Current Projects
GHG Flux in Cropping & Livestock Systems
Background
In 2020, Hudson Carbon was awarded a grant from USDA-NRCS Conservation Innovation Grant (CIG) program to conduct research to understand the greenhouse gas emissions intensity of a grass-based organic dairy system at The Churchtown Diary. In 2021, HC was also able to secure additional funding through a subaward from UVM, under a USDA-NIFA Organic Research & Extension Initiative (OREI) grant, focused on the emissions reduction potential of feeding seaweed to organic dairy cows.
Ongoing Work
We have gathered 3 full years of data, focused on the manaure management aspect of the system, i.e. the manure composting system. The work thus far has been a challenging exploration of methods to gather the most useful and robust data possible.
Moving Forward
Our grant funding will expire in early 2026. Our goals for phase 2 of this project are to do a formal life-cycle assessment (LCA) of the diary system, using specific foreground data, including what we have gathered to-date in the composting system, along with literature data, to calculate the impacts of the system within the boundaries of GHG emissions intensity.
Regional Soil Carbon Measurement & Modeling
Background
In 2023, Hudson Carbon kicked off a watershed-scale empirical soil carbon measurement study, lead by Dr. Mark Bradford at the Yale School of the Environment, and Emily Oldfield at the Environmental Defense Fund. This study is building upon Mark and Emily’s previous work in the midwest, where they explored the feasibility of empirical measure-remeasure approaches to soil carbon accounting using high-density sampling and simulation of sampling density scenarios to assess accuracy at the field, farm and project scale. In partnership with Jon Sanderman at the Woodwell Climate Research Center, this project is also in service of further validating benchtop NIR spectroscopy as a means of SOC measurement. Hudson Carbon developed a network of 13 farms, both conventional and organic, to participate in the study, and successfully completed the first round of sampling in fall/winter 2023-24.
Ongoing Work
We are currently processing samples in our lab, and are gearing up for the second round of sampling for 2024-25. We also have a full subset of carbon data with which to start building a local NIR spec model for the soils in the project. Additionally, we are collaborating with Dr. Shangshi Liu (Yale University) on soil carbon fractionation analysis on a subset of the samples, data which will allow us to understand the relationships between total SOC and long-term SOC sequestration potential.
Moving Forward
A third round of sampling is tentatively set for year 5, pending additional funding. Where years 1 & 2 will give us data with which to assess feasibility of calculating carbon stocks at different sample densities, year 5 data will allow us to test feasibility of detecting changes in carbon stocks across management systems. We also plan to leverage these data for further study, particularly in the realm of soil health, as well as social science (see following project pages).
Soil Health, Soil Carbon & Ecosystem Services
Background
This aspect of our work leverages the farm network and baseline SOC data from the regional soil carbon measurement study mentioned above. By layering measures of soil health indicators onto the SOC dataset, we will be able to draw correlations between soil carbon storage and additional parameters, like soil carbon longevity and resilience, soil functionality, greenhouse gas emissions, and more. This work will improve our capacity to better model soil health outcomes spatially and temporally, and to relate soil health, as a function of farm economics, to climate change mitigation and adaptation.
Ongoing Work
Through the Bradford Lab at Yale, we are working with a masters student, Emily Evans, to conduct analysis of soil health indicators on a representative subset of samples. Additionally, through a FFAR New Investigator Grant lead by Dr. Yushu Xia at the Columbia Climate School, we have secured additional funding to further develop empirical and process based models to better predict soil health outcomes. We also have another pending USDA NIFA grant proposal to further support this modeling work.
Moving Forward
Further understanding and drawing correlations between soil function and climate change mitigation & adaptation will be critical in our efforts to maintain farm viability and ecosystem health in the face of a changing climate. Soil health indicators often represent “management-grade” information to support farmer decision making, in a way that SOC and GHG flux data do not. Bridging the gap between our understanding of healthy soil function that is minimally dependent on outside inputs, and its adaptive and mitigative capacity with regards to climate change, is a critical piece of a farmer-focused approach to climate-smart agriculture. Our aim is to further engage farmers in investigating these relationships, and continue to contribute regional datasets to improve model development.
Hemp-Lime Life Cycle Assessment
Background
Americhanvre, a Pennsylvania-based construction company, has been utilizing a unique proprietary system for applying hemp-lime (hempcrete) as a low embodied carbon building material to replace multiple conventional materials such as insulation, exterior cladding, and interior finishes. In 2022, Americhanvre won a grant from the US Army (Army SBIR & STTR Program) to, in part, conduct a life cycle assessment (LCA) and develop an environmental product declaration (EPD) of their proprietary system and supply chain, with fiber industrial hemp and binder materials currently sourced from France. Additionally, the project will conduct geospatial suitability analysis for domestic supply chain development, assessing things like transportation thresholds to maintain net negative carbon emissions. Hudson Carbon was contracted through a subaward to manage the LCA and EPD process.
