Biochar

I recently read a WSJ news article, Agriculture Companies Push Carbon-Capture Farming, that caught my eye - What is Biochar?

Definition from USDA ARS: Biochar is black carbon produced from biomass sources, i.e., wood chips, plant residues, manure or other agricultural waste products, for the purpose of transforming the biomass carbon into a more stable form.

Although this is expensive, it is promising if there are more incentives or there is a more efficient way to do this transformation.

How much land is used for agriculture?

According to google, it is said that about 37 percent of Earth's land area was agricultural land as of 2000. More accurate information is from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA ERS) that as of 2012, about 52 percent of the U.S. land base (including Alaska and Hawaii) is used for agricultural purposes, including cropping, grazing (on pasture, range, and in forests), and farmsteads/farm roads.

The impact on climate can be large if we can find a more efficient way.

Reference sites:

Biochar : USDA ARS

USDA ERS - Major Land Uses