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A systematic review of biochar research, with a focus on its stability in situ and its promise as a climate mitigation strategy, Plos One
"... Background: Claims about the environmental benefits of charring biomass and applying the resulting ‘‘biochar’ ’ to soil are impressive. If true, they could influence land management worldwide. Alleged benefits include increased crop yields, soil fertility, and water-holding capacity; the most widely ..."
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Background: Claims about the environmental benefits of charring biomass and applying the resulting ‘‘biochar’ ’ to soil are impressive. If true, they could influence land management worldwide. Alleged benefits include increased crop yields, soil fertility, and water-holding capacity; the most widely discussed idea is that applying biochar to soil will mitigate climate change. This claim rests on the assumption that biochar persists for hundreds or thousands of years, thus storing carbon that would otherwise decompose. We conducted a systematic review to quantify research effort directed toward ten aspects of biochar and closely evaluated the literature concerning biochar’s stability. Findings: We identified 311 peer-reviewed research articles published through 2011. We found very few field studies that addressed biochar’s influence on several ecosystem processes: one on soil nutrient loss, one on soil contaminants, six concerning non-CO2 greenhouse gas (GHG) fluxes (some of which fail to support claims that biochar decreases non-CO2 GHG fluxes), and 16–19 on plants and soil properties. Of 74 studies related to biochar stability, transport or fate in soil, only seven estimated biochar decomposition rates in situ, with mean residence times ranging from 8 to almost 4,000 years. Conclusions: Our review shows there are not enough data to draw conclusions about how biochar production and application affect whole-system GHG budgets. Wide-ranging estimates of a key variable, biochar stability in situ, likely result from diverse environmental conditions, feedstocks, and study designs. There are even fewer data about the extent to which
Biochar Effect on Maize Yield and Soil Characteristics in Five Conservation Farming Sites in Zambia
, 2013
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Carbon Market Investment Criteria for Biochar Projects. PortlandOR: The Climate Trust
, 2010
"... ABSTRACT The Climate Trust conducted an assessment of biochar to determine its appropriateness as a terrestrial carbon sequestration offset project. Biochar is an inert residue created by pyrolysis with the potential to rapidly sequester large amounts of carbon. This report describes what types of ..."
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ABSTRACT The Climate Trust conducted an assessment of biochar to determine its appropriateness as a terrestrial carbon sequestration offset project. Biochar is an inert residue created by pyrolysis with the potential to rapidly sequester large amounts of carbon. This report describes what types of biochar projects can most readily qualify as high-quality greenhouse gas offsets for carbon market buyers and investors. The offset quality criteria outlined by the Offset Quality Initiative (2008) are applied to the biochar project type as a whole and to a pilot project at the Thompson Timber log yard in Philomath, Oregon. This report finds that attractive projects must meet the following three criteria. First, projects must use waste biomass that, in the absence of a project, would be left to decompose. Second, projects must produce at least 25,000 metric tons of biochar over 10 years. Third, projects must be able to account for, track, and monitor where all the produced biochar is incorporated into the soil. When applying these criteria to the pilot project in Philomath, this report finds that the pilot project could be an attractive offset project if it were to scale up to use all available waste biomass and apply it to a limited number of landscapes.
How much land based greenhouse gas mitigation can be achieved without compromising food security and environmental goals?
- Global Change Biology,
, 2013
"... Abstract Feeding nine to ten billion people by 2050 and preventing dangerous climate change are two of the greatest challenges facing humanity. Both challenges must be met whilst reducing the impact of land management on ecosystem services that deliver vital goods and services, and support human he ..."
