「不斷發掘便能尋找故事的更深層次」，在堆肥和土壤健康議題上絕對所言非虛。一項由美國加州大學戴維斯分校土地、空氣及水資源學系進行，為期 19 年之久的研究，成果變印證了這個說法。研究論文的第一作者，是該系博士生 Jessica Chiartas。

Scientists dug roughly 6 feet down to compare soil carbon changes in conventional, cover-cropped and compost-added plots of corn-tomato and wheat-fallow cropping systems. They found that compost is key to storing carbon, a strategy for offsetting carbon dioxide emissions. However, not all compost is made equal as not all food waste is suitable for composting; nor are all food waste machineries going to yield high-quality, agricultural grade composts.

舉個例子，要降解廚餘 — 尤其是以油烹煮過的食物殘渣 — 十分困難，因為過程當中它們不能產生足夠熱力，同時亦釋放難聞氣味，並帶來蟲害問題。另一方面，如果堆肥過熱，有益的微生物或許會因而死亡。有機物料、綠葉及木質材料，降解速度較快，可分解為土壤必須的不同營養素。

When done right, compost can remediate and revive soil that has been contaminated, as well as reduce the use of industrial fertilizer and increase carbon sequestration - it is a game-changer for the agriculture industry! To quote Jessica again, “The soil represents a huge mass of natural resource under our feet. If we're only thinking about farming the surface of it, we're missing an opportunity. Carbon is like a second crop’. And we at ZFPA couldn’t agree more….

查看这篇文章，了解有关堆肥的更多信息 -->

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/08/190814161818.htm