Community Carbon Farming Campaign

If we are to be successful in the fight against climate change, we must go beyond reducing emissions to actively removing carbon from the atmosphere. 



Promising research from the Marin Carbon Project in California and similar initiatives suggests that a widespread focus on building healthy soils may be our best hope to draw down and safely store atmospheric carbon dioxide. It’s called “carbon farming,” and Eco-Cycle is working to bring these practices to Boulder County.   

Carbon Farming isn’t just for farmers. You can become a carbon farmer and reverse climate change right in your own backyard!

Eco-Cycle and the City of Boulder are working together on a three-year study to explore a range of carbon farming approaches on urban landscapes to determine whether these practices can effectively sequester carbon in the soil and  help reverse climate change.

There are three ways to participate:



1. Become a YARD CARBON FARMER:

We are seeking 250 participants to join us for a “community science project.” Participants will take part in a three-year study applying different soil regeneration and carbon capture treatments on their own backyard and then testing the soil for increased carbon. 



We’re asking Yard Carbon Farmers to:

• Reside in Boulder County or Broomfield County.

• Have a 20’ x 10’ portion of lawn you’re willing to dedicate to the study. (Don’t worry, it should improve your lawn!)

• Commit to the program for a full three years (testing is done twice in the first year, in May and in September, and only once in the following two years in the fall, so the time commitment is minimal and seasonal.)

• Attend a one-hour training.

• Choose and apply a treatment, supplied by the program, to the trial section of your yard.

• Stay engaged with us! We’ll be sending emails to ask some observational questions about your lawn (color, blade height, etc.) throughout the growing season and hearing back from you is key!

Are there costs?

The testing and the soil treatments carry a cost of $50 per year. We are fundraising for this project so that everybody can participate. If you are interested in participating, please sign up regardless of whether or not you are able to financially contribute to the program costs! 

Do you meet the above criteria?

OUR YARD CARBON FARMER SPOTS ARE NOW FULL. THANK TO TO ALL WHO SIGNED UP TO PARTICIPATE!

2. Become a GARDEN Carbon Farmer:

We are looking for 20 experienced vegetable gardeners to join us for a second study to determine how soil enhancement treatments in a garden both contribute to carbon sequestration as well as food nutrient density.

We’re asking Garden Carbon Farmers to:

• Have enough experience growing vegetables in your garden that you can be reasonably confident you can successfully care for the transplants provided as part of the study to maturity, and have a garden that is native mineral soil (as opposed to imported soil in a raised bed or container)

• Commit to the program for one growing season

• Commit to growing three Kale plants supplied by the program in late May

• Attend a one-hour training

• Choose from a list of five organic soil amendments such as compost supplied by the program and commit to applying them, carefully following directions provided (we promise it’s not hard, but this is science so it IS specific)

• Be willing to supply a few leaves of your kale crop for tissue sampling in late summer

Are there costs?

The testing for both the soils and the plant tissue as well as  the soil treatments carry a cost of $50/year. We are fundraising for this project so that everybody can participate. If you are interested in participating, please sign up regardless of whether or not you are able to financially contribute to the program costs!  

OUR GARDEN FARMER SPOTS ARE NOW FULL. THANK YOU TO ALL WHO SIGNED UP TO PARTICIPATE! 

3. Become an “Observational Scientist” Carbon Farmer:

Due to the limitations of our partners doing the lab analysis, we have to limit the number of participants actually taking soil samples, but you can still participate! Sign up and we will share all the same information and techniques we are using in the studies. Follow along with the practices and you can still contribute to the study by filling out surveys requesting observational data. We will also share resources such as how you can get your own soil analysis and how to interpret it.

Become An "Observational Scientist" Carbon Farmer!

Sponsored in part through funding from: