Presentation by Benjamin Spock de Vries to 'A World to Win' in London  (read description)
Channel: Permaculturedesigner
Date: 2013-07-24

Presentation to "A World to Win" Organisation http://www.aworldtowin.net/
http://aworldtowin.net/resources/BendeVriesEcoSolutions.html

The criteria?
1. it must be economically positive (create a return)
2. must be carbon negative (sequester carbon)
3. must improve food security
4. can not impact wildlife habitat
5. must use only existing technology (my criteria)

See introductory videos below first:
Dr. Gordon Sato, mangrove culture:
https://youtu.be/T0jshwUWPBQ

Background papers:
For more information and technical specifics, please see:
http://www.allpowerlabs.com/
http://wiki.gekgasifier.com/w/page/6123718/FrontPage
http://www.eprida.com/home/index.php4
http://www.biochar.org/joomla
http://www.biochar-international.org/biochar/carbon

Eco solutions presentation
Pyrolysis/Biochar for fuel and carbon sequestration
Halophytes for production and shoreline protection
I. Introductory videos, pyrolysis 
http://youtu.be/TVbL6S50F0c
http://youtu.be/Zzv6fIDsNwM
II. Total potentials
"A global analysis revealed that up to 12% of the total anthropogenic C emissions by land use change (0.21 Gt C) can be off-set annually in soil, if slash and burn is replaced by slash and char. Agricultural and forestry wastes such as forest residues, mill residues, field crop residues, or urban wastes add a conservatively estimated 0.16 Gt C yr-1. Using published projections of the use of renewable fuels in the year 2100, bio-char sequestration could amount to 5.5-9.5 Gt C yr-1 if this demand for energy was met through pyrolysis, which would exceed current emissions form fossil fuels (5.4 Gt C yr-1). Bio-char soil management systems can deliver tradable C emissions reduction, and C sequestered is easily accountable, and verifiable." 1
If crop waste and other cellulose waste was converted to biochar it would have 3 net effects: 1. it would replace demand for fossil fuels and 2. it would store more carbon than is being emitted by both fossil fuels and crop waste oxidation 3. It would improve soil fertility dramatically in the production areas.
As most agricultural soils have lost 50 to 70% of their original carbon (7) they represent a considerable carbon sink if efforts are made to restore soil organic carbon, but also a huge source of GHG if soil management and deforestation rates are not changed.1
What this means is there is the potential for a complete rebuild of carbon soil storage within a fairly short period of time (prior to 2100). As the soil reservoir has been depleted over the last 300 years, while at the same time new emissions from fossil fuels have added dramatically to the input, that this can be reversed rather than mitigated with fairly low tech Pyrolysis. At the same time new emissions from fossil fuels would be phased out as fuel and energy from this net carbon negative system replaces it. There does not appear to be any upper limit to stabilized carbon stored in this manner, and has a residence time range from 1300 to 2300 years.
By the nature of the Pyrolysis process, heat energy is generated as well as gas, and so can be used to run power generation steam turbines and finally hot water as byproducts. 
In a locally distributed system, this could provide much of the electricity needs as well as a replacement for liquid fossil fuel needs of most communities in temperate and moist tropical climates, and resulting long term sequestration of carbon while at the same time enhancing crop productivity, expecially in depleted or oxidized soils.
Biochar reduces the need for fertilizer, resulting in reduced emissions from fertilizer production. Biochar increases soil microbial life, resulting in more carbon storage in soil. Because biochar retains nitrogen, emissions of nitrous oxide (a potent greenhouse gas) may be reduced. Turning agricultural waste into biochar reduces methane (another potent greenhouse gas) generated by the natural decomposition of the waste.2




 Figure 8 shows a simplified version of the carbon cycle in vegetation and soil. Plants take CO2 from the atmosphere to synthesize tissue (plant biomass). As long as biomass is growing it accumulates carbon. During decomposition of dead biomass and humus the carbon is released as CO2. In undisturbed ecosystems the accumulation and release of CO2 is in equilibrium.


 Figure 9 illustrates the manipulated carbon cycle due to bio-char carbon sequestration. Biochar is recalcitrant against decomposition and remains in the soil for centuries or millennia. Thus pyrolysis can transfer 50% of the carbon stored in plant tissue from the active to an inactive carbon pool. The remaining 50% of carbon can be used to produces energy and fuels. This enables carbon negative energy generation if re-growing resources are used. (I.e. with each unit if energy produced CO2 is removed from the atmosphere).