Soil Carbon Sequestration for Climate
Change Mitigation: Some Implications
to Egypt
Heba Elbasiouny and Fathy Elbehiry
Abstract The soil is the largest terrestrial carbon (C) stock, and those factors that
affect C retention and release also influence on atmospheric CO 2 levels. Soil C
sequestration represents about 90% of the total mitigation practices of climate change
and about 10% of emission reduction. There is a great concern of soil carbon (C)
sequestration and its role in absorbing atmospheric CO 2 not only because of its
impacts on climate change mitigation but also because of its positive impacts on
the sustainability of crop productivity, soil fertility and soil quality. Cultivation has
resulted in considerable loss of soil C due to chemical and biological decomposition
of soil organic carbon (SOC), as well as erosion by wind and water. However; in
carefully managed croplands, soil C sequestration can be substantial and represents
a potentially constructive portion for mitigating the increased levels of atmospheric
CO 2 . There is a general agreement that many agricultural ecosystems have a huge
potential to sequester carbon in the soil, which could decrease CO 2 concentrations
in the air and mitigate its global emissions. Egyptian soils are low in their C content.
Thus its potential to sequester C is high. Therefore, good management practices
should be considered for enhancing soil C sequestration in Egyptian soils especially
in degraded and desert soil.
Keywords Soil carbon and nitrogen stocks · Soil carbon sequestration · Climate
change mitigation · Egypt
H. Elbasiouny (B)
Environmental and Biological Sciences Department, Home Economics Faculty, Al-Azhar
University, Tanta 31732, Egypt
e-mail: Hebaelbasiouny@azhar.edu.eg; Hebayehia79@hotmail.com
F. Elbehiry
Central Laboratory of Environmental Studies, Kafr El-Sheikh University, Al-Geish Street, Kafr
El-Sheikh 33516, Egypt
e-mail: Fathyelbehiry@gmail.com
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
E.-S. E. Omran and A. M. Negm (eds.), Climate Change Impacts on Agriculture and Food
Security in Egypt, Springer Water, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-41629-4_8
151
Change Mitigation: Some Implications
to Egypt
Heba Elbasiouny and Fathy Elbehiry
Abstract The soil is the largest terrestrial carbon (C) stock, and those factors that
affect C retention and release also influence on atmospheric CO 2 levels. Soil C
sequestration represents about 90% of the total mitigation practices of climate change
and about 10% of emission reduction. There is a great concern of soil carbon (C)
sequestration and its role in absorbing atmospheric CO 2 not only because of its
impacts on climate change mitigation but also because of its positive impacts on
the sustainability of crop productivity, soil fertility and soil quality. Cultivation has
resulted in considerable loss of soil C due to chemical and biological decomposition
of soil organic carbon (SOC), as well as erosion by wind and water. However; in
carefully managed croplands, soil C sequestration can be substantial and represents
a potentially constructive portion for mitigating the increased levels of atmospheric
CO 2 . There is a general agreement that many agricultural ecosystems have a huge
potential to sequester carbon in the soil, which could decrease CO 2 concentrations
in the air and mitigate its global emissions. Egyptian soils are low in their C content.
Thus its potential to sequester C is high. Therefore, good management practices
should be considered for enhancing soil C sequestration in Egyptian soils especially
in degraded and desert soil.
Keywords Soil carbon and nitrogen stocks · Soil carbon sequestration · Climate
change mitigation · Egypt
H. Elbasiouny (B)
Environmental and Biological Sciences Department, Home Economics Faculty, Al-Azhar
University, Tanta 31732, Egypt
e-mail: Hebaelbasiouny@azhar.edu.eg; Hebayehia79@hotmail.com
F. Elbehiry
Central Laboratory of Environmental Studies, Kafr El-Sheikh University, Al-Geish Street, Kafr
El-Sheikh 33516, Egypt
e-mail: Fathyelbehiry@gmail.com
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
E.-S. E. Omran and A. M. Negm (eds.), Climate Change Impacts on Agriculture and Food
Security in Egypt, Springer Water, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-41629-4_8
151