Carbon (C) in soil is essential for reducing and responding to climate change worldwide. The measurement of in-situ soil carbon sequestration encounters several challenges, including aerial covering, costs, precision, and availability. Carbon sequestration and emission are vital for controlling climate change.
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Formerly named Cloud Agronomics, Perennial is developing an industry-leading platform for soil-based CO2 sequestration. The company's ultimate objective is to transform soils into the biggest carbon sink by validating insets and offsets.
Perennial utilizes modern remote monitoring equipment to quantify soil carbon sequestration and emissions. Its technique improves the precision, specificity, and scalability of measuring soil carbon.
Perennial engages with the food sector and retail packaging industry to monitor and reduce agricultural CO2 emissions. For carbon offsets, it collaborates with producers of soil CO2 offset programs to measure and validate soil carbon.
Importance of Soil Carbon Sequestration and Emissions Measurement
Carbon sequestration in the soil is the most effective method for countering climate change. It can be achieved by liberating soil as the greatest carbon sink globally.
Carbon sequestration in soils aids in the restoration of deteriorated soils, which increases agricultural production. Farms with healthier soils are more resistant to both drought and heavy precipitation.
If soils are disturbed, the carbon absorbed by carbon sequestration can be released. Consequently, remote sensing emission measurements are required to preserve proper soil management methods.
The Crucial Role of Nature-Based Carbon Removal
Carbon markets are currently experiencing a supply crisis as the need for carbon offsets exceeds the availability of certified offsets. This results in organizations purchasing supply faster than it is produced, which, in certain situations, necessitates the establishment of advance-market agreements to expedite carbon removal technology based on assured future demand.
To close this gap and reach its emission reduction goals, the world requires carbon removal from nature. As one of the nature-based alternatives, agricultural soils can remove CO2 without infringing on new land while simultaneously enhancing soil quality, biodiversity, and agricultural production.
The Agricultural Industry Context
Agricultural industry is one of the largest producers of carbon dioxide and has the potential to provide effective countermeasures to climate change.
Agricultural soils are capable of sequestering and storing billions of tons of CO2 released into the atmosphere. Farm owners can lead the process via regenerative agriculture while profiting from carbon offsets.
The measurement and validation of carbon sequestered in soil remain expensive and difficult, and present technologies cannot be scaled to millions of acres. A precise, cost-effective, and scalable method for measuring and reporting carbon sequestered in soil everywhere and at all times is needed. This is the solution to unlocking the vast market potential for dependable soil-based carbon offsets.
Perennial is dedicated to adhering to reductions in greenhouse gas regulations and collaborates with major organizations to facilitate the process for farmers to acquire offset credits. The firm works with clean energy regulators and interacts with the largest project developer to provide less expensive regenerative farming approaches.
The Technology Behind Soil-Based Carbon Sequestration
Perennial's technique to monitor CO2 in soils is based on years of academic study into remote sensing and field observations. This technique assesses soil carbon sequestration using remote sensing as opposed to physical sampling. The company's technology reduces or eliminates the need for an actual soil sample, reducing the expenses associated with carbon offsets.
Each Perennial measurement comprises a large number of independent projections, capturing the carbon footprint of each region. This method combines deep learning, field observations, and remote sensing to map historical, current, and projected soil carbon and land-based emissions at the continental scale. Traditional measuring employs a limited number of points per field. The measurement of Perennial gives the entire image.
Perennial’s Technology Backed by the Latest Research
Perennial utilizes an in-house database of in-situ soil samples from farmland, in conjunction with remote sensing and environmental factors, to train algorithms using machine learning to project organic carbon concentration in soils over time.
Each algorithm created by Perennial is subjected to rigorous cross-validation to guarantee that performance standards are met, even when no soil samples can be obtained.
Using a combination of deep learning and remote sensing technology, Perennial assesses the level of carbon and other minerals in soil without the expensive and time-consuming procedure of acquiring soil samples and transporting them to a lab for analysis.
The Potential of Carbon Sequestration
Reducing the costs of sampling reduces the cost of producing carbon offsets on agricultural land. This solves a significant problem in today's carbon markets, where demand for carbon offsets exceeds the existing supply.
In the last year, corporate agreements to reduce carbon emissions have multiplied inside and beyond the agri-food value chain. However, without nature-based carbon removal techniques such as using soil, it is doubtful that these corporations would accomplish their reduction goals. The development of agricultural land as a recognized asset for generating carbon offsets is supported by Perennial's platform with increased transparency and auditing.
Conclusion
Carbon sequestration and emission measurement are vital for controlling the climate crisis. Perennial utilizes innovative remote monitoring equipment to quantify soil carbon sequestration and emissions. This technology is driving the development of climate-smart farming and contributing to the decarbonization of the food supply chain. Perennial provides a mission-driven, collaborative atmosphere and has a diverse team with expertise in science, carbon markets, and agriculture.
References and Further Reading
Nayak, A. K., Rahman, M. M., Naidu, R., Dhal, B., Swain, C. K., Nayak, A. D., Tripathi, R., Shahid, M., Islam, M. R., & Pathak, H. (2019). Current and emerging methodologies for estimating carbon sequestration in agricultural soils: A review. Science of The Total Environment, 665, 890–912. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0048969719306138
Perennial | Technology | Groundbreaking without breaking ground. (n.d.). Retrieved 19 January 2023, Available from: https://www.perennial.earth/technology
Soil carbon platform Perennial raises $18m from Temasek, Bloomberg. (2022, May 17). AFN. Available from: https://agfundernews.com/soil-carbon-platform-perennial-raises-18m-from-temasek-bloomberg
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