The
'greening
of a brown land'
would increase soil carbon sequestration, increase soil moisture
retention, reduce heat radiation and reduce the concentration of both
CO2 and water vapour in the atmosphere. These factors would reverse the
'Global Warming Effect'. As a bonus, the adoption of Yearlong Green
Farming techniques would markedly improve the productivity of
agricultural
land.
Dr Christine Jones
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http://www.soilcarbon.com.au/case_studies/index.html
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The National Algae Association
The
Woodlands, Texas – May 4, 2008 – The National Algae Association
announces its Algae Commercialization Business Plan, Research,
and
Networking Forum. Algae oil production companies, algae
researchers
and algaeprenuers will present leading-edge technologies for
commercialization of the “new oil” on July 17th in The Woodlands,
Texas. The NAA brings companies and researchers together to share
ideas and exchange information to overcome technological hurdles and
commercialize this fast growing renewable oil industry.
Current high oil prices, the collapse of food-for-fuel initiatives and
concerns about increased levels of CO2 emissions in the atmosphere have
all created awareness of the need for alternative fuel solutions. Algae
has emerged as one of the lowest cost feedstocks for the biofuels and
cellulosic industries. Algae is considered to be a promising source of
renewable oil which can be processed and refined into a variety of
transportation fuels.
Recent breakthroughs in pond development and closed end loop systems
put algae oil production companies on the leading-edge of the renewable
oil industry.
Some challenges:
a) identifying the best suitable algae
strains with the largest extraction rates.
b)
standardizing photobioreactor (PBR)
technologies
c)
developing new CO2 injection methods
d)
monitoring nutrient levels for efficient
algae growth rates
e)
finding cost effective oil extraction
methodologies
Algae can be refined to make biofuel, jet fuel, bio-gasoline and
cellulosic materials such as pharmacueticals, cosmetics, plastics and
green packaging.
For additional information contact: www.nationalalgaeassociation.com
or 936.321.1125
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Ohio State University Extension
Fact Sheet
Soil Carbon Sequestration—Fundamentals
Alan Sundermeier,
Randall Reeder, and Rattan Lal.
Adding
organic matter to farmland is good for soil quality and crop yields,
both short-term and long-term. Continuous no-till is an efficient way
of doing this. Cover crops and manure also help raise carbon levels. If
you want to sequester carbon to reduce global warming (and possibly
receive a small annual payment) think of it as a bonus for being a good
farmer. Soil carbon sequestration is a natural, cost-effective, and
environmentally-friendly process. Once sequestered, carbon remains in
the soil as long as restorative land use, continuous no-till, and other
Best Management Practices are followed. It is a win-win option. While
mitigating climate change by off-setting fossil fuel emissions, it also
improves quality of soil and water resources, enhances agronomic
productivity, and buys us time to identify and implement viable
alternatives to fossil fuel.
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Increased Photosynthetic Capacity
Reverses
Global Warming
"Decreased
soil carbon levels have been recorded worldwide under most current
broadacre cropping and grazing regimes. This soil carbon has been
emitted to the atmosphere.
It
is sobering to compare the CO2 emissions from soil with those from the
burning of fossil fuels. Dr Rattan Lal, Professor of Soil Science at
Ohio State University and Director, Carbon Management and Sequestration
Center, USA, has calculated that 476 Gt
of carbon has been emitted from farmland soils due to inappropriate
farming and grazing practices, compared with 270
Gt
emitted from over 150 years of burning of fossil fuels.
These
trends can be reversed by increasing the photosynthetic capacity of the
landscape through the adoption of Yearlong Green Farming (YGF)
techniques."
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| "The nation that
destroys its soil destroys itself" (Roosevelt 1937)
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