Book addresses soil organic matter in tropical and subtropical environments

Embrapa Meio Ambiente has just launched the book “Understanding soil organic matter in tropical and subtropical environments”, the first in the world that seeks to systematize information on studies carried out more than five decades ago in these environments. The information contained in the book may contribute to Brazilian agriculture, as well as other countries with tropical and subtropical climates. 

The book's editors, Wagner Bettiol and Cristiano Andrade from Embrapa Meio Ambiente, Ladislau Martin-Neto from Embrapa Instrumentação, Carlos Silva from the Federal University of Lavras and Carlos Cerri from the “Luiz de Queiroz” School of Agriculture, brought together the main experts from Brazil to prepare this work, which in reality is a treatise on soil organic matter in these environments. There are 788 pages of information divided into 27 chapters and entirely free to the community.

According to Bettiol, the challenge of increasing the amount of organic matter in the surface layers of the soil in tropical and subtropical environments can be overcome in most agricultural areas, but it is necessary to identify management practices that allow more carbon to be allocated in the system and reduce the losses. He comments that since the adoption of direct planting since the 1970s, in the southern region of Brazil, with the preservation of soil resources through the reduction of erosion and the use of crop rotation, the importance of preserving or increasing soil organic matter, which is discussed extensively in this publication.

The book also contains examples of how new technologies can be generated based on the conceptual base available in Brazil and other countries, comments Cristiano Andrade. According to him, the authors extensively discuss soil organic matter, demonstrating its importance for increasing agricultural productivity, improving soil quality, sequestering carbon and as a tool for mitigating the effects of climate change. 

The authors generated and compiled information from recent decades in order to demonstrate the importance of biodiversity conservation to increase agricultural production in a sustainable way and to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions in tropical and subtropical environments. 
With regard to agriculture, explains Bettiol, “it is essential to advance and correct directions in mitigating and adapting to climate change, water scarcity, irregular distribution of rain and changes in the cycle of pests and diseases, among others, in the rational and efficient use of mineral resources , in enabling alternative sources of nutrients, in reducing international dependence on inputs, such as fertilizers and pesticides, in preventing soil degradation, in reducing the use of chemical pesticides through adequate management of the productive environment and in expanding the use of bio-inputs . Practically, all of these aspects are related to soil organic matter, the focus of this book.” 

All these management practices and production systems for low-carbon agriculture are represented in the book, such as the modern crop-livestock and crop-livestock-forest integration systems, which incorporate the premises of direct planting, which are growing in the country for the integrated production of grains, meat, milk and wood, enabling the recovery of extensive areas of degraded pastures.
Also discussed in chapters are organic residues generated from the export of crops to agro-industries or to the urban environment, which can and should be returned to agricultural soil, as a source of nutrients and organic matter. In Brazil, we have successful cases in waste recycling, such as the sugar and ethanol sector, in which all waste generated is used directly in the production system itself, in addition to generating energy, which is in line with governance concepts environmental, social and corporate - ESG (environmental, social and governance) and circular economy, even though this conceptual, normative and technological evolution in the sector has occurred since the 60s, comments Cristiano Andrade. 

Agricultural engineers Walter Silva and Alfredo Tsuzuki, both from the Brazilian Association of Inputs for Sustainable Agriculture, comment that the book meets a need for the different actors that operate in the organic matter market, such as organic and organomineral fertilizer companies, soil conditioners and substrates.

The publication meets five UN sustainable development goals, specifically SDG 2 - Zero hunger and sustainable agriculture, SDG 7 - Affordable and clean energy, SDG 12 - Sustainable consumption and production, SDG 13 - Action against global climate change and SDG 15 - Life on Earth.

The book can be accessed here.