Greenhouse gas emissions leave numerous negative consequences on the planet, such as air pollution, increasing ocean acidity, and perhaps the most talked about problem – global warming. Research conducted in almost all parts of the world showed that agriculture was responsible for the emission of these emissions. That is why world scientists are finding ways to make agricultural practices more sustainable by applying, say, the principles of regenerative agriculture. Among the sustainable ideas that are implemented mostly in distant countries, one was born in Serbia. This is the story of Tara Lazarević, a student of the High School in Zaječar, who focused her time and knowledge on practical solutions that can make our nature a healthier environment for life.
A childhood filled with time spent in nature, through playing and helping grandma and grandpa with work in their garden, awakened Tara’s love for natural sciences in elementary school, which later spontaneously developed into a love for ecology. About ten years later, Tara’s responsibility towards nature comes to the fore, especially through participation in the World Olympiad for environmental protection and sustainable development. Thinking about choosing a theme for the competition, Tara was looking for solutions that would be more innovative than those that, for the most part, everyone knows about. Her final choice was to present the idea of designing carbon farms on the territory of Serbia.
IN FOCUS:
What are carbon farms?
Explaining the broadest meaning of the term, Tara pointed out that carbon farms and farms as we know them are actually very similar at first glance, but that it is the small changes that make a significant difference and make carbon farms more sustainable. As the name suggests, these are farms that have a greater capacity to retain carbon in the soil. This is achieved in various ways, such as applying composting, growing and covering certain types of crops, and more.
– Given that each family throws away approximately 30 percent of food that could be used for composting, there would be special containers for disposing of such waste in the surrounding towns and they would be transported to the farms every two to three days – explains Tara.
Such farms would cover much larger areas than usual and would not be intended for personal use. There is another important condition being put in place that will make carbon farms different. Namely, the area around farms requires afforestation and planned grazing, while factories will have no place in the immediate vicinity. As Tara states, the focus of carbon farms is on reducing excess carbon, but at the same time it would contribute to solving other problems. Given that the greenhouse effect promotes fires, droughts and floods, the widespread use of such farms would have an impact on mitigating weather disasters. In addition, the enriched land would bring more yields, which would be donated to those who do not have enough food, thereby alleviating the problem of hunger and poverty.
Prepared by: Katarina Vuinac
Read the full text in To the magazine of the Energy Portal, NATURE CONSERVATION.
Source: energetskiportal.rs
