Soil Carbon

Dr Tapas Bhattacharyya is an eminent soil scientist whose distinguished career has profoundly advanced agricultural research and education in India. An agricultural graduate and PhD from the Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi, he dedicated more than three decades to the National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning (NBSS&LUP), Nagpur, under the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR). Rising to the position of Principal Scientist and Head of the Soil Resource Studies Division, he spearheaded pioneering work in soil genesis, classification, survey, and mapping, laying the foundation for sustainable land use planning across diverse agro-ecological regions. His contributions extend beyond national boundaries. His association with ICRISAT, India, IIASA, Austria, CSU, USA, UNEP, Reading University, UK, and ISRIC, the Netherlands, enabled him to collaborate on international projects, enriching global understanding of soil processes. Later, as Vice-Chancellor of Dr Balasaheb Sawant Konkan Krishi Vidyapeeth, Dapoli, Maharashtra, he provided visionary leadership, strengthening academic programs and research initiatives in agricultural sciences. Dr Bhattacharyya's research has been particularly influential in addressing climate change. His work on soil carbon sequestration and carbon modelling has offered vital insights into mitigating global warming, positioning soils as critical reservoirs in climate-smart agriculture. His prolific scholarship-comprising more than 300 refereed journal papers, reviews, books, and book chapters has become a cornerstone for students, researchers, and policymakers alike. Through his scientific rigour, leadership, and commitment to sustainable agriculture, Dr Bhattacharyya has left an enduring legacy, inspiring generations of soil scientists and contributing significantly to the global discourse on food security and environmental stewardship.

• I: Foreword II: Acknowledgements III: Executive Summary Part I: Introduction, Overview and Integration 1: The global challenge for soil carbon 2: Soil carbon, a critical natural resource: Wide-scale goals, urgent actions 3: Soil carbon transition curves: reversal of land degradation through management of soil organic matter for multiple benefits 4: From potential to implementation: An innovation framework to realise the benefits of soil carbon 5: A strategy for taking soil carbon into the policy arena Part II: Soil Carbon in Earth’s Life Support System 6: Soil formation 7: Soil carbon dynamics and nutrient cycling 8: Soil hydrology and reactive transport of carbon and nitrogen in a multi-scale landscape Part III: The Multiple Benefits of Soil Carbon 9: Climate change mitigation 10: Soil carbon and agricultural productivity: Perspectives from sub-Saharan Africa 11: Soil as a support of biodiversity and functions 12: Water supply and quality 13: Wind erosion of agricultural soils and the carbon cycle 14: Historical and sociocultural aspects of soil organic matter and soil organic carbon benefits 15: The economic value of soil carbon Part IV: Quantification and Reporting of Soil Carbon 16: Measuring and monitoring soil carbon 17: Modelling soil carbon 18: Valuation approaches for soil carbon Part V: Influence of Human Activity on Soil Carbon 19: Current soil carbon loss and land degradation globally: Where are the hotspots and why there? 20: Climate change and soil carbon impacts 21: Impacts of land-use change on carbon stocks and dynamics in central-southern South American biomes: Cerrado, Atlantic forest and southern grasslands. Part VI: Managing Soil Carbon for Multiple Benefits 22: Basic principles of soil carbon management for multiple ecosystem benefits 23: Managing soil carbon for multiple ecosystems benefits: positive exemplars – Latin America 24: Managing soil carbon for multiple benefits: positive exemplars - North America 25: Managing soil carbon in Europe: paludicultures as a new perspective for peatlands 26: Managing soil organic carbon for multiple benefits: The case of Africa 27: Benefits of SOM in agro-ecosystems: A case of China 28: Assessment of organic carbon status in Indian soils Part VII: Governance of Soil Carbon 29: Policy frameworks 30: National implementation case study: China 31: Avoided land degradation and enhanced soil C storage: Is there a role for carbon markets?