About the Project
Agricultural soils can act as a sink for large quantities of soil organic carbon (SOC) but can also be sources of carbon to the atmosphere. To support the implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of climate-focused initiatives in U.S. agriculture, there is a need for increased field-based measurements to evaluate carbon stocks and gain a better understanding of the sequestration potential of lands under different management and cropping systems. To facilitate this, the NRCS has developed the CEMA 221 protocol to guide the quantitative measurements of SOC stocks before and after a conservation practice or plan has been implemented.
The Soil Carbon IDEA (Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Access) project was selected by NRCS to develop training on soil carbon monitoring throughout the northeastern United States. Our goals are to train qualified individuals (QIs) to sample according to CEMA 221 protocols and to conduct outreach with a focus on historically under-represented and marginalized groups.
Northeast Regional Boundary
Soil Carbon IDEA is led by Dr. Bruno Basso at Michigan State University in partnership with Woods End Labs:
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Bruno Basso – Principal Investigator (PI)
John A Hannah Distinguished Professor and MSU Foundation Professor
Basso Lab Webpage -
Will Brinton – Co-PI
Soil Consultant and Founder of Woods End Laboratories -
