I’m sure we can learn a lot about how to establish a forestry based biochar project from this work in the USA. It would be good to get some feed-back from NZ foresters and farm-forest groups on what is shown here…
Here’s the link to their very informative website.
That’s great. Coming to a forrest near you – soon.
Interesting to consider the pros and cons of taking a mobile machine to the trees v bringing the trees to the machine. Seemed that this machine needs no water quenching but he was spraying a bit. I disagree with her statement that its best value is as a soil amendment. Better to use it first as something else e.g. animal feed additive, bedding, water filtration. Then add to soil. Great that it is a ‘waste’ product. I’m trying a pit burn to use up my forest thinning. Only need a shovel and a match.
My thoughts also Cam. As soon as anyone starts removing feedstock from one place to another, chipping it, pumping water etc and not recovering any of the waste heat (although when the machine is permanently installed a generator can be added) I start to ask about the energy budget and the cycling of nutrients.
Obviously the tan oaks are a pest species so the cutting must be done anyway and perhaps the decay products of the felling are toxic? But at the end she talks about where their funding came from and the fact that it is a demonstration project so the longer term economics/ecologics are still hidden.