Enthusiasts say that biochar could go a long way towards mitigating climate change and bring with it a host of ancillary benefits. But others fear it could do more harm than good. Kurt Kleiner reports.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 12 print issues and online access
$259.00 per year
only $21.58 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on SpringerLink
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
References
Amonette, J. et al. in American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting 2007, abstract U42A-06; http://tiny.cc/biochar1
Lenton, T. M. & Vaughan, N. E. Atmos. Chem. Phys. Discuss. 9, 2559–2608 (2009).
Ernsting, A. & Smolker, R. Biochar for Climate Change Mitigation: Fact or Fiction? (Biofuelwatch, 2009); http://tiny.cc/biochar
Wardle, D. A. Science 320, 629 (2008).
Hamer, U., Marschner, B., Brodowski, S. & Amelung, W. Org. Geochem. 35, 823–830 (2004).
Lehmann, J. & Rondon, M. in Biological Approaches to Sustainable Soil Systems (eds Uphoff, N. et al.) 517–530 (CRC Press, 2006).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Kleiner, K. The bright prospect of biochar. Nature Clim Change 1, 72–74 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1038/climate.2009.48
Published:
Issue date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/climate.2009.48
This article is cited by
-
Properties of biochar and its potential role in climate change mitigation and bioenergy generation: a review
Environmental Sustainability (2021)
-
Cooking up fuel
Nature Climate Change (2012)