Ongoing Work
Hudson Carbon is working with an EU cannabis consultancy, Augur Associates, on producing the LCA and EPD. HC has been working with Americhanvre to source project specific “foreground” data to feed into the LCA model, including detailed information related to fuel use and product composition on the construction side, as well as production, primary processing, secondary processing and transport information for the raw materials. Augur is managing the LCA modeling work, and will oversee the EPD registration process. The LCA and EPD will be complete by Q2 2025.
Moving Forward
Once the LCA for the existing supply chain is complete, we will move to a geospatial suitability assessment to model domestic supply chain development while maintaining net negative emissions. An EPD for this system is a critical unlock for domestic use of hempcrete, providing access to subsidies in states like Massachusetts, which can help scale hemp as a “green” building material. There is a lot of opportunity to leverage this project to scale up fiber industrial hemp production and processing in the US, both on the supply side and the demand side. Further exploration of climate mitigation potential of hemp in a crop rotation is an area of interest for Hudson Carbon, and we continue to look for opportunities to apply our work to this end.
Social Science: Understanding Farmer Decision-Making
Background
In fall 2024, Hudson Carbon began exploring social science research by collaborating with Yale University researchers (Dr. Samara Brock; Dr. Sara Kuebbing; master’s student Emily Evans) to initiate a social geography study in Columbia and Dutchess Counties. Inspired by our ongoing work on soil carbon across a network of local farms, and leveraging the relationships with that cohort of farmers, we aim to assess local farmers’ opinions on and experiences with ‘soil health’, including what it means for practical applications in farming and what soil health metrics they feel would be useful in their work.
Ongoing Work
Drawing on Dr. Brock’s background in social science methods, we will collect these data using a semi-structured interview approach. As this method requires in-person conversation and significant time spent with individual farmers, we will not only gather meaningful information on the priorities of local farmers; we will also continue fostering Hudson Carbon’s relationships with the local farming community.
Moving Forward
We are currently working on a proposal, including proposed questions to be asked in each of 13 semi-structured interviews with local farmers, to be submitted to Yale University for review. Upon approval, we will undergo human subjects research training and begin conducting interviews (Dr. Brock and Hudson Carbon ED Matt Sheffer). Hudson Carbon RD Elizabeth Forbes also aims to apply for funding for this project, and continued social geography research in the region, through the Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research recent call for proposals to support work on the role of ‘hub farms’ in adoption of regenerative practices.
Above-Ground Biomass Carbon: Measurement & Modeling
Background
In 2020, Hudson Carbon began a collaboration with Regeneration International on the Billion Agave Project. This work, centered in the San Miguel de Allende area of Guanajuato, MX, was focused on quantifying the carbon sequestration potential of a desert agroforestry system that uses Agaves & desert nitrogen-fixing tree species like mesquite as pioneer species to regenerate grazing lands on communal ejido territory. Our work on this project, led by one of our (former) Research Coordinators, Michael Howard, resulted in the development of allometric equations that allowed for the quantification of agave biomass from drone-based imagery. Our work on this project resulted in the development of skills and expertise in the areas of proximal (drone-based) sensing for the quantification of above-ground biomass, particularly forest biomass carbon, using approaches and tools like photogrammetry and LiDAR. This work has also lead to the development of a for-profit MRV services company called SACRA, now lead by our former team member, Michael Howard, that specializes in low-cost empirical measurement and modeling of ecosystem service indicators.
Ongoing Work
In partnership with SACRA, we are continuing our above-ground biomass work at multiple scales, with small local pilots in the northeast and midwest, as well as larger-scale work in the global south. The local projects are intended to continue our exploration of low-cost methods for above-ground biomass carbon quantification, coupled with monitoring for other key metrics such as biodiversity and soil health. Mike and SACRA have also been engaged by farm cooperatives & governments in Mexico and Columbia to do regional scale baselining work, and by MRV tech companies like Bioflore to build empirical datasets for automated vegetation analysis from drone imagery. Bioflore has experience working to correlate terrestrial LiDAR to aerial LiDAR data to estimate wood volume and biomass carbon sequestration. This involves correlating plot data of biomass carbon stock to the drone derived canopy height model values (pictured top right), extrapolating biomass carbon data across large forested landscapes. In addition Bioflore is working on developing a “Canopy Biodiversity Index” using segmentation models to detect tree species diversity, which is a critical gap in our current capabilities for forest carbon monitoring.
Moving Forward
We continue to support and collaborate with SACRA on further developing these capabilities via pilots and research projects when possible. This work is closely tied to the following biodiversity monitoring work detailed below.