NSF Award
2316278
Agricultural activities result in greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change. As a result of climate change, droughts are becoming more frequent and severe. Drought, a period of prolonged dry weather due to a lack of precipitation, reduces the water availability required to maintain crop productivity, which impacts farmers substantially, whose livelihoods depend on agricultural productivity. Therefore, developing and assessing management practices that can help withstand and recover from the negative impacts of droughts on agricultural operations will contribute to the sustainability of agriculture and food security. This project is a collaboration among universities located in three NSF EPSCoR jurisdictions: Auburn University, Alabama; New Mexico State University, New Mexico; and the University of Delaware, Delaware. Through the proposed research, the project team aims to develop and assess agricultural management practices that will help reduce greenhouse gas emissions from agricultural systems, improve soil health and water quality, and reduce the vulnerability of crop failures during droughts. The project team consists of early-career, mid-career, and established researchers with diversity in gender and ethnicity. The proposed project will contribute to developing a highly skilled and diverse workforce consisting of several graduate and undergraduate level students, post-doctoral scholars, and early career faculty. Further, educational materials will be developed to engage with a broader audience (e.g., rural communities, students K-12, biochar producers, conservation personnel), with particular emphasis on educating people from traditionally underrepresented groups.<br/><br/>The overarching goal of this NSF EPSCoR Research Infrastructure Improvement Track-2 Focused EPSCoR Collaborations (NSF EPSCoR RII Track-2 FEC) project is to make agricultural systems more resilient to climate change, reduce greenhouse gas emissions from agricultural sources in an environmentally sustainable manner (e.g., improving soil health and water and air quality), and enhance the resilience of farmers to the negative consequences of climate change. The goal will be accomplished through the following three thrust areas, comprised of research, educational, and outreach activities: (a) development of engineered biochar for use in agricultural systems; (b) providing new insights toward understanding the impact of using engineered biochar on the environment and crop production systems; and (c) quantify the socioeconomic benefits of using engineered biochar. The research project leverages each institution's unique and complementary research expertise and resources to accomplish the following objectives: (1) develop engineered biochar to lower agricultural nitrous oxide emission in a climate-resilient system, (2) determine the plant genes and pathways associated with a positive yield response to engineered biochar amendment under water deficit conditions, (3) elucidate the impact of engineered biochar on nutrients, greenhouse gas emissions, and microbial processes, (4) simulate the impact of extreme events on crop yield and nutrient losses, and identify the suites of conditions that are less impactful for agricultural productivity, and (5) assess farmers' perceptions and the economics of using engineered biochar along with the animal waste. The project includes educational, mentoring, and training activities for undergraduate and graduate level students, post-doctoral scholars, early career faculty, and various communities (farmers, biochar producers, students K-12, industry personnel).<br/><br/>This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.
