How EU Regulatory Framework Hampers Carbon Sequestration

Soil carbon is essential to keep our soils healthy to cultivate our crops and ensure food production. Soil carbon content is decreasing for various reasons, but the Nitrate, Emission and Water Framework Directives play a major role too.

Increasing the carbon content of the soil can be achieved by using fertilising materials that are high in organic matter. Such materials originate in particular from animal manure and organic fertilizing materials. However, these materials quite often contain a mixture of unfavorable trace elements, depending on the source human pathogens, as well as beneficial nutrients. All of these are regulated under various legislations at horizontal EU-level and in addition at national and sometimes even at regional level.

Read the full article here.

Authors: Roland de Bruijne, Marika Ritz