Desert 'carbon farming' to curb CO2 (Image: https://www.zimbabweflora.co.zw/speciesdata/images/13/135390-3.jpgÿ)
1 August 2013 external site
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By Matt McGrath
Environment correspondent, BBC News
Scientists state that planting big numbers of jatropha trees in desert locations might be an effective method of suppressing emissions of CO2.
Dubbed “carbon farming”, scientists say the idea is financially competitive with high-tech carbon capture and storage tasks.
But critics state the concept might be have unanticipated, unfavorable effects consisting of driving up food costs.
The research study has actually been published, external in the journal Earth System .
Seeds of change
Jatropha curcas is a plant that came from Central America and is really well adapted to extreme conditions including incredibly arid deserts.
It is already grown as a biofuel, external in some parts of the world due to the fact that its seeds can produce oil.
In this research study, German researchers showed that one hectare of jatropha might catch up to 25 tonnes of co2 from the environment every year. The researchers based their price quotes on trees presently growing in trial plots in Egypt and in the Negev desert.
“The outcomes are overwhelming,” stated Prof Klaus Becker, from the University of Hohenheim in Stuttgart.
“There was great development, an excellent response from these plants. I feel there will be no issue attempting it on a much bigger scale, for example 10 thousand hectares in the beginning,” he stated.
According to the scientists a plantation that would cover 3 percent of the Arabian desert would absorb all the CO2 produced by cars and trucks in Germany over a 20 year period.
The researchers state that a vital component of the plan would be the accessibility of desalination centers. This implies that initially, any plantations would be confined to seaside areas.
They are wanting to develop larger trials in desert areas of Oman or Qatar. Prof Becker states that unlike other schemes that just offset the carbon that individuals produce, the planting of jatropha might be an excellent, short-term service to climate modification.
“I believe it is a good idea because we are truly extracting carbon dioxide from the environment - and it is entirely various between extracting and preventing.”
According to the scientist's calculations the costs of curbing carbon dioxide by means of the planting of trees would be between 42 and 63 euros per tonne. This makes it competitive with other methods, such as the more high tech carbon capture and storage, external (CCS).
A number of nations are presently trialling this innovation, external but it has yet to be deployed commercially.
Growing jatropha not only soaks up CO2 but has other advantages. The plants would help to make desert areas more habitable, and the plant's seeds can be collected for biofuel state the scientists, offering a financial return.
“Jatropha is perfect to be become biokerosene - it is even better than biodiesel,” stated Prof Becker.
But other professionals in this location are not convinced. They point to the reality that in 2007 and 2008 great deals of jatropha trees were planted for biofuel, specifically in Africa. But a lot of these ventures ended in tears,, external as the plants were not really effective in managing dry conditions. (Image: https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/proxy/YtxKa8cYsujlCkcDpo4wrZGYOR4imECJP8j-l_eBT0NYP1NtZBIYgiRK2RHnnJUDndxh7Fe8PWEjuN_G3c45wpRFp9t6nrClNoywSnSEcwNU0HOjFhQuXqMrIlN74osy4n1t627d1pshzUqZNc3C_Jt_q2OSQ-xWZOgAalczQo3zm_Y)
Lucy Hurn is the biofuels project manager for the charity, Actionaid. She says that while jatropha was as soon as viewed as the fantastic, green hope the truth was extremely various.
“When jatropha was presented it was seen as a wonder crop, it would grow on scrubland or minimal land,” she stated.
“But there are often individuals who require marginal land to graze their animals, they are getting food from that area - we would not class the land as marginal.”
She mentioned that jatropha is extremely hazardous and can contaminate the land it is grown on, even in a desert. And she also had concerns about the fairness of the concept.
“It is still somebody else's land. Why enter and grow these enormous plantations to deal with an issue these individuals didn't actually cause?”
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Related internet links
Universität Hohenheim (Image: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/51490868/figure/fig1/AS:202558489534487@1425305115720/The-plant-Jatropha-curcas-in-the-local-language-also-termed-lapalapa-funfun-is-used.png)
European Geosciences Union
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