2026/01/05 by Jelle Bijma, Mathilde Hagens, Jens S. Hammes +9 · 1 voice · 1 citation
Environmental Science · Earth and Planetary Sciences · #CO2 Sequestration and Geologic Interactions #Ocean Acidification Effects and Responses #Methane Hydrates and Related Phenomena
paper · pdf · doi:10.5194/bg-23-53-2026
openalex publication_date 2026/01/05 · openalex created_date 2026/01/05 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/31
Abstract. We discuss the “monitoring, reporting and verification” (MRV) strategy of Enhanced Weathering (EW) based on carbon accounting and argue that in open systems such as arable land, this approach is ill-suited to close the balance of all carbon fluxes. We argue for total alkalinity (TA) as the central parameter for the carbon based MRV of EW. However, we also stress that tracking alkalinity fluxes using a systems-level approach is best done by focusing on charge balance maintenance through time. We start by explaining the concept and history of alkalinity conceptualization for the oceans. The same analytical method first proposed for the oceans – titration with a strong acid – is now commonly used for porewaters in agricultural soils. We explain why this is an accurate analysis for ocean water and why it is unsuitable to record TA for porewaters in agricultural soils. We then introduce an alternative MRV based on cation accounting and finally discuss the fate of cations released from the weathering of basalt, soil cation dynamics and close by suggesting open research questions.