Investigating the effects of co-applied basalt and biochar on carbon removal efficiency and grain yield in rice paddy.

Enhanced silicate weathering (ESW) has shown promise for carbon dioxide removal (CDR) in dryland agriculture, yet its effectiveness in flooded rice paddies, particularly regarding the CDR pathways and microbial interactions, remains poorly understood. In this study, we quantified CDR in rice paddy amended with basalt and/or biochar. Basalt applied at 36 t ha-1 sequestered ∼11.3 t CO2 ha-1 through carbonate formation and increased rice yield by 20.7%. Co-applying with 18 t ha-1 of biochar further reduced CH4 and N2O emissions by 30.5% and 52.1%, respectively, leading to a 37.9% reduction in greenhouse gas intensity. This co-application also reshaped fungal community structure, enhanced fungal activity and diversity, and increased fungal necromass carbon by 21%. Moreover, it effectively reduced the accumulation of heavy metals in rice grains. Despite these co-benefits, its net CDR with greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation but excluding organic carbon storage was only 8.8 t CO2 ha-1, roughly 25% lower than with basalt alone. These results indicate that co-applying basalt and biochar can substantially alter the biogeochemical processes governing CDR and crop productivity in paddy soils. To maximize CDR efficiency and grain yield, careful matching, dosage adjustment, and context-specific optimization of these amendments are essential.