Charcoal-making is one of the oldest industrial technologies, and there has been a growing wave of excitement about its potential for combating climate change. Burying biochar (fine-grained charcoal) is a highly effective way to extract carbon dioxide from the atmosphere; and in addition it can increase the yield of food crops and moisture retention of soil. The Biochar Debate sets out experimental and scientific aspects of biochar in the context of global warming, the global economy and negotiations of the Kyoto Protocol. It concludes by encouraging all gardeners and farmers to use biochar to help prevent climate change.
James Bruges worked as an architect in London, Sudan and India before setting up an architectural practice with Howard Tozer in Bristol. His books include Sustainability and the Bristol Urban Village Initiative, The Little Earth Book, The Big Earth Book and part of What About China? With his wife, he keeps in touch with and visits Gandhian NGOs in southern India.