Al Gore Is Opening a New Front In the War On Climate Change
Oceans are acidifying and the atmosphere is warming. But a critical part of the solution, the former vice president says, is underneath our feet.
Climate scientist Rattan Lal with former U.S. Vice President Al Gore on his farm in Carthage, Tennessee.
Source: Courtesy Gabrielle Hathaway
Al Gore’s 400-acre farm is located in Carthage, a small Tennessee town where the former vice president and senator traditionally kicked off his political campaigns. During his second act as a famous environmentalist, the farm became the site of a training program for aspiring climate activists, and more recently, an experiment in what Gore said is the world’s most realistic chance at averting climate catastrophe.
Topsoil, the foot or so of ground underneath your feet, is responsible for almost all food production on Earth. It also stores more than three times as much carbon as forests. Today, agriculture is a net carbon emitter, contributing about 14% of all greenhouse gas emissions, but unlike power generation or automobiles, it can be turned into a net absorber, pulling carbon out of the atmosphere.