How can we increase C stocks in deep soil?

In part 6, “Deep Soil C”, Sharon Billings from University of Kansas will discuss how historic changes in rooting depth have changed soil development.  Larry York from Oak Ridge National Laboratory will share outlooks for breeding crops with root characteristics to build soil carbon.

Time: October 19th, 3:00 PM Eastern.

Dr. Sharon Billings is a Dean’s Professor at the University of Kansas and Senior Scientist with the Kansas Biological Survey. Dr. Billings studies forests and grasslands, and has research specializations in biogeochemistry, soil organic matter dynamics, stable isotope ecology, and climate change impacts.  Two key foci of her research team are 1) the influence of climate change and historic land cover on nutrient and carbon flows through soils, and 2) vegetation and microbial abilities to structure soil profiles via their efforts to acquire resources. Dr. Billings received her Ph.D. from Duke University in 1998.

Dr. Larry M. York is a staff scientist at Oak Ridge National Laboratory specializing in whole-plant and root physiology. His research has advanced methods for root phenotyping, and he co-developed the number one free and open-source software tool for measuring roots from images, RhizoVision Explorer. His research team recently conducted the first genetic analysis of root respiration, and they identified gene candidates controlling root respiration rate and root architecture. His body of research has laid the foundation for the possibility of selecting bioenergy crops that are themselves carbon-use efficient in order to drive productivity, yield, and belowground carbon sequestration. Dr. York was an assistant professor at the Noble Research Institute from 2017 to 2021 and received his Ph.D. from Pennsylvania State University in 2014.