Carbon sink

Composite number

Ecology

Biology

Agroforestry

Carbon cycle

Materials science

Grazing

Soil carbon

Carbon fibers

Soil water

Atmospheric carbon cycle

Global warming

Climate change

Biomass (ecology)

Agronomy

Environmental science

Soil science

Composite material

Carbon dioxide

Biodiversity

Carbon sequestration

Grassland

Ecosystem

Science

Grasslands store approximately one third of the global terrestrial carbon stocks and can act as an important soil carbon sink. Recent studies show that plant diversity increases soil organic carbon (SOC) storage by elevating carbon inputs to belowground biomass and promoting microbial necromass contribution to SOC storage. Climate change affects grassland SOC storage by modifying the processes of plant carbon inputs and microbial catabolism and anabolism. Improved grazing management and biodiversity restoration can provide low-cost and/or high-carbon-gain options for natural climate solutions in global grasslands. The achievable SOC sequestration potential in global grasslands is 2.3 to 7.3 billion tons of carbon dioxide equivalents per year (CO 2 e year −1 ) for biodiversity restoration, 148 to 699 megatons of CO 2 e year −1 for improved grazing management, and 147 megatons of CO 2 e year −1 for sown legumes in pasturelands.

Grassland soil carbon sequestration: Current understanding, challenges, and solutions