Best Paper Among 1,800 Journals, Elsevier Science (2016)

Atlas Award

USDA-NIFA Partnership Award

Hugh Hammond Bennett Award

International Union of Soil Science ( 2006)

Liebig Award

Borlaug Award

President, International Union of Soil Scientists

AAAS : Fellow

Soil Science Society of America : Fellow

American Society of Agronomy : Fellow

World Academy of Sciences : Fellow

American Geophysical Union

Soil and Water Conservation Society

World Association of Soil and Water Conservation

Society for Promotion of Wasteland Development in India

International Soil and Tillage Research Organization

International Union of Soil Science

Trapping Carbon In Soil Key For Protecting Global Food Security, Dealing With Climate Change

No-Till Farming Offers A Quick Fix To Help Ward Off Host Of Global Problems

One Answer For Cleaner Air, Water: Better Agricultural Practices

“Principles of Soil Management and Conservation” comprehensively reviews the state-of-knowledge on soil erosion and management. It discusses in detail soil conservation topics in relation to soil productivity, environment quality, and agronomic production. It addresses the implications of soil erosion with emphasis on global hotspots and synthesizes available from developed and developing countries. It also critically reviews information on no-till management, organic farming, crop residue management for industrial uses, conservation buffers (e.g., grass buffers, agroforestry systems), and the problem of hypoxia in the Gulf of Mexico and in other regions. This book uniquely addresses the global issues including carbon sequestration, net emissions of CO2, and erosion as a sink or source of C under different scenarios of soil management. It also deliberates the implications of the projected global warming on soil erosion and vice versa. The concern about global food security in relation to soil erosion and strategies for confronting the remaining problems in soil management and conservation are specifically addressed. This volume is suitable for both undergraduate and graduate students interested in understanding the principles of soil conservation and management. The book is also useful for practitioners, extension agents, soil conservationists, and policymakers as an important reference material.

Principles of Soil Conservation and Management

With the use of high-level soil management technology, Africa could feed several billion people, yet food production has generally stagnated since the 1960s. No matter how powerful the seed technology, the seedling emerging from it can flourish only in a healthy soil. Accordingly, crop yields in Africa, South Asia, and the Caribbean could be doubled or tripled through adoption of technologies based on laws of sustainable soil management. Principles of Sustainable Soil Management in Agroecosystems describes the application of these laws to enhance ecosystem services while restoring degraded soils and promoting sustainable use.With chapters contributed by world-class soil scientists, ecologists, and social scientists, this book outlines critical changes in management of agricultural soils necessary to achieve food security and meet the food demands of the present and projected future population. These changes include conversion to no-till and conservation agriculture; adoption of strategies of integrated nutrient management, water harvesting, and use of drip sub-irrigation; complex cropping/farming systems such as cover cropping and agroforestry; and use of nano-enhanced fertilizers.The book is based on the premise that it is not possible to extract more from a soil than what is put into it without degrading its quality. The strategy is to replace what is removed, respond wisely to what is changed, and be pro-active to what may happen because of natural and anthropogenic perturbations. The chapters, which exemplify these ideas, cover a range of topics including organic farming, soil fertility, crop-symbiotic soil microbiota, human-driven soil degradation, soil degradation and restoration, carbon sink capacity of soils, soil renewal and sustainability, and the marginality principle.

Principles of Sustainable Soil Management in Agroecosystems (Advances in Soil Science)

Faced with challenges of resource scarcity and environmental degradation, it is important to adopt innovative farming systems that maximize resource efficiency while protecting the environment. Soil-Specific Farming: Precision Agriculture focuses on principles and applications of soil-specific farming, providing information on rapidly evolving agricultural technologies. It addresses assessments of soil variability and application of modern innovations to enhance use efficiency of fertilizers, irrigation, tillage, and pesticides through targeted management of soils and crops.  This book provides the technological basis of adopting and promoting precision agriculture (PA) for addressing the issues of resource scarcity, environmental pollution, and climate change. It focuses specifically on PA technologies and discusses historical evolution, soil variability at different scales, soil fertility and nutrient management, water quality, land leveling techniques, and special ecosystems involving small landholders and coastal regions.  Highlighting the scale-related issues and concerns of small landholders, the text details the efficient use of resources on the basis of soil/field variability and site-specific conditions. It examines how PA technology can increase productivity, enhance profitability, and minimize environmental degradation. Woven throughout is the theme of sustainable use of resources.

