ARTi Podcasts ARTi: Cool Solutions to Cool The World

Paul S. Anderson, Ph.D., the President of Woodgas Pyrolytics, Inc., has authored a white paper titled “Roadmap for Climate Intervention with Biochar” (link). The paper aims to establish “Goals for Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR)” and emphasizes the need for carbon removal technologies to combat climate change. Biochar is identified as the most feasible and scalable option among the available technologies. However, not all biochar production systems possess the necessary technological and economic capabilities. Fortunately, ARTi is cited in the paper as one such company that possesses the required capabilities and more, as detailed on pages 18-19 of the paper. 

People who buy and get ready to move into a brand-new house have the chance to be the first ones to live there and have everything in top working order. For us at ARTi, soil is one of our first concerns.

The soil must be strong and stable for the foundations of buildings.

Strengths of soils vary due to the physical characteristics of the soil. A well-structured soil is more stable. If you’re hoping to add satisfying landscaping or a backyard garden, you need to know that improving your soil is crucial. Instead of buying that roll-out, pre-made lawn, consider that there must be a better option.

Agricultural residue or agricultural waste is not waste, it’s an asset. Because of biochar it’s now valuable!

Biochar is a substance that resembles charcoal that is produced from biomass and is sustainably sourced from agricultural and forestry waste. These can be from corn stalks, hulls, wood chips and much more. Check out our blog on “What Materials Has ARTi Successfully Pyrolysed (Turned into biochar)” at the following (Link). But is it really “waste”? Are they only agricultural residues?

Firstly, due to the scale of our civilization and the growing human demands, there is more production of everything. This would for sure certainly include agriculturally grown food. More production means more waste, or unneeded materials from the process. That’s the nature of production.

Did you remember that potato plants have stalks and green leaves? The potato part we eat is just part of the root system in the soil. The stalks and leaves of potato plants for example have little use. Potato plants even generate flowers. Potato flowers, anyone?

The global potato industry is enormous, producing 376 million metric tons in 2021. (Potato News Today, Jan. 21st, 2023). This is humongous. So, there’s going to be a lot of unwanted biomasses generated.

Biochar both sequesters carbon and can be made from forest residues that when otherwise left unused become wildfire fuels. These two main benefits of biochar in addition to soil water retention and improved soil health make biochar an attractive consideration for wildfire mitigation.

It is always a great experience to get the chance to visit other organizations in Iowa where we are headquartered which are also working towards agricultural practices that make a positive impact. Practical Farmers of Iowa is one such association. Practical Farmers is located in Ames, IA, the town that also hosts Iowa State University, the Department of Energy’s Ames Laboratory and the USDA’s National Animal Disease Center. Their mission statement is “equipping farmers to build resilient farms and communities”. The organization was founded in 1985 to support information sharing between farmers working on moving their agricultural operations toward sustainability. We share their priorities.

All those spooky decaying things and the wiggly worms that live in them are all part of natural soil and help make the new plants grow. Biochar would have been decaying plant matter. Instead, as biochar it traps CO2 and aids soil structure. Soil is made up of minerals, soil organic matter, living organisms, gas, and water. Plant, animal, and microbial remains in various stages of decomposition make up soil organic matter. It's the most important indicator of soil quality. So, they may seem like dead and decaying gloom, but it is what makes the flowers bloom! When you add biochar to the soil mixture, with compost you make a nice dark mansion for them to live in.