Findings on Biochar, Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Ethylene By
Ann Perry December 13, 2011 Adding a charred biomass material
called biochar to glacial soils can help reduce emissions of the
greenhouse gases carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide, according to
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) scientists. Studies by
scientists with USDA's Agricultural Research Service (ARS) are
providing valuable information about how biochar-the charred
biomass created from wood, plant material, and manure-interacts
with soil and crops. As part of this effort, ARS scientists in
St. Paul, Minn., are studying biochar activity in soils formed
from glacial deposits. ARS is USDA's chief intramural scientific
research agency, and this work supports the USDA priorities of
responding to global climate change and ensuring international
food security. Soil scientists Kurt Spokas and John Baker, who
both work at the ARS Soil and Water Management Research Unit in
St. Paul, found that amending glacial soils with biochar made
from macadamia n