{"id":58498,"date":"2025-08-07T11:06:18","date_gmt":"2025-08-07T05:36:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/?p=58498"},"modified":"2025-08-07T11:23:52","modified_gmt":"2025-08-07T05:53:52","slug":"unlocking-biochars-potential-indias-green-solution-for-carbon-removal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/unlocking-biochars-potential-indias-green-solution-for-carbon-removal\/","title":{"rendered":"Unlocking Biochar&#8217;s Potential: India&#8217;s Green Solution for Carbon Removal"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2><b>Biochar Potential in India Latest News<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">India\u2019s upcoming carbon market, expected to launch in 2026, positions biochar as a key carbon dioxide removal (CDR) technology.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Produced from agricultural residue and organic municipal waste, biochar is a carbon-rich charcoal that offers a dual advantage: sustainable waste management and long-term carbon sequestration.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">However, to transform biochar into a scalable and impactful solution for negative emissions, active involvement and coordinated support from various stakeholders across sectors is essential.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>Unlocking Biochar\u2019s Climate and Energy Potential in India<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">India produces over 600 million metric tonnes of agricultural residue and 60 million tonnes of municipal solid waste annually, much of which is either burnt or dumped, contributing to severe air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Harnessing just 30\u201350% of this surplus waste could yield 15\u201326 million tonnes of biochar annually, enabling the removal of approximately 0.1 gigatonnes of CO2-equivalent.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Additionally, biochar production generates valuable byproducts like syngas and bio-oil.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">These can produce 8\u201313 TWh of electricity\u2014about 0.5\u20130.7% of India\u2019s total\u2014and replace up to 0.7 million tonnes of coal each year.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Bio-oil could also substitute 12\u201319 million tonnes of diesel or kerosene, lowering crude oil imports and cutting over 2% of fossil fuel-based emissions.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>Biochar as a Versatile and Long-Term Carbon Sink<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Biochar\u2019s stable molecular structure enables it to sequester carbon in soil for 100 to 1,000 years, making it a highly effective and long-lasting carbon sink.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Its applications across agriculture, industry, construction, and wastewater treatment offer scalable opportunities for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In agriculture, <\/span><b>biochar enhances water retention and can reduce nitrous oxide emissions<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u2014273 times more potent than CO\u2082\u2014by 30\u201350%.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It also improves soil organic carbon and aids in restoring degraded lands.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In industrial carbon capture, specially modified biochar can absorb CO\u2082 from exhaust gases, though it currently has lower efficiency than conventional methods.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In the construction sector, incorporating 2\u20135% biochar in concrete can strengthen the material, boost heat resistance by 20%, and capture up to 115 kg of CO\u2082 per cubic metre.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Additionally, in wastewater treatment, one kilogram of biochar can treat 200\u2013500 litres of water, unlocking a potential demand of 2.5\u20136.3 million tonnes annually in India, which produces over 70 billion litres of wastewater daily.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>Barriers to Biochar Adoption\u00a0<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Despite its immense potential as a carbon sink and its wide applicability across sectors, biochar\u2019s adoption remains limited due to several systemic challenges.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Key among them are the l<\/span><b>ack of standardised feedstock markets and uniform carbon accounting frameworks<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, which diminish investor confidence and hinder its recognition in carbon credit systems.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Although research supports its technical feasibility, deployment is constrained by limited financial resources, evolving technologies, market uncertainties, and insufficient policy backing.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The absence of viable business models and weak awareness among stakeholders further restrict market development.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Additionally, the lack of <\/span><b>robust monitoring, reporting, and verification (MRV) systems<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, <\/span><b>coupled with poor coordination across agriculture, energy, and climate policies<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, slows progress.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>The Road Ahead<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To overcome these hurdles, India must invest in region-specific R&amp;D, integrate biochar into crop residue management and bioenergy programmes, and formally recognise it as a carbon removal pathway in its upcoming carbon market.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This can not only unlock carbon credit revenue for farmers and investors but also generate over 5.2 lakh rural jobs.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The added benefits of improved soil health, reduced fertilizer use (by 10\u201320%), and enhanced crop yields (by 10\u201325%) underscore the need to mainstream biochar in both policy and market frameworks.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>Conclusion<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In sum, although biochar is not a silver bullet, it offers a science-backed multisectoral pathway for India to achieve its climate and development goals.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Source:<\/b> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehindu.com\/sci-tech\/energy-and-environment\/what-is-the-potential-of-biochar-explained\/article69902716.ece#:~:text=By%20using%2030%25%20to%2050,generate%20additional%20electricity%20and%20fuels.\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">TH<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Biochar can reduce CO2 emissions, improve soil health, and manage waste. Learn how India can scale this climate-smart technology.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":18,"featured_media":58501,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[2058,60,22,59],"class_list":{"0":"post-58498","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-upsc-mains-current-affairs","8":"tag-biochar-potential-in-india","9":"tag-mains-articles","10":"tag-upsc-current-affairs","11":"tag-upsc-mains-current-affairs","12":"no-featured-image-padding"},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58498","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/18"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=58498"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58498\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/58501"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=58498"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=58498"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=58498"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}