Utilizing bamboo biochar for carbon sequestration and local economic developments

This chapter explains the diverse benefits, the long-term stability, and the economic efficiency of using bamboo biochar as a means to sequester carbon while improving the local environment and economy. It involves Master’s students from the Department of Design Strategy at Kyushu University, Undergraduate and Graduate students from the Department of Agriculture at Kyushu University, local volunteer Satoyama members, and support from the Japan Biochar Association. In this initial stage of the project, the students conducted a survey of people living in Fukuoka, Japan, to determine their general knowledge about the environment and the carbon credit scheme, and their interest in buying pesticide-free vegetables in order to determine if environmental education and promotion are necessary for the success of the project’s goal of using biochar as a means for carbon sequestration and marketing strategy for vegetables. Results showed that there is no knowledge about the carbon credit scheme, only some general environmental awareness, and modest interest in buying pesticide-free biochar grown vegetables if more expensive than the ones grown under normal conditions. Therefore, the next step will be to develop effective materials, carry out events to educate and promote the positive impacts of the system, and develop production methods that maintain a competitive price to widely used pesticides.