2019: another milestone year in biochar research and dissemination in Finland

The year 2019 is ending and it is really worth acknowledging the many important events our AgriChar research group was actively participating in. The most important event was the greatest ever biochar get-together in Finland. 4-6 September 2019 we had the pleasure to co-organize (together with International Biochar Initiative, Finnish Biochar Association, Fortum Puro and Carbofex Oy) the IBI Study Tour Finland. This event brought together 121 biochar experts and enthusiasts from 18 countries from all over the world, being a very nice next step from the last such world-scale event, the 2nd Nordic Biochar Seminar we organized six years ago in 2013. The presentations of the event can be seen online at the website of Finnish Biochar Association. We were honoured also by the presence of the Minister of the Environment and Climate Change of Finland, Ms. Krista Mikkonen!

Another important event we were part of was the final seminar of Carbon Lane project on 11 December 2019. This event was the final get together where our project team (consisting of people from University of Helsinki, Aalto University and also City of Helsinki) presented the fruits of our work. The Carbon Lane project focused on principles of urban demonstration areas for carbon sequestration  and was funded by EIT Climate-KIC. The presentations of that event will also soon be available on the project website, as well as the reports that are currently in the review phase. 

The year 2019 was extremely successful for biochar research and dissemination and we are happy to share many of our publications on this website with you soon. 

Happy New Biochar Year 2020 to all! 

Biochar breaking through in Finland during 2019!

The year 2019 seems really to be THE biochar year for Finland at least!

Many landmark issues have been launched recently, perhaps one of the most important globally is the launch of Puro Carbon removal marketplace in Finland. The platform has just held third auction for CO2 removal with great success and we're really glad that biochar is one of the pathways for C sequestration, alongside with carbonated and wooden building elements.

Biochar is getting attention also from national level policymakers in Finland. New Prime Minister of Finland, Mr. Antti Rinne's government agenda promises more funds and subsidies for research and practices that focus on carbon sequestration- on p 119 also #biochar as an example listed. (link: http://julkaisut.valtioneuvosto.fi/handle/10024/161664).

Sequestering atmospheric carbon with the help of biochar will also be the main focus of the IBI Study Tour Finland during 4-6 September 2019. Everyone is welcome to join and hear the insights of the leading experts on carbon fixing (during 4th of Sept in Helsinki) and about use of biochar in urban contexts (5 and 6 Sept in Tampere). Registration is open already, so hurry up to get the early bird price (closes on 15 July!)

And last, before everyone sets out for the Midsummer holidays here in Finland, another great event coming in October: Nordic Biochar Conference in Stockholm on 16-17 October 2019!  Good chance to hear about ongoing biochar initiatives in the Nordics and discuss the path forward! The deadline for abstract submission is August 21st.

Growing season 2019 started!

Last few weeks have been especially intensive for AgriChar research group, we have arranged fertilization and sowing for five field experiments and worked also with three other experiments. Our long-term field experiments with biochar added in 2010 and 2011 enter now already to tenth and ninth growing seasons, this week the sowing of barley and grass mixture was successfully completed! Next years we'll have different clover grasses and ryegrasses growing. Some rain would now be perfect!

Spring 2019, sowing biochar experiments

We have also conducted fertilization and sowing of our recycling fertilizers field experiments in HYKERRYS experiments in Haltiala, Vantaa and Knehtilä.

The first HYKERRYS project on recycling fertilizers is coming to end and starting from June 2019, we'll continue with HYKERRYS 2 with funding from the Ministry of Environment.

Last weeks have been intensive on the field with plot marking, fertilization and sowing and installation of equipment for greenhousegas measurements. Good job for all the HYKERRYS team, particularly coordinator Mari Unnbom and Jure Zrim! See more: https://www.researchgate.net/project/Good-Yield-Recycling-Fertilizer-HYKERRYS-Tila-HYKERRYS-and-HYKERRYS-2.

 

 
Furthermore, our results have been on show in different international conferences recently,

Subin Kalu was presenting in April at EGU2019 conference the highlights of our mechanistic study on how regular and Kon-Tiki nutrient loaded biochar affect nitrogen cycling.

And yesterday on 22 May, Mina Kiani presented the preliminary results from lysimeter and field experiments in AquaConSoil 2019 in Antwerp, Belgium. She explored the environmental impacts of lake sediment recycling as phosphorus-rich soil amendment. The method is promising but many new questions raised!