Soil-Specific Farming: Precision Agriculture (Advances in Soil Science)

This report assesses the potential of U.S. cropland to sequester carbon, concluding that properly applied soil restorative processes and best management practices can help mitigate the greenhouse effect by decreasing the emissions of greenhouse gases from U.S. agricultural activities and by making U.S. cropland a major sink for carbon sequestration.Topics include:Describe the greenhouse processes and global tends in emissions as well as the three principal components of anthropogenic global warming potentialPresent data on U.S. emissions and agriculture's related roleExamines the soil organic carbon (SOC) pool in soils of the U.S. and its loss due to cultivationProvides a reference for the magnitude of carbon sequestration potentialAnalyzes the primary processes governing greenhouse gas emission from the pedosphereEstablishes a link between SOC content and soil qualityOutlines strategies for mitigating emissions from U.S. croplandDiscusses soil erosion managementAssesses the potential of using cropland to create biomass for direct fuel to produce powerDetails the potential for sequestering carbon by intensifying prime agricultural landThe Potential of U.S. Cropland to Sequester Carbon and Mitigate the Greenhouse Effect provides an exceptional framework for the adoption of science-based management methods on U.S. cropland, encouraging appropriate agricultural practices for the sustainable use of our natural resources and the improvement of our nation's environment.

The Potential of U.S. Cropland to Sequester Carbon and Mitigate the Greenhouse Effect

Urbanization drastically alters the ecosystems structure and functions, disrupts cycling of C and other elements along with water. It alters the energy balance and influences climate at local, regional and global scales. In 2008, urban population exceeded the rural population. In 2050, 70% of the world population will live in urban centers. The number of megacities (10 million inhabitants) increased from three in 1975 to 19 in 2007, and is projected to be 27 in 2025. Rapid urbanization is altering the ecosystem C budget. Yet, urban ecosystems have a large C sink capacity in soils and biota. Judicious planning and effective management can enhance C pool in urban ecosystems, and off-set some of the anthropogenic emissions. Principal components with regards to C sequestration include home lawns and turfs, urban forests, green roofs, park and recreational/sports facilities and urban agriculture.

Carbon Sequestration in Urban Ecosystems

Soil degradation has serious global impacts on agronomic, economic, and sociopolitical conditions, however, statistics regarding the degree of these impacts has been largely unreliable. This book aims to standardize the methodology for obtaining reliable and objective data on soil degradation. It will also identify and develop criteria for assessing the severity of soil degradation, providing a realistic scenario of the problem.

Methods for Assessment of Soil Degradation (Advances in Soil Science)

Birth and death are not the limits  or confines of life per se . No one knows his own birth and death. It is only when we step back from ourself and replace ourself with the self of  someone else that the illusion of one’s birth and death arises. No one can jump out of himself to observe himself as one born and to die. Life’s longings have their roots in Eternity.

The amazing and Verified Stories of After Death Life And Reincarnation BY RATTAN LAL VISHNU

Ecological functions and human wellbeing depend on ecosystem services. Among the ecosystem services are provisional (food, feed, fuel, fiber), regulating (carbon sequestration, waste recycling, water cleansing), cultural (aesthetic, recreational, spiritual), and supporting services (soil formation, photosynthesis, nutrient cycling). Many relationships of various degree exist among ecosystem services. Thus, land use and soil management to enhance biospheric carbon sinks for carbon sequestration requires a comprehensive understanding on the effects on ecosystem services. Payments for ecosystem services including carbon pricing must address the relationship between carbon sequestration and ecosystem services to minimize risks of overshoot, and promote sustainable use of land-based carbon sinks for human wellbeing.

