Biochar as a negative emission technology facing climate change

Abstract

Biochar is an accessible, low-cost and sustainable alternative for climate change action. Its application as a corrective enables increased soil fertility, as well as a reduction in the emission of greenhouse gases such as CO2. Therefore, the implementation of biochar as a negative emission technology is required in order to tackle climate change, reduce negative impacts on the environment, and safeguard human health. This research offers a review of the holistic and systematic literature available on the use of biochar as a mitigation strategy, through its ability to sequester carbon, as well as the potential for its applications and interactions in climate, food security, and ecosystem components. The carbon sequestration potential represented by biochar in CO2 equivalents exceeds 20 GtCO2eq per year, and this is highly significant in the search for efficient negative emission technologies that can help to reduce annual CO2 emissions resulting from anthropogenic activities.