Using biochar to restore our biological and manmade carbon cycle (interview with researcher kathleen draper)
Kathleen Draper is the author of the blog Finger Lakes Biochar and the book BURN: Using Fire to Cool the Earth. She's also a researcher and communicator that focuses on biochar, which is a highly stable carbon material that can be used for things like improving soil health, reducing flooding, purifying water, and more.
In this podcast episode, Kathleen sheds light on how we can redirect biological waste towards the creation of biochar, turning that source of carbon from waste to resource; why we need to talk more about biochar's potential for helping to restore our carbon cycle; and more.
To start, get a glimpse below into the conversation between Kathleen and Green Dreamer Podcast's host, Kamea Chayne.
“There is a broad range of things that can be converted from a short-term carbon to a longer-term carbon including human waste, livestock waste, and food waste that is hard to compost.”
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This is a conversation on Green Dreamer with Kamea Chayne, a podcast and multimedia journal illuminating our paths towards ecological balance, intersectional sustainability, and true abundance and wellness for all. This preview has been edited for clarity. Subscribe to Green Dreamer Podcast on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, or any podcast app to stay informed and updated on our latest episodes.
On turning biological waste into biochar:
"Originally, when people started looking into biochar, the focus was mostly on wood, crop residues, and biomass that can be used to make biochar.
Those are still huge areas, but we're learning there's a much broader range of things that can be converted from a short-term carbon to a longer-term carbon, including human waste, livestock waste, and food waste that is hard to compost.
There is actually a very broad range of things that can be turned into biochar.”
On how biochar is being used today:
“We're starting to see more and more wastewater treatment plants considering carbonizing the sludge because there are so many restrictions on what you can do with that sludge. There are odor problems as well.
For them, they are looking at it as a waste mitigation play so they can reduce the volumes by 70 to 80 percent.“
On prioritizing nature-based carbon sequestration methods:
“Biochar exists already—we're not waiting for anything. The technology is there; the finances are coming along.
Some of these other [technologies for carbon sequestration]—we just don't know when they'll be ready, how much they'll be able to do…
And they don't seem to have a lot of co-benefits which biochar does.
We're not just talking about storing carbon. We're talking about restoring soils and landscapes and helping to adapt to climate change with stormwater management.”
Final words of wisdom:
“Stay positive. There is hope."
