Karen Hills

I recently wrote a blog post announcing that Sustainable Farms and Fields (SFF) had launched. This innovative program housed in the Washington State Conservation Commission helps Conservation Districts and other public entities implement practices that are “climate-smart,” or in other words, sequester carbon in soil or vegetation and/or reduce emissions of greenhouse gases. This is one of only a handful of state programs in the U.S. helping agricultural producers be part of the climate solution and achieve co-benefits such as improving soil health.

The ability to store carbon in soils—to sequester carbon—has been receiving increased attention lately, including on AgClimate.net. Recent posts included articles about potential for croplands in the inland Pacific Northwest to sequester carbon and an article on the emerging carbon markets and their relevance for fruit and vegetable producers.

Soil has been called “the living skin of the Earth.” The effort to maintain the health of this “living skin” in Washington got a boost in 2021 when the State Legislature passed the Washington Soil Health Initiative…

Previous posts by CSANR researchers on our sister blog, AgClimate.net, have focused on research related to anticipated climate change impacts on water availability and timing of available irrigation water in the Columbia River Basin, given the concern with having sufficient water to support the range of uses in the region. But is too little water the only concern?

When it comes to organisms living in the soil, we mostly hear about the “bad guys”—soilborne pests. However, there are many soil organisms that are beneficial to crops. Among these beneficial organisms, arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi…

Manure can play a valuable role in crop production because of its ability to build soil fertility and soil health. Ironically, manure can pose a waste disposal issue for livestock producers. Why does this situation…

It used to be that livestock and crops were integrated on a single farm and manure provided an important source of fertility for crop production. However, the advent of commercial fertilizer, increased specialization on farms…

Composting organic waste is, in many ways, a win-win scenario. It diverts waste from the landfill, while creating a valuable soil amendment (explored in my recent post on the value of compost). However, even composting is not without its share of environmental impacts…

Composting rather than landfilling organic waste, such as food waste and yard trimmings, has several benefits from a climate perspective. A recent study in Washington concluded that composting organic waste…

Biochar is produced by pyrolysis of woody (technically, lignocellulosic) materials. By controlling the conditions under which it is produced, researchers can engineer biochar to be more effective for particular purposes…