Ecosystem Services and Carbon Sequestration in the Biosphere

Discover the latest available knowledge on ways to reduce CO2 in the atmosphere!The problem of quickly mounting CO2 emissions in the fast-developing Latin American region was addressed in a symposium held in Piracicaba, Brazil, in June 2004. Carbon Sequestration in Soils of Latin America presents the latest available knowledge in soil C sequestration and improved land and soil management which can also lead to other positive effects, such as greater fertility of soil and higher crop yields. This text, in easy-to-understand language, comprehensively reviews ways to best transform various soils from being a source of carbon released into the atmosphere to become a sink for carbon absorption.Carbon Sequestration in Soils of Latin America presents a full-rounded explanation of this information in four sections. The first section gives detailed background information about the region, its climate, and the differing soils, along with basic concepts behind the science. The second section describes recommended management practices and rates of soil C sequestration. The third section thoroughly deals with methods of assessment of soil C. The last section provides a summary of recommendations for further research and development. The book is extensively referenced and contains numerous figures, tables, and photographs.Topics in Carbon Sequestration in Soils of Latin America include: soil eco-regions and principal biomes of Latin America soil carbon stock in principal ecosystems of Latin America rates of carbon sequestration in different eco-regions for predominant land use and management the role of the Amazon region in mitigating climate change the importance of tropical savannas of Latin America in mitigating global warming innovative methods of assessment of soil carbon pool trading carbon credits designing pilot soil carbon sequestration projects potential of soil carbon sequestration in Latin America priorities and recommendations for future researchCarbon Sequestration in Soils of Latin America is a comprehensive, essential resource for land managers, policymakers, educators, students, and researchers.

Carbon Sequestration in Soils of Latin America

Nearly two billion people depend on hundreds of millions of smallholder farmers for food security. Yet, these farmers’ lives also hang in the balance due to their extreme vulnerability to the risks of soil degradation and depletion, soil exhaustion, climate change, and numerous biotic and abiotic stresses. Soil Management of Smallholder Agriculture explores the potential smallholder agriculture hold for advancing global food security and outlines the challenges to achieving this goal. The book addresses the challenges and opportunities that resource-poor and small landholders face and provides recommended management practices to alleviate soil-related constraints, and increase and sustain crop yield and production. It discusses the cultural, economic, social, and technological aspects of sustainable soil management for smallholder farmers. It then examines soil-related and institutional constraints, principles of sustainable agriculture, soil quality improvement, nutrient and soil fertility management, soil carbon sequestration, soil security, efficient use of resources, and agronomic production.  Edited by experts, the book makes the case for the adoption of proven technologies of sustainable intensification, producing more from less, both for advancing agronomic production and adapting to changing climate. It outlines a strategy that will usher in a soil-based Green Revolution by increasing the use efficiency of energy-based inputs such as fertilizers, pesticides, and irrigation to restore soil quality, and sequestering carbon in the terrestrial ecosystems. This strategy helps small farms narrow the gap between the actual and attainable crop yield. 

Soil Management of Smallholder Agriculture (Advances in Soil Science)

