Project:
NovoCarbo biochar

Type of project: Biochar

In Compensate's portfolio since: 11/2021

Country: Germany

Innovative project

Carbon credits bought: 140

Transforming wood residues from forest operations and waste wood into stable carbon.

Project duration: Ongoing

From waste to value

The project transforms wood residues from forest operations and waste wood into stable carbon in the form of biochar. The highly customisable biochar solutions can be used across a number of industries including agriculture and soil amendment, in water treatment, to decarbonise textiles such as carpet flooring and as an additive in sustainable building materials. While NovoCarbo is pushing the frontiers in biochar applications, biochar for soil amendment is the leading application, taking a share of 97% of all feedstock. Examples of soil amendment include building projects, parks and urban areas.

Enabling sustainable growth

In addition to locking the carbon away for centuries, when applied to soils biochar is greatly improving the soil properties and growing conditions, thus initiating further carbon sequestration e.g. additional upbuilt of soil organic carbon, less leakage and nitrous oxide emissions.

NovoCarbo provides biochar solutions to various green city projects and construction sites throughout Europe. In 2021 a key milestone  was the Roselundparken project in Stockholm implemented together with Carbonfuture. Biochar came to aid the City of Stockholm after a study revealed that two-thirds of all trees in the inner city were either dead or dying. A number of materials were tested before biochar was selected as the perfect solution to improve the soil structure and increase the water and nutrient retention capacity of the urban areas. As well as helping with storm water management and filtration, the project is a first of its kind and provides a blueprint for municipalities suffering from many of the same problems as Stockholm.

NovoCarbo’s daughter company Swiss Biochar offers high performance biochar-based substrates that help revitalise depleted microbial life by promoting beneficial bacteria, fungi, yeasts and other organisms thrive in soils. This makes biochar-based substrates the perfect fit for regeneration and reforestation activities of areas which have been deprived of vegetation for a number of years. The products are used from municipalities to professional landscaping companies to private gardeners.

Finally, incorporating biochar into reforestation projects creates a truly circular solution. Dead trees or trees destroyed by natural disasters could be turned into biochar and returned to the forest, which also acts as an insurance that the carbon is never lost.

A true innovator creating value for the whole industry

NovoCarbo is a European leader in biochar application to soil amendment using a state of the art high tech biochar production unit, which once started runs nearly on its own. Excess heat and energy are fed into the grid. NovoCarbo’s process experience ensures the highest product quality and integrity through compliance with internationally accepted standards such as the European Biochar Consortium (EBC) standard.

NovoCarbo enables other companies to reduce their carbon footprint through the CARBO CONTROL brand - a turnkey solution for industries to integrate biochar production and use the excess regenerative heat in existing value chains, unlocking the potential of carbon neutral operations.

NovoCarbo is on a mission to promote the benefits of biochar and accelerate its widespread application by using the carbon credit revenue to subsidise the price. Carbon credits revenues are used for scaling x3 the biochar production capacity and increasing NovoCarbo’s R&D activities on exploring insetting possibilities.

Learn more about our project criteria for biochar projects.

Photo credit: NovoCarbo

Biochar came to aid the City of Stockholm after a study revealed that two-thirds of all trees in the inner city were either dead or dying. A number of materials were tested before biochar was selected as the perfect solution to improve the soil structure and increase the water and nutrient retention capacity of the urban areas.

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