Conservation Equity Partners hosts interns, contributes to The Soil Inventory Project

This summer, Conservation Equity Partners hosted three student interns from Skidmore College, located in Saratoga Springs, New York. In addition to learning from and participating in land management activities with CEP biologists, the students collected soil samples across three CEP properties that will contribute to The Soil Inventory Project, a science-based nonprofit dedicated to building a decentralized, national soil carbon inventory.

“We are thrilled to contribute to the ongoing work of The Soil Inventory Project, while also providing real-world experience to young, aspiring college students,” said Terry Anderson, founder and principal of CEP. “Not only will this data help guide land management decisions on our properties, it will benefit current and future research regarding the impacts of land management on soil carbon.”

According to The Soil Inventory Project, founded by Drs. Kris Covey and Bruno Basso, the Earth's soil contains three times more carbon than all vegetation and twice as much as the atmosphere, with the possibility to store even more. However, in order to understand greenhouse gas dynamics and predict agricultural climate mitigation, resilience and yield, soil carbon data and maps are essential.  

The soil carbon data collected by The Soil Inventory Project will be publicly available and will produce regional benchmarks and baselines, quantify land management impacts, and project soil carbon change over time. To learn more, visit thesoilinventoryproject.org.