Desert ‘carbon Farming’ To Curb CO2

Desert ‘carbon farming’ to suppress CO2

1 August 2013

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By Matt McGrath

Environment reporter, BBC News

Scientists state that planting great deals of jatropha trees in desert locations might be an effective way of suppressing emissions of CO2.

Dubbed « carbon farming », scientists say the idea is economically competitive with modern carbon capture and storage projects.

But critics state the idea might be have unpredicted, negative impacts consisting of driving up food costs.

The research study has been released, external in the journal Earth System Dynamics.

Seeds of change

Jatropha curcas is a plant that came from in Central America and is effectively adjusted to extreme conditions consisting of incredibly arid 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 revealed that a person hectare of jatropha might record as much as 25 tonnes of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere every year. The scientists based their estimates on trees presently growing in trial plots in Egypt and in the Negev desert.

« The results are frustrating, » stated Prof Klaus Becker, from the University of Hohenheim in Stuttgart.

« There was great growth, an excellent reaction from these plants. I feel there will be no problem attempting it on a much larger scale, for instance ten thousand hectares in the start, » he said.

According to the researchers a plantation that would cover three percent of the Arabian desert would absorb all the CO2 produced by automobiles and trucks in Germany over a twenty years duration.

The researchers state that a vital component of the plan would be the schedule of desalination facilities. This suggests that initially, any plantations would be confined to seaside areas.

They are wanting to develop bigger trials in desert areas of Oman or Qatar. Prof Becker says that unlike other plans that simply balance out the carbon that people produce, the planting of jatropha might be an excellent, short-term solution to environment change.

« I believe it is a great concept due to the fact that we are really drawing out co2 from the atmosphere – and it is totally various between extracting and avoiding. »

According to the researcher’s estimations the costs of curbing co2 by means of the planting of trees would be 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 but it has yet to be released commercially.

Growing jatropha not only soaks up 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 scientists, providing a financial return.

« Jatropha is perfect to be developed into biokerosene – it is even better than biodiesel, » said Prof Becker.

But other experts in this location are not persuaded. They indicate the truth that in 2007 and 2008 great deals of jatropha trees were planted for biofuel, particularly in Africa. But a number of these ventures ended in tears,, external as the plants were not really successful in managing dry conditions.

Lucy Hurn is the biofuels campaign manager for the charity, Actionaid. She says that while jatropha was once viewed as the great, green hope the truth was really different.

« When jatropha was introduced it was seen as a wonder crop, it would grow on scrubland or marginal land, » she stated.

« But there are often individuals who need limited land to graze their animals, they are getting food from that area – we would not class the land as limited. »

She explained that jatropha is and can pollute the land it is grown on, even in a desert. And she also had issues about the fairness of the concept.

« It is still somebody else’s land. Why enter and grow these massive plantations to deal with a problem these individuals didn’t in fact cause? »

Follow Matt on Twitter, external.

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Related internet links

Universität Hohenheim

European Geosciences Union

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