Biochar Updates

A new report from Nathaniel Mulcahy of World Stove titled "Fuel Options in Post-Earthquake Haiti" is up now at the bioenergy lists forum.

World Stove is on the ground in Haiti building hundreds of clean-burning biochar-producing cook stoves to help with the post-earthquake relief effort.  Mulcahy reports: "Clearly pellets are the single best fuel option for Haiti right now." Click on the link above to read the rest.

You may have heard stories about deliveries of rice and other food commodities in Haiti that are unusable because people do not have stoves or fuel to cook with. Nathaniel Mulcahy, CEO of WorldStove LLC, has set up a workshop in Haiti and is making clean, fuel flexible, pyrolytic cook stoves that also happen to make biochar - potentially a boon for Haiti's eroded hills and fields. Information about Mulcahy's progress is hard to come by, as he has virtually no email access. Nathaniel tries to keep up communication via mobile phone and twitter messages at http://twitter.com/worldstove. You can also find updates and pictures of his work at the WorldStove Facebook page.

If you would like to help the WorldStove effort, you can make a donation that will go directly to Nathaniel's work through the International Lifeline Fund.

On Feb. 25, IBI's Agricultural Extension Director, Julie Major will talk about biochar at the Fifth National Congress on Integrated Management of Pests, Nutrition and Diseases of Apple Trees in Ciudad Guerrero, Chihuahua, Mexico. The talk will be attended by fruit growers and agricultural technicians of the region, and Julie will also lead a hands-on activity after the talk, where participants will set up simple experiments to test the safety of biochar materials before applying it to field soil.

This report by Kelsi Bracmort, Analyst in Agricultural Conservation and Natural Resources Policy, briefly describes biochar, its potential advantages and disadvantages, legislative support, and research and development activities underway in the United States and abroad.