Carbon Sequestration

[woodbodger]

This whole argument has worried me so perhaps some one of you could explain it to me. You need to know that I never remotely qualified for university but eventually was moved out of kindergarten! I can not see the point in expending energy roasting bits of wood to make them into charcoal and then digging them into the ground, Giving yourself a big slap on the back and flying off to exotic locations, whilst someone called the coal board at the other end of the country is digging the stuff up and burning it. Please explain to me how this is better than not digging up carbon and releasing it in the first place. I think (term used loosely) this is like trying to extract useful energy from a perpetual motion machine. Don't try to baffle me with science and hyperbole justify what I see as an insane situation without using dubious arguments that are insurmountable; Slough off that which you accepted as true and give this matter some thought!

[woodlander]

Putting charcoal back into the soil to keep for 2000 years we can each do tommorrow

stopping coal mining worldwide we realistically can't do in the next 20 years .

One day at a time

Have you read The man who planted trees by Jean Gionio ?

[Kris Hemin]

Woodbodger : Trouble is, we're already burning the coal and oil. We've also been cutting down forests for far too long. The net result is far more Carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and only half the woodland we could (I mean DID) have which could have reduced the CO2. Given that situation then all new woodland is a positive contribution to restoring balance. If you have to call it "Offset" then so be it. As the trees establish and fix carbon, so we work also to lower Global use of fossil carbon. Two aspects, thus, of the same movement/campaign.

Woodlander : great book, which I saw performed as a stage multi media presentation in inspiring manner a few years back. Can we also mention The Lorax, also oft staged eg at CAT.

[Darren]

Something has been bothering me about this offsetting and i think I have worked it out.

What land do they plant these new trees on?

If it's farm land this must mean that more of our food will come from overseas. Clocking more air miles which will mean noise pollution, new runways will need to be built. Plus the extra carbon footprint.

I'm sure Welsh grazing hillside sheep are not ornaments for passers by to look at.

I wonder if this extra carbon footprint is taken into account?

IMHO this just moving the problem from one company(which probaly gets tax breaks from doing it) and moving somewhere else.

How long can we go on planting new woodlands with the pressure on growing food and housing?

[woodbodger]

Thank you I have ordered the book. Don't get me wrong, I am all in favour of planting more trees, I do have a problem with the concept of creating charcoal and digging it in the ground for me the math does not add up. I do wonder whether a useful route forward would be to encourage much more softwood plantation and encourage the use of it in housebuilding to replace some of the carbon expensive materials like bricks and cement? This could usefully lock up the carbon for hundreds of years, as well as reducing the use of non sustainable products. This will be very much NIBY I want to encourage my deciduous woodland for it's biodiversity.

[Kris Hemin]

Sounds like a far less flabbered ghast to me, W/B!! No, I thought us to be essentially on the same side. Any active use of wood, soft or hard, is good but I too only plant hardwood as our climate and ecosystems work far better with native deciduous trees. Charcoal is just a minor adjunct to a broad coppicing strategy but it has powerful proponents as the "Terra Pretta" effect of greatly improved fertility is a powerful driver.

Thing is we've got to increase home productivity because, as you point out Darren, otherwise we'll have to try to import more food from overseas. Point is though, the diet will have to change as well. Less chops more chips I could say but really a move away from sheep deserts producing a very small quantity of food per hectare (50-100 kg/annum) [most of which is exported, by the way!]to arable cultivations which have far higher yields (Tonnes) will I am fairly sure develop as the post carbon economy emerges.