Managing Agricultural Greenhouse Gases: The Basis of GRACEnet.

Since 2002, USDA Agricultural Research Service has been engaged in a national project called GRACEnet (Greenhouse gas Reduction through Agricultural Carbon Enhancement network).  Goals of the project are to (1) evaluate soil organic carbon status and change, (2) assess net greenhouse gas emissions (CO₂, N₂O, and CH₄), and (3) determine ancillary environmental responses (air, water, and soil quality) within existing typical and alternative agricultural systems.  Since the network’s inception, a large research effort has been conducted and reported.  Syntheses of this effort in the USA have been developed periodically, and we anticipate publication in 2012 of the newest synthesis in a book called Managing Agricultural Greenhouse Gases.  This presentation outlines the chapters and some of their findings on soil carbon sequestration and emission of greenhouse gases.