2/23/2009 3:44:56 AM #

More biochar media coverage sent to me today by a journalist. This is honestly the first book I've worked on that's received fanmail: www.globalwarmingisreal.com/.../

Andrew

2/26/2009 4:48:55 AM #

hi, when is this book finally coming out.

chinaka dodge

2/26/2009 9:41:06 AM #

Hi Chinaka,

Stock should be coming in the first week of March. Then orders will start being fulfilled immediately.

AlexTurvey

3/4/2009 3:56:33 AM #

Another article on biochar, this time in the Yorkshire Post - mentioning our book! www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/.../...rt-their.5024535.jp

Andrew

6/10/2009 6:17:43 AM #

I ordered the book pre-publication and have gone through it in great detail. With a chemistry PhD with R&D experience in academia (5yr), chemical industry (26yr) plus 6yrs with a chemical technology business incubation NGO (last 18months as CEO) I feel well qualified to comment on this book. It's excellent! The science is good and the business modelling looks at all the essential issues. It does not try and oversell the concept and is fair in pointing out areas of uncertainty. The problem is not with the concept - I am very excited about the idea and am presently preparing a proposal to the local government to carbonise alien eucalyptus tree infestations on and in the Swartkops river (Port Elizabeth, Eastern Cape, South Africa) that are impacting on the health of our beautiful estuary - regarded as the 12th most important out of SA's 250, and somewhat unique that it's within the boundary of one of SA's main cities. I do agree that it's premature, and probably not desirable, for it to be included in any carbon trading scheme - I think CDM has been to heavily abused already by big business and won't solve the climate change threat (which is real and worse than the IPCC AR4 might lead one to think). I fully support Jim Hansen in that regard - he's a hero in raising the alarm, so long ago already, and has been proven right. If this project goes ahead I'll post it on the IBC site. There's a novel and cost-effective carboniser technology, invented here in SA, that I was involved in helping to commercialise while with the Business Incubator. I think it's a technology that can be usefully applied elsewhere in the biochar initiative, since it's continuous,needs no externally applied heat after start-up, carbonises at up to 500 deg C, and gives exeptionally high yields of charcoal (up to 50% mass/mass (wet feed basis with 25% moisture content).

Hugh Laue