[Terrapreta] Catalyst: Carbon Bigfoot

[Kevin Chisholm]

Dear Sean

You raise an excellent point: Char is being used as a carbon neutral 
fuel, rather than for TP.

If GW was not being caused by GHG's, and if char was not being used to 
reduce GHG's, then more char would be available for TP, with all the 
benefits you list below.

If we hang the future of TP on funding from Carbon Credits, TP would be 
dealt a serious blow, if Carbon Credits were not forthcoming.

On the other hand, if we develop TP in a way that it can be successful 
on its own merits for promoting more effective agriculture, then Carbon 
Credits would be a massive windfall, and an enormous boost to TP use.

What do you think we should be doing to maximize the early acceptance 
and widespread use of char for TP?

Best wishes,

Kevin

Sean K. Barry wrote:
> Hi Duane, Kevin,
> The way that Terra Preta soils can most contribute to mitigation of 
> the Global Warming problem is by reducing GHG concentrations.
> This would be done by turning 25 billon tons of biomass into 6 billion 
> tons of charcoal and burying it in the ground every year! Until Terra 
> Preta soil formation at that level occurs, then TP formation only will 
> slow the increase in CO2 concentrations.
> Terra Preta soils can reduce the need for synthetic fertilizer inputs 
> and the production of those fertilizers, further reducing GHG inputs 
> to the atmosphere. Terra Preta formation can help soils hold onto 
> nitrogen better (in nitrogen binding microorganisms), thus reducing 
> nitrous oxide-N2O emissions to the atmosphere, and soluble nitrate-NOx 
> emissions to the watersheds.
> The biggest problem I see to the formation of Terra Preta soils is 
> that charcoal is currently more highly valued as a "carbon neutral" 
> fuel, rather than as a valuable soil amendment, that can improve 
> soils, and sequester carbon. Got any ideas to change that perception!?
> Fossil carbon is rapidly being turned into atmospheric carbon. Turning 
> atmospheric carbon back into terrestrial carbon (say, with Terra Preta 
> formation?) is a way to remove carbon from the atmosphere.
> Regards,
> SKB
>
>     ----- Original Message -----
>     *From:* Duane Pendergast <mailto:still.thinking at computare.org>
>     *To:* 'Sean K. Barry' <mailto:sean.barry at juno.com>
>     *Cc:* 'Terrapreta' <mailto:terrapreta at bioenergylists.org>
>     *Sent:* Saturday, December 08, 2007 10:30 AM
>     *Subject:* RE: [Terrapreta] Catalyst: Carbon Bigfoot
>
>     Morning Sean,
>
>     My response to you was totally sincere. After 20 years trying to
>     follow the climate issue, I’m becoming more and more skeptical
>     about the dire claims made in the name of climate change due to
>     greenhouse gas emissions.
>
>     I was just trying to point out, that if terra preta lives up to
>     expectations on this site, there is potential for excess removal
>     of CO2 from the atmosphere. Danny Day has suggested that we are
>     seeing the “stumbling steps of a brand new species evolved to
>     stabilize this recurring imbalance” with reference to the drastic
>     cycling between ice ages seen in the long term climate change
>     record. He sees the burgeoning human population, including some
>     three billion now impoverished farmers, as key to planetary
>     survival and prosperity. The ultimate outcome of successful
>     demonstration of terra preta benefits could thus be an incentive
>     to geo-agricultural engineering on a massive scale. That vision
>     will be self limiting if plant growth is suppressed by a shortage
>     of atmospheric carbon dioxide. A next logical step for humanity
>     could be to continue to transfer carbon from fossil fuel into the
>     soil.
>
>     There is plenty of scope for climate change ballyhoo at the UNFCCC
>     meeting in Bali and in the media. Kevin Chisholm’s gentle
>     suggestion in his response to your post that the list focus on
>     demonstrating the efficacy of the terra preta concept has
>     considerable merit.
>
>     Duane
>
>     -----Original Message-----
>     *From:* Sean K. Barry [mailto:sean.barry at juno.com]
>     *Sent:* December 7, 2007 9:51 PM
>     *To:* still.thinking at computare.org; 'lou gold'
>     *Cc:* 'Terrapreta'
>     *Subject:* Re: [Terrapreta] Catalyst: Carbon Bigfoot
>
>     Hi Duane,
>
>     WHAT?! Is your response to my post "tongue in cheek"? I hope so
>     ... or you really do not see things the way I do, either. Burning
>     coal and oil has to slow way down, even to stopping altogether. If
>     coal energy is required, then it has to change over to "clean"
>     coal, without the release of CO2 emissions.
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
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