[Terrapreta] Sustained Biochar

[Sean K. Barry]

Hi Jeff, Kevin, et al.

Burning or charring small amounts of biomass, per say, will not change GHG amounts much, nor effect the already in progress global climate, hardly at all.  However, the scope of making Terra Preta from enough charcoal to effect a change in GHG amounts, or even more importantly, to reverse the trend of growth in the amounts of GHG to a reduction, is just enormous.  It's absolutely mind boggling to think of charring 23 billion tons of biomass every year to keep up with our current worldwide output of carbon into the atmosphere from the burning of fossil fuels?!

Now, in reality, making charcoal "by any means", for the purposes of doing TP research will NOT be a problem in the present.  In the future, when we need to make 23 billion tons a year of charcoal, that is also when we must address the GHG emissions and pollutants coming from the production of charcoal.

If we attempt to use make Terra Preta soils and charcoal, on this kind of worldwide scale, as an attempted "global climate mitigation strategy", then whatever biomass-to-charcoal reactors are used, they cannot simultaneously produce the enormous amount of charcoal we would need and add exponentially to an already exponentially growing GHG problem.  That I think is something most would agree with.

The focus of the discussion too, in this thread, is on a proposed "global climate mitigation aspect of Terra Preta".  Some in the discussion now, are maybe more focused with the agricultural benefits aspect of Terra Preta.  Both are at a research level.  There are NO clearly defined practices developed from working scientific theories about TP yet.  None, for either making charcoal, a certain way, or for using charcoal in soil to get the agricultrual benefits of TP soil.   It is worthwhile for everyone to stay "open-minded" about all which we do discuss here and to join in on discussions when you are interested or focused on that aspect of TP.

Regards,

SKB

  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Jeff Davis<mailto:jeff0124 at velocity.net> 
  To: Kevin Chisholm<mailto:kchisholm at ca.inter.net> 
  Cc: Sean K. Barry<mailto:sean.barry at juno.com> ; Miles Tom<mailto:terrapreta at bioenergylists.org> 
  Sent: Wednesday, August 29, 2007 4:14 PM
  Subject: Re: [Terrapreta] Sustained Biochar


  Kevin wrote:
  > Certainly, charring with full use of the retort or pyrolysis gases is
  > best, but I would presently appear to me that any form of char
  > production for Terra Preta is better than allowing the biomass to
  > decompose naturally, from the standpoint of GHG impact.

  Daer All,

  Primitive man has been burning and making charcoal for thousands of years
  without global warming, so to say. Only in the last one hundred years has
  man become highly educated enough to destroy the environment and knows
  enough to blame it on old practices.


  Just an interesting point,


  Jeff






  -- 
  Jeff Davis

  Some where 20 miles south of Lake Erie, USA

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