[Terrapreta] Fwd: compost and charcoal

[Larry Williams]

Gerald-------One point on this Texas commission article. They do note  
in a chart that charcoal, "May contain materials that harm  
plants..."*.  They have soils with high toxicity's. See: http:// 
www.searchanddiscovery.net/documents/abstracts/2004swsection/ 
Montoyaetal..htm . Charcoal can absorb toxins so I accept their  
caution and attempt to stay away from potential toxic sources for use  
in composting and my charcoal experiments here in the Pacific  
Northwest. Could they have made a blanket decision on composting  
charcoal that covered grass cuttings from chemically treated lawns,  
agricultural chemicals remaining in crop residuals or industrial  
contamination? We would be wise to be alert to our own material  
sources for composting given amount of industrial chemicals available.

When I first started making charcoal, in very small quantities, the  
charcoal had access to alder smoke (Alnus rubra) while I barbecued  
chicken (you could consider this technique as the Webber agri-char  
process). For the best part of a year, the bits of charred wood and  
charcoal were stockpiled on the ground, an aerobic process. Some  
human urine was used as fertilizer on rare occasion. This pile was  
buried in a vegetable bed and produced the largest swiss chard that I  
have ever seen---42 inches high. The buried charcoal from beneath  
these plants can be seen in these pictures @ http://www.flickr.com/ 
photos/rchaard/336553821/in/set-72157594444994347/ .

In the early nineties, before I knew of charcoal's benefits, I had 30  
cubic yards compost piles of wood chips (a knife cut), grass  
clippings and, in the fall, leaves.  Most compost piles reached a 140  
degrees F. with one compost pile reaching close to 160 degrees F..  
These piles were turned by a skid-steer machine. At times during the  
summer they were watered. It would be good to have access to  
facilities to include charcoal in the composting process for use on a  
farm, for example. It was an energy intensive effort.

Adding charcoal to compost implies a considerable amount of weight. I  
would think that less weight in a product, by using a compost tea  
with microbes to inoculate the charcoal, would be the best sales option.

I see no reason for not including charcoal in the composing process  
with the caveat that, in this industrial age, one is very careful to  
exclude toxins. We do know that toxicity in the environment is  
ubiquitous so an industrial process to compost using charcoal is  
suspect. Composting with charcoal at a local level by attentive small  
holders holds the best opportunity to prevent the movement of toxins.

At a current price of $100 dollars per barrel, energy prices will  
likely favor small holder operations in the future from what I  
see-------Larry



------------------------
*Texas Commission on Environmental Quality
A Green Guide, to Yard Care GI-028,  PDF version, (revised 8/06)
@ http://www.tceq.state.tx.us/files/gi-028.pdf_4045841.pdf     (page 9)



Table 3. Compost Pile Ingredients: Yes, No, or Use with Caution

Material                                        Use?                
C:N*                 Comments

Algae, seaweed and         / Yes          /  N       /  Good nutrient  
source.
lake weed

Ash from coal or              /  No           /  O      /   May  
contain materials that harm plants. Best to exclude charcoal

Ashes from clean wood    / Caution     /  O      /  Small amounts are  
acceptable.
  (not treated or painted)
---------snip----------







On Nov 24, 2007, at 7:27 PM, Gerald Van Koeverden wrote:

>
>>
>> Tom,
>>
>> Thanks for that link about the enhancing effect of charcoal on
>> compost by Japanese researchers.
>>
>> Looks like some revision of the accepted methods of making compost
>> might be in order.  The first site I went to on making compost
>> specifically advises avoiding charcoal in the compost pile!!
>>
>> http://www.tceq.state.tx.us/assets/public/assistance/education/
>> waste/composting.pdf
>>
>> The next two advised against using any charcoal ash.  By not saying
>> anything positive about using charcoal itself, the message conveyed
>> is negative towards using charcoal at all as a composting component.
>>
>> Gerrit
>>
>> On 24-Nov-07, at 6:33 PM, Tom Miles wrote:
>>
>>> See the presentation on charcoal mixed compost at the IAI
>>> conference by
>>> Shuji Yoshizawa, Satoko Tanaka, Michio Ohata or
>>> Meisei University and Shigeru Mineki, Tokyo University of Science.
>>>
>>> http://www.biochar-international.org/images/Yoshizawa_-
>>> _Charcoal_Composting_
>>> of_Rice_Bran_Effect_on_Microorganisms.pdf
>>>
>>> One slide:
>>> "Composting from mixture of charcoal and biomass waste (Charcoal
>>> Mixed
>>> Compost, CMC)
>>> Composts made from garbage generated by homes, restaurants and food
>>> industries and livestock
>>> waste, and its utilization is receiving attention from the
>>> viewpoint of
>>> recycle of biomass wastes.
>>>
>>> As wood and bamboo have pores which are the size that are suitable
>>> for
>>> microorganisms to support, by
>>> adding the charcoal from the beginning of composting, the
>>> proliferation of
>>> microorganisms will be enhanced."
>>>
>>> Their results were positive.
>>>
>>> Tom
>>>
>>>
>>>> -----Original Message-----
>>>> From: terrapreta-bounces at bioenergylists.org [mailto:terrapreta-
>>>> bounces at bioenergylists.org] On Behalf Of Gerald Van Koeverden
>>>> Sent: Saturday, November 24, 2007 10:42 AM
>>>> To: terrapreta preta
>>>> Subject: [Terrapreta] compost and charcoal
>>>>
>>>> We've had a lot of talk about the cost-benefit of applying charcoal
>>>> to large acreages of land.  And also about using compost or
>>>> manure to
>>>> enrich charcoal before applying it.
>>>>
>>>> What about adding charcoal to the compost pile at the beginning of
>>>> the process?  Has anybody researched the value of adding  
>>>> charcoal to
>>>> the biomass right at the beginning?  A lot of ammonia is  
>>>> released to
>>>> the atmosphere during composting;  would charcoal act as a  
>>>> sponge to
>>>> soak it up and hold it, along with mineral nutrients which are
>>>> easily
>>>> susceptible to leaching?  In effect, if this is true, charcoal  
>>>> fines
>>>> as part of the composting process would significantly add to the
>>>> potential nutrient value of that compost.
>>>>
>>>> gerrit
>>>>
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>>>
>>>
>>
>
>
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