Desert 'carbon farming' to curb 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 effective method of suppressing emissions of CO2.
Dubbed "carbon farming", scientists say the concept is financially competitive with high-tech carbon capture and .
But critics state the idea might be have unexpected, negative effects including increasing food rates.
The research study has been published, 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 severe conditions including extremely dry deserts.
It is currently grown as a biofuel, external in some parts of the world because its seeds can produce oil.
In this research study, German scientists revealed that one hectare of jatropha could catch up to 25 tonnes of co2 from the environment every year. The researchers based their quotes on trees currently growing in trial plots in Egypt and in the Negev desert.
"The outcomes are overwhelming," said Prof Klaus Becker, from the University of Hohenheim in Stuttgart.
"There was great growth, a good action from these plants. I feel there will be no problem attempting it on a much bigger scale, for example 10 thousand hectares in the start," he said.
According to the scientists a plantation that would cover three percent of the Arabian desert would soak up all the CO2 produced by vehicles and trucks in Germany over a twenty years duration.
The scientists say that an important element of the strategy would be the availability of desalination facilities. This implies that at first, any plantations would be restricted to coastal areas.
They are intending to develop larger trials in desert areas of Oman or Qatar. Prof Becker states that unlike other schemes that simply offset the carbon that individuals produce, the planting of jatropha could be an excellent, short-term service to climate change.
"I believe it is a good idea because we are truly drawing out co2 from the atmosphere - and it is completely various between extracting and preventing."
According to the scientist's computations the expenses of suppressing carbon dioxide by means of the planting of trees would be in between 42 and 63 euros per tonne. This makes it competitive with other strategies, such as the more high tech carbon capture and storage, external (CCS).
A number of countries are currently trialling this innovation, external however it has yet to be deployed commercially.
Growing jatropha not just absorbs CO2 however has other benefits. The plants would help to make desert areas more habitable, and the plant's seeds can be harvested for biofuel say the scientists, offering a financial return.
"Jatropha is ideal to be become biokerosene - it is even much better than biodiesel," stated Prof Becker.
But other specialists in this location are not persuaded. They point to the truth that in 2007 and 2008 great deals of jatropha trees were planted for biofuel, specifically in Africa. But a number of these endeavors ended in tears,, external as the plants were not very effective in coping with dry conditions.
Lucy Hurn is the biofuels campaign manager for the charity, Actionaid. She states that while jatropha was once seen as the great, green hope the reality was extremely different.
"When jatropha was introduced it was seen as a wonder crop, it would grow on scrubland or limited land," she stated.
"But there are often people who need limited land to graze their animals, they are getting food from that area - we wouldn't class the land as marginal."
She explained that jatropha is extremely hazardous and can pollute the land it is grown on, even in a desert. And she likewise had concerns about the fairness of the idea.
"It is still somebody else's land. Why enter and grow these massive plantations to handle an issue these people 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
scottyfoy74430 edited this page 2025-01-12 00:11:09 +08:00