What is the potential of biochar?, Pg 8.

Key Highlights:

• India produces 600+ million tonnes of agri-residue and 60+ million tonnes of municipal solid waste annually.
• Using 30–50% of surplus waste could produce 15–26 million tonnes of biochar and remove 0.1 gigatonnes of CO₂e annually.
• Syngas (20–30 million tonnes) and bio-oil (24–40 million tonnes) are by-products that can replace coal and diesel, reducing imports.
• Biochar can sequester carbon for 100–1,000 years, serving as a long-term carbon sink.
• Benefits include improved soil health, water retention, crop yields (10–25%), and reduced fertilizer use (10–20%).
• In construction, 2–5% biochar in concrete can improve strength, resist heat, and sequester 115 kg of CO₂/m³.
• Potential to create 5.2 lakh rural jobs via decentralized biochar production.

Detailed Insights:

• Carbon Sink Potential:
  • Biochar stores carbon stably in soil or building materials, reducing greenhouse gases like CO₂, CH₄, and N₂O.
  • Applying it to soil can cut nitrous oxide emissions by 30–50%, a potent GHG 273 times more warming than CO₂.
• Multi-Sectoral Uses:
  • Agriculture: Enhances nutrient retention and productivity.
  • Construction: Adds strength to concrete while sequestering carbon.
  • Wastewater Treatment: 1 kg can treat 200–500 L of wastewater; demand potential of 2.5–6.3 million tonnes.
  • Industry: Modified biochar can capture CO₂ from exhausts.
• Barriers to Adoption:
  • Lack of standard feedstock markets, carbon accounting, and carbon credit inclusion hinder investor confidence.
  • No viable business models or policy frameworks to support scaling.
  • Absence of coordination across sectors like energy, agriculture, and climate governance.
  • Weak Monitoring, Reporting, and Verification (MRV) frameworks for carbon benefits.
• Way Forward:
  • Develop region-specific feedstock standards and optimise biomass use by agro-climatic zones.
  • Integrate biochar into State Action Plans on Climate Change, crop residue schemes, and urban bioenergy programs.
  • Recognise biochar as a verifiable carbon removal technology in India’s carbon market to monetise through credits.
  • Strengthen R&D, stakeholder awareness, and rural deployment models to align climate mitigation with inclusive development.

Concepts Involved:

• Biochar: Charcoal-like substance made by pyrolysis (thermal decomposition in absence of oxygen) of biomass; stable, carbon-rich, used in soil amendment and emissions reduction.
• Carbon Market: A market-based system where carbon credits are traded to incentivize emission reductions.
• Syngas: A mixture of CO, H₂, and CH₄ generated during pyrolysis, usable as a fuel.
• Bio-oil: Liquid fuel by-product of biomass pyrolysis, usable in energy generation or refining.
• MRV Framework: Mechanisms for Monitoring, Reporting, and Verification of emission reductions or removals.