Biochar, a renewable charcoal-like product derived from burning organic matter in a high-temperature oxygen-limited kiln, could be a substitute for the coal and some of the natural gas burned in British Columbia, according to a new policy paper written by UNBC researchers.

The paper - Industrial and Market Development of Biochar in BC - was co-authored by PhD candidate Geoff de Ruiter, Environmental Engineering Professor Steve Helle, and Environmental Science Professor Mike Rutherford, and issued by the Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions (PICS), a collaboration of BC’s research-intensive universities. The authors suggest that a reduction of as much as 22 per cent of provincial greenhouse gas emissions could be achieved by using biochar instead of fossil fuels for thermal energy applications. They also make a series of recommendations regarding biochar policy and planning, economics, environmental regulations, research, and the need for an academic-industry-government roundtable to update the 2008 BC bioenergy strategy and plan future best use of biomass resources.

De Ruiter, the lead author, says the report sets the stage for moving forward with the industry, as there are at least 12 biochar companies in the planning or operational stages in BC.

“If we want to move forward, we need to talk about how to choose the best application,” he says. “There’s an opportunity to make significant impacts in carbon reduction in the short term, and value-added products in the long term. Biochar is energy dense, can be transported easily, and used for purposes, such as combustion, as a substitute for coal. It has a wide range of potential uses, but they have to be developed. We should get this right.”

De Ruiter adds that while biochar is best known for its carbon storage properties and ability to improve some soil characteristics, there are a number of technologies and products that could be achieved through a productive biochar industry as well. For example, remote communities with access to forest industry residues could replace diesel generators with a biochar and electricity producing facility.

“There are far-reaching research opportunities as well,” he says. “There is potential for it to be used in metallurgy, or to even make high-value synthetic graphite, depending on the process. There are pollution-filtering applications through the production of activated carbon as well. British Columbia could be on the leading edge of that research, all from a renewable resource.”

To view the paper, visit http://pics.uvic.ca/research/publications/white-papers