Greenhouse gas inventory model for biochar additions to soil

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DOI

https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.1c02425

Language of the publication
English
Date
2021-10-12
Type
Article
Author(s)
  • Woolf, Dominic
  • Lehmann, Johannes
  • Ogle, Stephen
  • Kishimoto-Mo, Ayaka W.
  • McConkey, Brian
  • Baldock, Jeffrey
Publisher
American Chemical Society

Abstract

Stabilizing the global climate within safe bounds will require greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to reach net zero within a few decades. Achieving this is expected to require removal of CO2 from the atmosphere to offset some hard-to-eliminate emissions. There is, therefore, a clear need for GHG accounting protocols that quantify the mitigation impact of CO2 removal practices, such as biochar sequestration, that have the potential to be deployed at scale. Here, we have developed a GHG accounting methodology for biochar application to mineral soils using simple parameterizations and readily accessible activity data that can be applied at a range of scales including farm, supply chain, national, or global. The method is grounded in a comprehensive analysis of current empirical data, making it a robust method that can be used for many applications including national inventories and voluntary and compliance carbon markets, among others. We show that the carbon content of biochar varies with feedstock and production conditions from as low as 7% (gasification of biosolids) to 79% (pyrolysis of wood at above 600 °C). Of this initial carbon, 63–82% will remain unmineralized in soil after 100 years at the global mean annual cropland-temperature of 14.9 °C. With this method, researchers and managers can address the long-term sequestration of C through biochar that is blended with soils through assessments such as GHG inventories and life cycle analyses.

Subject

  • Agriculture,
  • Science and technology,
  • Nature and environment

Rights

Pagination

14795-14805

Peer review

Yes

Open access level

Gold

Identifiers

ISSN
1520-5851

Article

Journal title
Environmental Science & Technology
Journal volume
55
Journal issue
21
Accepted date
2021-09-23
Submitted date
2021-04-14

Citation(s)

Woolf, D., Lehmann, J., Ogle, S. M., Kishimoto-Mo, A. W., McConkey, B., & Baldock, J. (2021). Greenhouse Gas Inventory Model for Biochar Additions to Soil. Environmental Science & Technology, 55(21), 14795–14805. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.1c02425 ‌

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Collection(s)

Climate and weather

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