Project Results

Exciting new published results (the first of many!) from this project: biochar effects on soil fertility (physical and chemical properties). Please find the abstract that follows:

A body of emerging research shows the promise of charcoal soil amendments (“biochars”) in restoring fertility in degraded agricultural and forest soils. “Sustainable biochars” derived from locally produced waste biomass and produced near the application site are of particular interest. We tested the effects of surface applications of wood-derived biochars (applied at 7.5 t·ha−1) on soil physiochemical properties (N, P, K, pH, soil moisture content, organic matter content, and bulk density) in three land-use types: agriculture (Camellia sinensis monoculture), agroforestry (C. sinensis with shade trees), and secondary forest (Dipterocarpus dominated) assessed over seven months. We found significant positive effects of biochar on soil physiochemical properties in all land-use types, with the strongest responses in the most degraded tea monoculture sites. Although biochar had no significant effect on soil N and K, it improved soil P—the primary nutrient most commonly limiting in tropical soils. Biochar also enhanced soil moisture and organic matter content, reduced bulk density, and increased soil pH in monoculture sites. Our results support the general hypothesis that biochar can improve the fertility of degraded soils in agricultural and forest systems in Bangladesh and suggest that biochar additions may be of great benefit to the most degraded soils.

About This Project

“Biochar”, or charcoal used as a soil amendment, has been recently heralded in its ability to improve poor soil conditions such as leaching, acidification, and contamination, while directly mitigating climate change by increasing carbon sequestration. We plan to combat climate change using biochar in beautiful Bangladesh, a delta country vulnerable to climate change. We strive to increase productivity across land-use types: primary forests, secondary forests, agroforestry, and agriculture.

Ask the Scientists

What is the context of this research?

Significant plant responses to biochar have been observed in many agricultural studies, with typical biomass increases of 10 – 25%. However, the potential of biochar to enhance plant growth and productivity in the context of forestry and agroforestry is underexplored. A recently published review, and results from a nursery experiment in Bangladesh show larger growth responses for trees, with an average responses of around 40%.

We want to expand on these findings by setting up long-term field plots with biochar amendments across different land use types. We will measure physiological traits responsible for performance and resource use to help determine the mechanisms responsible for growth effects. We will also measure soil fluxes of methane and carbon dioxide, two potent greenhouse gases.

What is the significance of this project?

Combating climate change is everyone’s responsibility. Many western nations are only beginning to notice small effects of climate change, whereas in Bangladesh the impacts are severe and daily: flooding, extreme heat and drought, powerful storms, and salinity intrusion. Biochar is a climate change mitigation technology with great promise, supported by hundreds of studies that document increased system productivity with an overall net negative carbon impact. This project represents the chance to fight climate change on the front lines.

This work will additionally fill the current knowledge gaps in our understanding of plant responses to biochar by describing plant physiological responses, and in our understanding of tropical soil greenhouse gas fluxes .

What are the goals of the project?

• Set up 20 x 20 m plots across 4 important land-use types: primary forest, secondary forest, agroforestry, and agriculture, at Khadimnagar National Park in Sylhet, Bangladesh. Three replicate plots of control (no biochar) and biochar applied at 10 t / ha (locally, indigenously produced) will be used for each land-use type. (April - May)

• Install soil nutrient resin- exchange root simulator probes.

• Train students and assistants on instrumentation and scientific techniques.

• Measure “early” plant growth and physiological responses, greenhouse gas fluxes, and soil nutrient availability. (May)

• Give lectures and community workshops highlighting traditional and other low-tech methods to produce biochar from organic waste materials and explaining its potential benefits.