Robert Flanagan's Biochar Stove: Carbon Negative Cooking

Tom Miles

Robert Flanagan's Biochar Stove: Carbon Negative Cooking
David Yarrow, TERRA: The Earth Restoration & Renewal Alliance, October 30, 2007
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Robert Flanagan, a biochar pioneer with connections on four continents around the world, is among the few who rank as biochar's early advocates, innovators, researchers,
and business developers. He remains on the creative cutting edge of biochar development and deployment.
Originally from Ireland, as a youth, Robert emigrated to Australia to work as industrial combustion-electric technician. Years later, researching investment options, he saw the BBC documentary The Secret of Eldorado. Research on terra preta led him to the U.S. in May 2004 to a University of Georgia bioenergy conference. He began
assisting EPRIDA at UGA Bio-conversion Center, where his creative enthusiasm inspired several experiments and innovations. Robert helped wire, maintain and monitor the
EPRIDA 150-kilogram test burner, and devised simple soil tests to evaluate biochar effects on soil and biomass. Interest from overseas quickly generated a trip to China
and a request for Robert to direct his energies to Asia. Disillusioned with slow progress and US government continuing to discourage serious renewable energy research and development, Rob moved to Hangzhou, China, where he is now Chair & President of Hangzhou Sustainable Agricultural Food & Fuel Enterprise Co.(SAFFE), making biochar from rice hull and bamboo, and organic plant nutrient.
Rob has conducted a wide range of agricultural trials in pots and farms, using biochar, organic foliar feeds and nutrients, and continually posts photos, videos and information to share his invaluable research with everyone in the academic area and general public. His openly shared information at a time when few scientists divulge
results before publication is a testimony to his enthusiasm and dedication to averting climate change and mitigating global warming.
Rob also produced 50Kg of research grade biochar which was sent to the ten top biochar universities around the world to initiate joint research collaboration. Rob remains an integral contributor to global biochar research. With Chinese researchers, Rob built large burners to produce tons of charcoal.
However, perhaps Robert's most impressive invention is a tabletop charcoal-maker, which also is a single-burner cookstove. Now, climate-conscious housewives can proudly have a carbon negative kitchen to capture carbon with every meal and pot of tea. A wide variety of fibrous organic matterNike footwear | Sneakers