Michael Horton - Biochar

Michael Horton Biochar!

The potential beneﬁts from Biochar for Cambodia.. Michael Horton ConCERT (Connecting Communities, Environment & Responsible Tourism)

Biochar is biomass that’s burned in a low/ no oxygen environment (pyrolysis)

So, how can biochar help Cambodia? 1. Source of energy Pyrolysis can occur over a wide range of temperatures •  low temperatures maximises biochar production

So, how can biochar help Cambodia? 1. Source of energy •  high temperatures = gasiﬁcation

So, how can biochar help Cambodia? 1. Source of energy

So, how can biochar help Cambodia? 1. Source of energy Gasiﬁcation can be on a small scale such as gasiﬁcation stoves for homes: •  burn a wide range of fuel •  burn the gases produced •  leave biochar as residue •  use 25% of the fuel of an open stove

So, how can biochar help Cambodia? 1. Source of energy Social/health beneﬁts of gasiﬁcation stoves: •  reduce labour in collecting fuel •  virtually no emissions •  reduce bronchial complaints especially for women & children

So, how can biochar help Cambodia? 1. Source of energy Large scale gasiﬁcation

So, how can biochar help Cambodia? 1. Source of energy -‐ Large scale gasiﬁcation Gas produced is fed into the diesel engine of the rice mill generator, saving between 60 and 80% of the diesel used The energy from one tonne of rice will process 3 tonnes

Now, what can we do with all that biochar…

So, how can biochar help Cambodia? 2. Soil amendment (conditioner) – Biochar structure varies depending on what it’s made from, but all types are like a honeycomb

Terra Preta • Terra Preta, (dark earth), deep deposits of black and intensely fertile soil in the Amazon rainforest, which is found right alongside some of the poorest soils on earth, oxisols (tropical rain forest soils) • Deposits are located along rivers and sometimes in areas raised above the ﬂoodplain, covering an area about the size of France • Scientists believe it was created over thousands of years by people who practiced “slash and char” agriculture

Slash and Char agriculture • 6 feet deep trenches dug and filled with cleared “slash” (biomass) • soil dug out to create the holes put back on top and whole lot set on fire • biomass high moisture content and lack of oxygen made fires smoulder for hours, even days • pyrolysis turned biomass into biochar

Improved soils • Slash and Char much more efficient at conditioning soil than Slash and Burn – could start growing crops immediately • honeycomb structure: • retains water and nutrients • reduces run off • encourages beneficial microorganisms to grow • benefits have lasted between 800 and a few thousand years

Improved soils In common with other locations throughout Cambodia, soils in Siem Reap province, especially north of Route 6, are notoriously poor: • sandy • lacking in nutrients Many Cambodians rake up and burn valuable biomass everyday, much of which could fuel gasiﬁcation stoves with the biochar residue added back to the soil

So, how can biochar help Cambodia? 3. Reduced carbon emissions

So, how can biochar help Cambodia? 3. Reduced carbon emissions •  plants capture CO2 and lock it in their structures (sequestration) •  this is released again when they are burned or decay •  incorporating biochar into the soil locks around 50% of the carbon away for hundreds/thousands of years

So, how can biochar help Cambodia? 3. Reduced carbon emissions •  this has the potential to reduce the build up of CO2 in the atmosphere •  decomposing plant tissue also produces methane (20+ times more powerful greenhouse gas than CO2) •  methane is produced, captured, and used as a fuel in gasiﬁcation

Worldwide CO2 emissions and climate change have nothing to do with Cambodia? Hmmm……

Thank You!Michael Horton

Michael Horton - Biochar

by Nerd Nite Siem Reap on Oct 10, 2011

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