Biochar – A Carbon Sink Solution for India’s Net-Zero Future

Context

With the Indian carbon market set to be launched in 2026, CO2 removal technologies such as biochar are expected to play a crucial role.

What is Biochar?

• Biochar is a carbon-rich form of charcoal made by heating agricultural residues and organic municipal solid waste in a low-oxygen environment (a process called pyrolysis).
• It is stable and long-lasting, allowing it to store carbon in soils for centuries.
• It serves multiple purposes: managing waste sustainably, improving soil quality, reducing emissions, and generating energy.

What is Biochar’s Potential?

• Waste Availability: India produces:
  • 600+ million tonnes of agricultural residue/year.
  • 60+ million tonnes of municipal solid waste/year.
• Production Potential: Using 30–50% of surplus waste could yield 15–26 million tonnes of biochar annually.
  • This can remove ~0.1 gigatonnes of CO₂-equivalent emissions per year.
• Byproducts of Biochar Production:
  • Syngas (20–30 million tonnes) → ~8–13 TWh electricity → replace 0.4–0.7 million tonnes of coal.
  • Bio-oil (24–40 million tonnes) → offset 8% of India’s diesel/kerosene → reduce >2% of fossil-fuel-based emissions.

How is Biochar Helpful as a Carbon Sink?

• Long-Term Carbon Storage: Biochar remains in soil for 100–1,000 years, acting as a stable carbon sink.
• In Agriculture:
  • Improves soil water retention and fertility.
  • Reduces nitrous oxide emissions by 30–50% (N₂O is 273x more potent than CO₂).
  • Enhances soil organic carbon, helping restore degraded land.
• In Industry (Carbon Capture):
  • Modified biochar can adsorb CO₂ from industrial emissions.
  • Currently less efficient than conventional carbon capture methods, but has future potential.
• In Construction: Adding 2–5% biochar to concrete:
  • Improves strength and heat resistance.
  • Captures 115 kg CO₂ per cubic metre of concrete.
• In Wastewater Treatment: Can treat 200–500 litres of wastewater per kg of biochar.
  • Demand potential: 5–6.3 million tonnes to treat India’s untreated wastewater.

What Are the Challenges in Biochar Application?

• Lack of Market Standards: No standardised feedstock markets or carbon accounting protocols.
• Low Awareness & Weak Policy Integration: Limited knowledge among stakeholders.
  • Not fully integrated into climate or agricultural policy frameworks.
• Technology & Resource Gaps: Evolving pyrolysis technologies.
  • Limited funding for R&D and infrastructure.
• No Proven Business Models: Uncertainty deters private investment and large-scale deployment.
• Insufficient MRV (Monitoring, Reporting, Verification): Makes it difficult to register biochar projects for carbon credits.

What Needs to Be Done?

• Policy Recognition: Recognise biochar as a verifiable carbon removal method under India’s carbon market.
• Support R&D: Develop region-specific feedstock standards and optimise biomass use by agro-climatic zone.
• Integrate with Government Programs: Align with:
  • Crop residue management
  • Bioenergy schemes
  • State Action Plans on Climate Change (SAPCCs)
• Build Village-Level Infrastructure: Deploy pyrolysis units in rural areas → Create ~5.2 lakh rural jobs.
• Strengthen Market and Carbon Credit Systems: Enable carbon financing to reward carbon removal.
  • Improve MRV frameworks to boost transparency and investor trust.
• Promote Multi-Sector Adoption:
  • Agriculture: Better soil health, +10–25% yield, –10–20% fertiliser use.
  • Energy: Clean fuels (syngas/bio-oil).
  • Construction & Wastewater sectors: Scalable carbon sinks and treatment solutions.

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