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Biochar Deployment Drivers and Barriers in Least Developed Countries

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Handbook of Climate Change Management

Abstract

Agriculture in the least developed countries (LDCs) is highly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. Applying biochar to soils has been proposed as a solution, especially in the carbon-depleted and acid sub-Saharan soils. Correctly applied, biochar increases yield capacities, decreases contamination, and promotes resilience. Hope is that biochar will store atmospheric carbon in soils, thus generating negative emissions. Nonetheless, several goal conflicts may arise, for example, between the global aspirations to achieve negative carbon emissions and local sustainability. Using interviews, a survey, and field visits to biochar initiatives in Tanzania, this chapter explores deployment drivers and barriers in LDCs and their implications for biochar carbon removal in local contexts. As such, it seeks to address a gap in the literature on actual, opposed to hypothesized, engagement of biochar practitioners. The chapter concludes that the idea of carbon removal alone is unlikely to motivate widespread biochar deployment in LDCs. Optimization of carbon content and stability must be balanced against maximizing yields with minimum inputs. Tangible results drive deployment among smallholders and agricultural businesses alike, yet developing biochar systems is challenging due to their complexity and long lead times. Thus, while financing and external expertise are vital at the initial stages, education, awareness, and persistent demonstration are key to sustained action.

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Acknowledgments

The funding for this research was provided jointly by the Swedish Research Council and Sida, through the Swedish Government’s development aid funds, and the research appropriations to the Swedish Research Council Formas [grant no. 2016-06359] and the Swedish Research Council Formas [grant no. 2019-01973].

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Climate Science and Policy Research, Department of Thematic Studies – Environmental Change, Linköping University, Linköping, Sweden

    Mathias Fridahl & Anders Hansson

  2. Department of Thematic Studies – Technology and Social Change, Linköping University, Linköping, Sweden

    Simon Haikola

  3. Institute of Resource Assessment, University of Dar es Salaam, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

    Peter Msumali Rogers

Authors
  1. Mathias Fridahl
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  2. Simon Haikola
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  3. Peter Msumali Rogers
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  4. Anders Hansson
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Mathias Fridahl .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. FTZ-ALS, HAW Hamburg, Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany

    Walter Leal Filho

  2. School of Social Sciences, CHC Higher Education, Carindale, Australia

    Johannes Luetz

  3. Center for Food Security Studies, Addis Ababa University, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

    Desalegn Ayal

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Fridahl, M., Haikola, S., Rogers, P.M., Hansson, A. (2021). Biochar Deployment Drivers and Barriers in Least Developed Countries. In: Leal Filho, W., Luetz, J., Ayal, D. (eds) Handbook of Climate Change Management. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-22759-3_324-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-22759-3_324-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-030-22759-3

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-030-22759-3

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Earth and Environm. ScienceReference Module Physical and Materials ScienceReference Module Earth and Environmental Sciences

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