Examining the potential of biochar
A workshop in Hobart has examined the role of biochar in agriculture and land management activities.
The one-day forum also looked at biochar's role as a greenhouse gas mitigation strategy.
The workshop was organised by the Australia and New Zealand Biochar Researchers’ Network and a range of Tasmanian stakeholders.
Co-organiser Dr Jane Sargison from the UTAS School of Engineering said the aim of the workshop was to consider opportunities to reduce the cost of, or develop income from, the management of organic wastes.
“This workshop is to inform and work with local government, government departments and industry about the potential for biochar in Tasmania,” Dr Sargison.
Biochar is made by heating biomass under oxygen-limited conditions which is called slow pyrolysis. Biomass feedstocks can include forestry and agricultural waste products, municipal greenwaste, biosolids, animal manures and some industrial wastes.
“The pyrolysis process takes waste biomass and produces energy, as well as biochar, which can be used to sequester co2 by adding it to the soil, with benefits for plant growth,” Dr Sargison said.