Speaker
Description
Enhanced weathering (EW) is proposed as a key strategy for climate change mitigation. Dissolution of silicate minerals enhances the alkalinity of the pore water, resulting at a shift of the carbonate system towards carbonate and bicarbonate, leading to higher dissolved inorganic carbon when the water is equilibrated with the atmosphere. Here, we evaluated the effects of EW on a crop ecosystem within a macro-scale ecotron—an enclosed facility enabling complete quantification of carbon fluxes among the atmosphere, vegetation, soil, and leachates. We monitored all greenhouse gases in deep mesocosms representative of marginal soil conditions and applied 10 t ha⁻¹ of basalt at the start of the experiment. EW treatment resulted in an almost three-fold enhancement of measured carbon flux into the soil, achieving rates up to 1.5 tons per hectare during the growing season. Furthermore, the magnitude of carbon sequestration exceeded what could solely be attributed to weathering rates. Therefore, we conclude that EW facilitated significant carbon accrual in our simulated ecosystems via not only carbonate precipitation but also enhanced biogeochemical activities promoting additional carbon storage. Based on these findings, we speculate on the underlying pathways responsible for such outcomes.
| If your abstract is not accepted for an oral presentation, would you be interested in presenting it as a poster instead? | Yes |
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| If accepted by the Scientific Board, I agree to have my presentation/poster and abstract published on the Belgian Climate Centre websites and social media. | Yes |