Can developing countries meet the food requirements of their growing populations without jeopardizing a natural resource base that is already under great stress?Can increases in food production achieved in the past two decades be sustained in the next two decades?Can developing countries achieve freedom from hunger and malnutrition for their entire populations?How can food security be reconciled with environment quality in an industrializing society?Leading authorities, from soil scientists to economists, address these critical questions in Food Security and Environmental Quality in the Developing World. With a focus on India, this book reviews the state of natural resources, fertilizer and energy needs, and the potential importance of biotechnology as they affect all developing countries. It then addresses issues pertaining to water quality, agricultural chemicals, and pesticide residues on food. Part Three examines water harvesting, post-harvest food losses, storage and processing of animal products, and sustainability and inequality issues. The next sections deal with poverty alleviation, microfinance, gender equity, policy issues, and the role of the public sector. Finally, the book considers emerging issues and priorities.Developing countries have achieved an impressive increase in total food production over the past two decades, but at a high cost to environmental quality. As the populations of these countries continue to grow, soil degradation, pollution and contamination of natural waters, deteriorating air quality, and growing dependence on expensive and diminishing fossil fuels become increasing concerns. Food Security and Environmental Quality in the Developing World takes on the crucial challenge of enhancing agricultural production while reversing the alarming trends in soil and environmental degradation.

Food Security and Environmental Quality in the Developing World

Incorporating fundamental principles as well as up-to-date applications in soil formation, this work emphasizes the equal importance of organic and inorganic soil constituents by delineating the role of complex carbohydrates, amino acids, proteins, lipids, nucleic acids, lignins, enzymes, and humic acids in soil reactions. This edition features coverage of the relation of pe-pH with the biochemical cycle, soil air quality and soil humidity, thermodynamics in cation exchange and its connection with the quantity/intensity ratio, and more.

Principles of Soil Chemistry, Third Edition, (Books in Soils, Plants, and the Environment)

One of the largest universities in the United States, The Ohio State University is a leading research university and the model for the state of Ohio's public higher education institutes.  Founded in 1870 as a land-grant university, it was ranked in 2006 as one of the top 20 public universities in the United States.  The main campus is located in Columbus, and regional campuses are located in Lima, Mansfield, Marion, Newark and Wooster.

The Ohio State University

Rattan Lal is a professor of soil physics in the School of Environment and Natural Resources, and Director of the Carbon Management and Sequestration Center, FAES/OARDC at The Ohio State University (OSU).

From 1968 to 1969 he was Senior Research Fellow at the University of Sydney and soil scientist at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) in Ibadan, Nigeria from 1970 to 1987. In 1987 he joined the faculty at OSU.

He is recipient of an honorary degree of Doctor of Science from Punjab Agricultural University, India and of the Norwegian University of life Sciences in Aas, Norway.  He is past president of the World Association of the Soil and Water Conservation (1987-1990), the International Soil Tillage Research Organization (1988-1991), and the Soil Science Society of America (2005-2008). He is a member of the U.S. National Committee on Soil Science of the National Academy of Sciences (1998-2002) and (2007-to date) and lead author of IPCC (1998-2000) which earned him the Nobel Peace Prize Certificate.  He has served on the Panel on Sustainable Agriculture and the Environment in the Humid Tropics of the National Academy of Sciences, and has also been a consultant to FAO, World Bank, UNEP, GEF, UNDP, USAID and many other international organizations. He was Scientific Liaison Officer of USAID for the CGIAR system from 1990 to 1995, and member of the review team of all CRSPs in 1994.

He has mentored 106 graduate students and 54 postdoctoral researchers. He has hosted about 156 short term trainees/visiting scholars from India.  He has authored and co-authored about 2,110 research publications, has written 19 books and edited or co-edited 65 books.

He earned B.Sc from Punjab Agric. University, his M.Sc from IARI and Ph.D from OSU.

Soil Science

Environment

Natural Resources 

A Crucial Climate Mystery Hides Just Beneath Your Feet

Trump Can Scrub the Clean Power Plan, but the West Will Stay Green

Looking to the Earth Itself as a Climate Solution

Associate Professor, Soil Science | Environment and Natural Resources

Improving soil health has a range of benefits for both farmers, consumers and the environment. Professor Rattan Lal from Ohio State University says policies that incentivise putting carbon back into the soil can help with climate change mitigation and adaptation. Professor Lal was in Australia for the Centre's 2012 Agriculture and Environment Research Symposium on soil security. He begins by discussing why it is important to return carbon to soil.

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