO) consists of 28 Eddy Covariance Flux Towers located on benchmark sites including agricultural grasslands, mineral soils and peatlands. NASCO and the Signpost Programme are coherently combining knowledge, infrastructures and tools to establish Irish specific emission factors for soil carbon sequestration for inclusion in Ireland’s National Inventory.
How Much Soil Carbon is Stored Under the Signpost Farms [pdf]
Dr Stuart Green on Monitoring, Reporting, & Verifying Above Ground Carbon Stocks on the Signpost Farms. Paper: Biodiversity and Stored Carbon (PDF)
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Current projects on carbon capture