Biochar: Urban Forestry Strategy
Resource Library
Biochar presents an opportunity to derive a high-value and environmentally beneficial product from low-value or traditionally wasted organic material.
But what is biochar? How and where should it be utilized? And what is the potential scale of city-wide production, application, and carbon impact?
This project library provides resources for the development of local biochar systems, as well as recommendations and key considerations surrounding biochar use.
Acknowledgments
The Biochar-Urban Forestry Strategy Resource Library was developed in collaboration between Aalto University, Cambium Carbon, Carbon Neutral Cities Alliance (CNCA), EcoTopic, and Center for Regenerative Solutions (CRS). Thank you to all the corresponding authors, researchers, city partners, facilitators, interviewees, and community members.
INTRODUCTORY RESOURCES
Biochar - Urban Forest Resource Library — Table of Contents
An overview of each resource in this library with hyperlinks to download documents.
Design & Implementation of Municipal Biochar Systems
Urban Forest Biomass/Biochar Playbook
A synthesis of best practices for municipalities looking to utilize urban forest biomass as a feedstock for biochar production, this playbook provides a framework for program development, example application areas, and associated environmental benefits. Recommendations are based on research and case studies from 4 peer cities: Boulder, Helsinki, Minneapolis, and Stockholm.
Biochar Guidance: Considerations for Municipal Procurement & Application
Looking to utilize biochar in your city? This tactical guidance document provides basic standards and best practices for the procurement and application of biochar. Developed by experts in the field, this resource is designed to provide key considerations and specifications for city officials and other first-time buyers evaluating various biochar products for quality and specific end uses.
Recognized by the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change as a negative emissions technology, biochar offers an opportunity to reduce carbon emissions from organic decomposition, while providing a number of ecosystem benefits – from increasing plant growth and health to managing stormwater and contaminated soils. This analysis offers research and case studies to support biochar’s use as a nature-based climate solution.
Looking beyond woody biomass feedstocks, this white paper offers an introduction to wastewater sludge as an additional source of organic input into a pyrolysis system. The paper provides an overview of sludge-derived biochar, including physicochemical characteristics, potential uses within an urban environment, and case studies from sludge-char systems currently utilized in Europe.
Biochar Siting & Environmental Justice: A guide for cities and communities
This guide was written for cities and communities looking to technologies such as biochar to tackle climate in a way that centers equity and supports whole systems design. Discussion topics include potential biochar risks, identifying community red flags for biochar projects, and values to consider for a procedural justice framework. This guide underscores that approach matters, particularly centering frontline and impacted communities.
Urban Forest Biochar Strategies
Municipal Case Studies
The following case studies showcase four different cities’ potential for biochar production and application from local urban forest biomass. These strategies highlight opportunities and barriers to regional biochar production systems, local markets and end uses of char, as well as potential environmental impacts from city-scale implementation.
Urban Bioenergy-Biochar: Opportunity Assessment for Municipalities
This report is the initial collaborative engagement of each of the four cities listed below. It works to develop a high-level overview on the topic of converting urban waste streams into both bioenergy and biochar.