[Terrapreta] TP and prairie soils

[Sean K. Barry]

Hi Tony,

This is an observant comment.  You are saying that migrating bison provided the conversion of grass (through digestion), into something that had a residual effect and maintained soil fertility?

We will probably need to do at least as much bioconversion into black charcoal for the Earth, as bison did on the Earth, in order to maintain the same kind of "putting" fertility (nutrients in charcoal) onto the land as they did for aeons.  Wouldn't you think?  I wonder what the manure rate is for 98 million bison?  How different is that than for the number of dairy, beef, lamb, qoats we have today, all putting out manure?  Did those ruminant bison "fart" Methane-CH4, too?  Again, what about compared to #s of ruminants farting today?

I think what you say does sound like and important consideration.  It could have a way of explaining how prairie grasslands developed residual soil fertility characteristics over time (under bison time).  If we can grip the scale of this "manur-ing" of biomass, as it were, then we can understand better what we are up against with developing Terra Preta landforms, with "carbo-nured-in biomass".  Even if we can appreciate the amount of biomass conversion going on under bison, global atmospheric remediation now, could require a magnitude or magnitudes more of bioconversion into "nutrient holding, residual capacity, soils".

We do want to keep doing this under current levels of agriculture.  Levels agricultural land use are increasing.  This will further burden the process for us.  It will be difficult for us, because we are not re-cycling our waste like the bison did?

We're getting very close , now, to "done" sucking up some vast types of natural resources at the near end of the Industrial Revolution.  The waste of our gluttony lies all about us now, poisoning the air, the water, and soil.  We've taken so much out of the land around us and forgot to return the waste.  We took and didn't give back.

The waste of it all is the answer!  We can mine the atmosphere of CO2.  We can stop the gluttony of natural resources until they run out.  We can put back our waste into the Earth and repair our bargain.  But, it is a MASSIVE undertaking.  We need to change ALL OF HUMANITY to do the undertaking.  It means a whole different way of looking at food, waste, and energy from the Earth.

We're going to all have to be like BISON.

Regards,

SKB



  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Janice Stettler<mailto:shibbolethf at earthlink.net> 
  To: terrapreta at bioenergylists.org<mailto:terrapreta at bioenergylists.org> 
  Sent: Saturday, September 01, 2007 2:50 PM
  Subject: [Terrapreta] TP and prairie soils



  I don't wish to add an additional layer of complexity to discussions of soil fertility in the plains, but a rather massive soil organism numbering by some estimates, 98 million, may be responsible.  The American bison migrated from Canada to Mexico in a broad swath consuming prairie grass and producing ruminant waste scuffled into the soil by their sharp hooves.  For aeons they were integral part of prairie ecology and probably the closest thing to Lil Abner's schmoo with a real living heart beat.  As a farmer I know poop and ruminant poop is unequaled for residual effect.


  Tony Stettler


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