Taking A Look Outside Our Window

I just have to say I love KPCC now called LAist. It is the National Public Radio station in our area and it has some of the most interesting stories. At least once a week I hear about a subject that makes me want to research and learn more. On Tuesday it was Biochar. To be honest I had heard of this before but maybe because it was discussed as a historical practice it caught my attention.

The title of the radio discussion was “An Ancient Farming Practice is Getting New Life,” written by Kate Grumke from Harvest Public Media and the host was Mary Louise Kelly.

“Reducing emissions from farming will be key to meeting this country’s climate goals. Agriculture is the fifth largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S. One climate-friendly growing technique called biochar involves literally burying carbon in the ground,” Kelly’s introduction began.

Grumke visited a family farm owned by Nick Chuchetti in  Luebbering, Missouri.

Biochar is a stable solid, rich in carbon that is made from organic waste material or biomass that is partially combusted in the presence of limited oxygen. The qualities that make up biochar vary depending on the material it comes from, like from feedstocks—timber slash, corn stalks, manure or more, and the temperature at which combustion occurs, according to the USDA Climate Hub.

So it’s like compost that is cooked. Grumke said the biochar was poured into the vegetable beds, “You can hear what makes this substance special. It’s extremely hollow and porous.”

Chuchetti said that all you have to do is put it in the soil and forget about it.

Biochar has been used by humans in agriculture in the Amazon Basin of South America for over 2,500 years, according to US Biochar Initiative (USBI).

It is found naturally in soils around the world as a result of vegetation fires. Biochar is dark, charcoal-rich soil known as terra preta, or black earth. Terra Preta was first discovered in the 1950s by Dutch soil scientist Wlm Sombroek in the Amazon rainforest. Typically jungle soils are unproductive but after mixing biochar into the topsoil, the soil was able to retain vital organic matter, plant nutrients and moisture essential for plant growth, according to the USBI.

So why haven’t farmers been using this method all along? Well, it all comes down to how it was made.

Historically the method of production was to burn and cover wood. This method, although still used in some areas, creates a lot of smoke and releases half the carbon dioxide in the original biomass. So the result, including the smoke caused while producing it, is not exactly healthy for people.

“A new approach—with multiple benefits— the principles of making biochar haven’t changed over the centuries but the methods have. Today biochar can be produced in an environmentally friendly way. Pyrolysis, burning with limited oxygen in a closed system, allows material to be burned at high temperatures and have all the emissions captured. That means the CO2 and other greenhouse gases are not released but re-burned in the system or broken down into less harmful elements,” according to USBI.

So once again looking to the past can help the future. It seems that as a society of humans, we so often assume that anything other generations did can’t be correct because technology is so far advanced now. I love the fact that scientists and engineers are looking at this ancient practice, seeing its value and correcting its flaws.

Now, according to USBI, biochar has the potential to capture toxins and excess nitrogen protecting waterways and groundwater quality, create an alternative energy source for generating heat and power and valuable by-products of syngas and bio-fuels thereby reducing CO2 emissions. In addition biochar could reduce the need, and use of, fossil-fuels and fossil-fuel based fertilizers and safely sequester CO2 for thousands of years which slows climate change.

Biochar can be expensive but as the practice becomes more popular, and more available, the price should go down. Biochar can be purchased by local gardeners as well at gardening stores, just search biochar online to find more options and prices.

To listen, or read, the LAist article visit  https://tinyurl.com/zz938dxk

Our weather will be cooler, with some winds and maybe rain.

“There is a chance of rainfall, on the light side, [about] a quarter of inch or less,” said Rose Schoenfeld, NOAA meteorologist.

That rain is expected Saturday afternoon/evening to Sunday morning. There will be some winds, 15 to 20 mph,  starting Saturday and into Monday.

We will be on the cooler side with temperatures in the mid-70s, with the warmest temperatures today and the coolest day with on Sunday.