By CNBCTV18.com Dec 1, 2021 9:22:37 PM IST (Published)
Fungi constitute a large part of the underground biomass and are great at keep carbon emissions in check. But governments across the world, while waxing eloquent about net-zero targets, are doing little to take care of our mouldy friends.
Achieving net-zero emissions by the mid-century is a must if the rise in global temperatures is to be kept within 1.5°C. But an equally important part of the fight against climate change will entail adopting methods to capture, sequester and store the excess carbon in the atmosphere, thereby bringing it down pre-industrial levels.
But while we look to science to come up with scalable solutions to capture and store carbon in the soil, we are wiping out the one universal ally that is already doing that for us naturally. Fungi, located within our soils, contribute to the sequestration of carbon across the world.
What are fungi?