Desert 'carbon farming' to suppress CO2
1 August 2013
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By Matt McGrath
Environment reporter, BBC News
Scientists state that planting large numbers of jatropha trees in desert locations might be an efficient way of curbing emissions of CO2.
Dubbed "carbon farming", researchers say the idea is financially competitive with high-tech carbon capture and storage jobs.
But critics state the idea might be have unanticipated, unfavorable impacts including driving up food rates.
The research study has actually been released, external in the journal Earth System Dynamics.
Seeds of modification
Jatropha curcas is a plant that stemmed in Central America and is effectively adjusted to harsh conditions consisting of extremely dry deserts.
It is already grown as a biofuel, external in some parts of the world because its seeds can produce oil.
In this research study, German researchers showed that one hectare of jatropha could capture as much as 25 tonnes of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere every year. The researchers based their estimates on trees presently growing in trial plots in Egypt and in the Negev desert.
"The results are overwhelming," stated Prof Klaus Becker, from the University of Hohenheim in Stuttgart.
"There was excellent growth, a good reaction from these plants. I feel there will be no problem attempting it on a much bigger scale, for instance 10 thousand hectares in the start," he said.
According to the scientists a plantation that would cover three percent of the Arabian desert would take in all the CO2 produced by automobiles and trucks in Germany over a twenty years duration.
The scientists state that a of the strategy would be the accessibility of desalination facilities. This suggests that at first, any plantations would be confined to seaside locations.
They are wanting to develop larger trials in desert locations of Oman or Qatar. Prof Becker says that unlike other schemes that simply balance out the carbon that people produce, the planting of jatropha might be an excellent, short-term service to environment change.
"I think it is an excellent concept because we are truly drawing out co2 from the atmosphere - and it is completely different between drawing out and avoiding."
According to the scientist's computations the expenses of suppressing co2 via the planting of trees would be in between 42 and 63 euros per tonne. This makes it competitive with other methods, such as the more high tech carbon capture and storage, external (CCS).
A number of nations are currently trialling this innovation, external however it has yet to be released commercially.
Growing jatropha not just takes in CO2 however has other benefits. The plants would assist to make desert areas more habitable, and the plant's seeds can be harvested for biofuel say the researchers, providing an economic return.
"Jatropha is perfect to be developed into biokerosene - it is even better than biodiesel," stated Prof Becker.
But other experts in this area are not encouraged. They indicate the reality that in 2007 and 2008 large numbers of jatropha trees were planted for biofuel, particularly in Africa. But many of these ventures ended in tears,, external as the plants were not very effective in handling dry conditions.
Lucy Hurn is the biofuels campaign supervisor for the charity, Actionaid. She states that while jatropha was as soon as viewed as the excellent, green hope the reality was very different.
"When jatropha was introduced it was viewed as a wonder crop, it would grow on scrubland or minimal land," she said.
"But there are often people who need minimal land to graze their animals, they are getting food from that location - we wouldn't class the land as marginal."
She pointed out that jatropha is highly hazardous and can pollute the land it is grown on, even in a desert. And she likewise had concerns about the fairness of the concept.
"It is still somebody else's land. Why enter and grow these enormous plantations to handle a problem these individuals didn't really cause?"
Follow Matt on Twitter, external.
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Related internet links
Universität Hohenheim
European Geosciences Union
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Desert 'carbon Farming' To Curb CO2
samaraschweitz edited this page 2025-01-11 22:13:25 +00:00