[Terrapreta] Charcoal agriculture: not ready for prime time

[Sean K. Barry]

Hi Tom and All,

I heartily agree, Tom!  I believe that if enough simple, inexpensive, biomass-to-char equipment could be utilized by enough smallholders, that by a groundswell, carbon sequestration as part of agriculture could become the norm.  When the smallholders enjoyed improved crop yields on their farmland and if they could also earn "carbon credits", then the large landholders and industrial agriculture (all envious of the productivity and profitability of these "smallholder" ventures) would have to follow suit, just in order to compete!  It would be like greasing the wheels of the capitalist machine.  Who ever said that "Neo Terra Preta" shouldn't be built from the ground up?!

Regards,

SKB
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Tom Miles<mailto:tmiles at trmiles.com> 
  To: terrapreta at bioenergylists.org<mailto:terrapreta at bioenergylists.org> 
  Sent: Tuesday, May 29, 2007 11:21 PM
  Subject: Re: [Terrapreta] Charcoal agriculture: not ready for prime time


  35 years ago in the national forestry development program in Mexico we
  worked with intercropping and other techniques to restore tropical forest
  soils that had been slashed and burned. It's interesting to think what might
  have evolved if we had known about "slash and char". 

  At that time one of the greatest deterrents to improving the soil was the
  belief by rural smallholders that if they improved the soil someone would
  take the land away from them. I don't know whether the technical and social
  infrastructure, or the political will, exists today to promote slash and
  char but it should be done.   

  Tom    

  -----Original Message-----
  From: terrapreta-bounces at bioenergylists.org<mailto:terrapreta-bounces at bioenergylists.org>
  [mailto:terrapreta-bounces at bioenergylists.org] On Behalf Of
  rukurt at westnet.com.au<mailto:rukurt at westnet.com.au>
  Sent: Tuesday, May 29, 2007 6:40 PM
  To: terrapreta at bioenergylists.org<mailto:terrapreta at bioenergylists.org>
  Subject: Re: [Terrapreta] Charcoal agriculture: not ready for prime time

  Tom Miles wrote:
  >
  > My thought was more modest:  a concentration of charcoal left in a 
  > poor soil from any natural cause could have resulted in abundant 
  > growth and  inspired terra preta. Studies that I have linked on the 
  > terra preta site have shown that the nutrient impact of fires in 
  > grasslands only lasts for about a year, and slash and burn about three 
  > years. Forest fires, however, can leave some substantial pockets of char.
  >
  >  
  >
  > Tom
  >
  >   
  >
  Nutrient impacts of fires are most likely due to the ash and not the 
  charcoal, which is mainly left on the surface anyhow.
  I believe that for maximum impact the char has to be ground somewhat and 
  incorporated and possibly impregnated with other nutrients.

  Kurt

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