Sugarcane Pot trial

2017-2025 ‘Sequestering carbon and improving sugarcane productivity by enhanced weathering of basalt’ (Collaboration Leverhulme Centre for Climate Change Mitigation)

Contact: Paul Nelson paul.nelson@jcu.edu.au

In this pot experiment we measured the effectiveness of ‘enhanced weathering’ for capturing carbon dioxide in different soil types planted to sugarcane. Enhanced weathering is a promising ‘negative emission technology’ that involves adding crushed basalt to the soil. When the rock dust breaks down or weathers under suitable conditions, carbon dioxide is converted to soluble forms of carbon that are captured in the soil or make their way to the sea where they are stable. We measured the movement of carbon through the profile. There were 50 pots, with different rates and particle sizes of basalt and different soil types.