Stony Brook Researchers Receive NSF Grant to Study Ancient Fern as a Modern Carbon Capture Solution

A research team at Stony Brook University has received a National Science Foundation (NSF) grant to explore how a small, fast-growing aquatic fern known as Azolla could serve as a natural and scalable carbon offset strategy.

Once responsible for a massive global cooling event approximately 50 million years ago, Azolla — also called mosquito fern, water fern, or fairy moss — played a key role during the Eocene epoch by rapidly sequestering carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Through a symbiotic relationship with cyanobacteria, the fern fixed its own nitrogen, doubled its biomass every few days, and locked away carbon as it sank to the ocean floor.

“This plant has already cooled the world once, so we think that we can harness it to do it again,” said Sharon Pochron, assistant professor in the School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences and project lead.

The interdisciplinary team — Jackie Collier, Liliana Dávalos, Jim Hoffmann, and Darci Swenson Perger — will use the NSF funding to expand models of carbon sequestration and sustainable harvesting methods. The project aims to transform harvested Azolla into soil amendments, addressing both atmospheric carbon reduction and soil degradation — aligning with the United Nations’ “4-per-1,000” initiative to improve global soil health through increased carbon storage.

“This project exemplifies the kind of inventive, cross-disciplinary work that makes Stony Brook a leader in research and discovery,” said Kevin Gardner, vice president for research and innovation. “By turning to nature for scalable carbon solutions, our researchers are pushing the boundaries of environmental science and demonstrating the ingenuity and impact that define Stony Brook’s research enterprise.”

The team is also developing potential “Azolla kits” — portable, small-scale water systems where the fern could be cultivated and harvested with the help of robotic skimmers. Users could track their personal carbon capture via digital dashboards, similar to solar panel monitoring systems.

Preliminary findings suggest remarkable potential: covering just 20 percent of Long Island’s surface with Azolla could offset all U.S. annual carbon emissions.

“We have to be the leaders in this,” Pochron said. “If you think that climate change is important, and it’s something that you want to offset, this allows you to take carbon capture into your own hands.”

Submitted by Jason Gigax on Fri, 10/24/2025 - 10:42