Bioenergy Accounting Challenges

Bioenergy Accounting Challenges

by Jeffrey Frost

Bioenergy is like the little engine that could.  Given the fixed land supply and the imperative to produce our food, feed, fiber and bioenergy feedstocks, astute observers have long noticed that even under optimistic biomass supply estimates, bioenergy can only fulfill one piece of our low carbon renewable energy future.  And while solar, wind, and hydro will ultimately, by necessity, be forced to absorb an increasing share of the total renewable energy resource demand, today’s available bioenergy – in the form of liquid biofuels, and electrical and thermal biopower – can help to reduce fossil fuel consumption before the forces of climate change create unimaginable dislocations to 21^st century life.

The Pyrolysis-Biochar Bioenergy Pathway for Agriculture

By Jeffrey Frost

Pyrolysis is a form of controlled combustion of biomass.  It yields bioenergy in the form of bio-oil.  It also yields a soil amendment coproduct, biochar, with remarkable carbon sequestration properties of indefinitely long duration.  In other words, this is a bioenergy pathway which utilizes biomass in a manner which not only produces energy, but simultaneously produces the coproduct biochar which enhances soil quality and agricultural yields. Moreover, this pathway concurrently sequesters large quantities of carbon in a manner expected to earn valuable carbon offset credits.