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Abstract Feeding nine to ten billion people by 2050 and preventing dangerous climate change are two of the greatest challenges facing humanity. Both challenges must be met whilst reducing the impact of land management on ecosystem services that deliver vital goods and services, and support human health and well-being. Few studies to date have considered the interactions between these challenges. In this study we briefly, outline the challenges, review the supplyand demand-side climate mitigation potential available in the Agriculture, Forestry and Other Land Use (AFLOU) sector, and options for delivering food security. We briefly outline some of the synergies and trade-offs afforded by mitigation practices, before presenting an assessment of the mitigation potential possible in the AFOLU sector under possible future scenarios in which demand-side measures co-delivery to aid food security. We conclude that whilst supply-side mitigation measures, such as changes in land management, might either enhance or negatively impact food security, demand-side mitigation measures, such as reduced waste or demand for livestock products, should benefit both food security and greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation. Demand-side measures offer a greater potential (1.5-15.6 Gt CO 2 -eq. yr -1 ) in meeting both challenges than do supply-side measures (1.5-4.3 Gt CO 2 -eq. yr -1 at carbon prices between 20 and 100 US$ tCO 2 -eq. given the enormity of challenges, all options need to be considered. Supply-side measures should be implemented immediately, focussing on those that allow the production of more agricultural product per unit of input. For demand-side measures, given the difficulties in their implementation and lag in their effectiveness, policy should be introduced quickly, and should aim to co-deliver to other policy agendas, such as improving environmental quality, or
Pyrogenic organic matter production from wildfires: A missing sink in the global carbon cycle
"... Wildfires release substantial quantities of carbon (C) into the atmosphere but they also convert part of the burnt bio-mass into pyrogenic organic matter (PyOM). This is richer in C and, overall, more resistant to environmental degra-dation than the original biomass, and, therefore, PyOM production ..."
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Wildfires release substantial quantities of carbon (C) into the atmosphere but they also convert part of the burnt bio-mass into pyrogenic organic matter (PyOM). This is richer in C and, overall, more resistant to environmental degra-dation than the original biomass, and, therefore, PyOM production is an efficient mechanism for C sequestration. The magnitude of this C sink, however, remains poorly quantified, and current production estimates, which suggest that ~1-5 % of the C affected by fire is converted to PyOM, are based on incomplete inventories. Here, we quantify, for the first time, the complete range of PyOM components found in-situ immediately after a typical boreal forest fire. We uti-lized an experimental high-intensity crown fire in a jack pine forest (Pinus banksiana) and carried out a detailed pre-and postfire inventory and quantification of all fuel components, and the PyOM (i.e., all visually charred, blackened materials) produced in each of them. Our results show that, overall, 27.6 % of the C affected by fire was retained in PyOM (4.8 0.8 t C ha1), rather than emitted to the atmosphere (12.6 4.5 t C ha1). The conversion rates varied substantially between fuel components. For down wood and bark, over half of the C affected was converted to PyOM, whereas for forest floor it was only one quarter, and less than a tenth for needles. If the overall conversion rate found here were applicable to boreal wildfire in general, it would translate into a PyOM production of ~100 Tg C yr1 by wildfire in the global boreal regions, more than five times the amount estimated previously. Our findings suggest
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, 2013
"... The neuroendocrine architecture and insulin/insulin-like signaling (IIS) events in Drosophila are remarkably conserved. As IIS pathway governs growth and development, metabolism, reproduction, stress response, and longevity; temporal, spatial, and nutrient regulation of dilps encoding Drosophila ins ..."
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The neuroendocrine architecture and insulin/insulin-like signaling (IIS) events in Drosophila are remarkably conserved. As IIS pathway governs growth and development, metabolism, reproduction, stress response, and longevity; temporal, spatial, and nutrient regulation of dilps encoding Drosophila insulin-like peptides (DILPs) provides potential mechanisms in modulating IIS. Of eight DILPs (DILP1–8) identified, recent studies have furthered our understanding of physiological roles of DILP2, DILP3, DILP5, and DILP6 in metabolism, aging, and responses to dietary restriction (DR), which will be the focus of this review. While the DILP producing IPCs of the brain secrete DILP2, 3, and 5, fat body produces DILP6. Identification of factors that influence dilp expression and DILP secretion has provided insight into the intricate regulatory mechanisms underlying transcriptional regulation of those genes and the activity of each peptide. Studies involving loss-of-function dilp mutations have defined the roles of DILP2 and DILP6 in carbohydrate and lipid metabolism, respectively. While DILP3 has been implicated to modulate lipid metabolism, a metabolic role for DILP5 is yet to be determined. Loss of dilp2 or adult fat body specific expression of dilp6 has been shown to extend lifespan,
Oxidation is Key for Black Carbon Surface Functionality and Nutrient Retention in Amazon
, 2012
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Biochar Systems for Smallholders in Developing Countries
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