56: Conservation Burning and Biochar

Conservation burning is a way of dramatically reducing greenhouse gasses and particulate releases from burning woody material like old grapevines. Biochar is a soil amendment that can hold water and nutrients in the soil for slow release to the plants. Raymond Baltar, Director of the Sonoma Biochar Initiative; Director of the California Biochar Association and  Biochar Project Manager at Sonoma Ecology Center explains how to execute a conservation burn and make biochar to reduce smoke and capture carbon.

• “Biochar increases vineyard productivity without affecting grape quality: Results from a four years field experiment in Tuscany” | Scholarly article
• California Biochar Association
• Conservation Ag Burning  | UCCE Sonoma flyer
• “The Conservation Burn Technique” | Vineyard Team Technical Article
• Sign Up | Irrigation Efficiency Project
• Sonoma Biochar Initiative
• Sonoma Ecology Center
• Randall Graham’s thoughts on biochar (Video)
• Raymond Baltar’s LinkedIn page
• Workshop: Conservation Burning & Biochar Production Workshop

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