Fwd: experiment in piauí/maranhão - Brasil

[May Waddington]

My name is May Waddington, and I am a PHd antrhopologist. I have worked in the amazon for many years with an indigenous tribe, and in Northeast Brazil with traditional groups such as the babassu women and andiroba women.

Over the last 4 years I made a major turn on my life, leaving Rio de Janeiro, purchasing 400 hectares of land in a region which is a mixture of caatinga and cerrado,  the Buriti Doce farm. I am employed at a small state college nearby.

I have been running a series of agro-ecological experiments in this land. In preparing to plant 10 hectares of bixa orellana  and pineapple, we tested some slash and burn practices which are considered less harming (queimada de toco vivo). This technique, includes several security measures, selected trees are cut in a way they will re-grow, and the most wood is saved for other uses. We made 20 traditional ovens to produce charcoal in the area, which burned for a week or so (see pictures - the wood is covered in earth with an opening on each end of the caeira).

The innovation was accompanied by the IBAMA (National environmental agency) and was used to teach local farmers. It resulted in some 1000 kg of charcoal, which I have been resisting to sell.

I want to ask you if my charcoal can be used as Biochar. I would also like to volunteer the farm as an experimental area for anyone who may wish to study this production in this climate/soil conditions.

As you must know, the State of Piauí is pioneering biodiesel production, and there are major plants in the neighborhood.

In case you show any interest, I can deliver written materials to you. Please see pictures of the traditional charcoal making ovens.

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[Nando M. Breiter]

Hi May,

Nice to hear from you. I believe you can certainly use the charcoal as biochar. A large farm in Bolivia that we are associated with was cleared using slash and burn 18 years ago. The wood was gathered in strips on the cleared areas and lit, leaving behind ash and charcoal, which was then plowed into the soil, an unintentional application of biochar. Those strips are much more fertile and the difference is clearly visible today. The increase in fertility between the strips with biochar and the portions of the field without was measured in a recent study. Maize showed an increase of 2.5 times productivity in terms of cobs/seeds produced, soya showed a 40% increase, and sunflower a 45% increase.

At present, we are still in the process of seeking funding for scientific research, but I can keep your offer in mind for the future. You might also contact Christoph Steiner regarding research. You can find his contact info on his website www.biochar.org.

Nando

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The CarbonZero Project
CP 234
6934 Bioggio
Switzerland

+41 (0)91 608 2402
+41 (0)76 303 4477

www.carbonzero.ch

--
The CarbonZero Project
CP 234
6934 Bioggio
Switzerland

+41 (0)91 608 2402
+41 (0)76 303 4477

www.carbonzero.ch