Healthy rangelands play an important role in supporting biodiversity, sustaining agricultural production, and strengthening resilience to climate change. Through the Carbon in Rangelands initiative, researchers are generating knowledge that can help improve land management practices while supporting climate change adaptation and mitigation efforts.

A new monitoring site has recently been established at Moolmanshoek Farm near Ficksburg in the eastern Free State. Once used for crop production, the farm has been rehabilitated into rangeland grazed by game and horses. Over time, with careful management practices, soil has been rehabilitated and ecosystem functions have been restored.

Researchers have installed a carbon node measuring water and carbon fluxes, as well as a weather station and auxiliary sensors at a site at Moolmanshoek. The data collected will provide valuable insights into carbon dynamics and the environmental drivers of soil carbon sequestration in rangelands.

Enhancing soil carbon levels can improve soil functions, enhance the resilience of rangelands to climate change, while contributing to climate change mitigation at the same time. 

The initiative forms part of the ARC-UFS Research Chair on Climate Change Impacts and Mitigation in Agriculture. The project is led by Prof Linus Franke (UFS Department of Soil, Crop and Climate Sciences), with contributions from Prof Sandy Steenhuisen (UFS Department of Plant Sciences) and Dr Robyn Nicolay (PhD in Grassland Sciences from the University of KwaZulu Natal), who recently joined the research team as a postdoctoral fellow. 

The research is supported by Euca, which donated the weather station and soil moisture sensor and provides technical support. Data from the monitoring site will be streamed live through the Nvirosens online platform, creating opportunities for continuous monitoring and future research.

Through initiatives such as Carbon in Rangelands, the University of the Free State continues to generate knowledge that supports sustainable agricultural systems and contributes to climate resilience.