MIT Biochar Report

March 13th, 2010 at 11:18 am
MIT Develops Biochar Study for Community Forestry Organization
Significant potential to make use of forest thinnings

Washington DC, March 9, 2010—A group of MBA students from the MIT Sloan School of Business traveled to Panama to look at the revenue potential of forest thinnings from Planting Empowerment's (PE) tree plantations. The team spent a week analyzing different uses for the smaller trees before recommending biochar as the most promising option.

A sustainably managed tree plantation can take ten years to produce commercially viable timber. Part of the maintenance of plantations is periodic culling of smaller trees, allowing healthier ones more space to grow. Traditionally these thinnings have little or no commercial value, and are left to rot on the forest floor or serve as firewood. As part of the MIT Sloan Entrepreneurs in International Development Club (SEID) students Lily Russell, Justin Butler, and Adam Rein studied commercial uses for these thinnings with the goal of producing earlier returns for Planting Empowerment's investors. They decided that biochar has the most potential because of its multiple uses and low initial production costs.

"When looking at alternative uses for PE’s wood fiber, we considered industrial fuel consumers (paper, pellets), furniture, a biomass power plant and a few other alternatives. However, we ultimately decided that producing biochar and fertilizer (using the biochar as an additive) were the best fit for: PE’s model, market opportunities and technical feasibility" said Lily Russell, one of the students leading the study. She added "It was fascinating to spend time with the PE team and community members involved in their projects; it gave us tremendous perspective into the social and environmental impact of the PE business model as well as the need for such initiatives. Truly impressive."

Biochar is charcoal that can be used for cooking fuel, heat source, carbon capture, or fertilizer additive. Indigenous tribes of the Amazon basin used biochar - known as terra preta (black earth) - as a soil additive. Biochar can improve soil quality by increasing moisture and nutrient retention rates. Most interesting for Planting Empowerment is its ability to increase the effectiveness of organic fertilizer. Fertilizer producers in Panama indicated that there is strong market potential for biochar.

"Some people are hesitant to invest because of how long it takes to produce returns" said Planting Empowerment co-founder Damion Croston, adding "Biochar could be a way to generate earlier income from the plantations, but is also interesting to us because it has a number of different end-uses. The MIT team did a great job of figuring out how to capitalize on biochar production and how we can use it in our own operations."

Planting Empowerment will begin thinning its plantations in 2011, and will set up a small, mobile biochar production unit to process the tree thinnings. Their goal is to work through each stage of the process - from felling the trees to producing finished fertilizer.

Planting Empowerment (PE) works to alleviate tropical deforestation and poverty through sustainably managed timber plantations. Founded by four former Peace Corps Volunteers in 2006, PE partners socially and environmentally minded investors with community-based forestry projects in Central America. Since its formation in 2006, Planting Empowerment has quickly grown to become a thought leader in sustainable development and a capable on-the-ground partner. PE currently has 50 acres of mixed tree species under cultivation, with plans to expand to 250 acres in 2011.