Smallholder farmer biochar - Volta and the Upper West

Carboneers, in collaboration with local partners such as Eroceht led by Daps Abimbola, implements decentralized biochar projects in the Upper West and Volta regions of Ghana. These projects aim to address the pressing need for carbon dioxide removal while offering significant benefits to smallholder farmers. Through training, provision of tools, and technology, farmers are empowered to convert agricultural biomass into biochar. Biochar serves as a stable carbon sink for over a thousand years and provides several advantages in tropical agriculture, including nutrient storage, increased crop yields, enhanced water retention, and soil restoration through microbial activity.

The initiative engages 750 farming communities in the conversion of various agricultural residues such as corn, fruit tree trimmings, cacao shells, millet, and peanut stalks into biochar. Supervisors and management track each step of the biochar production and application process through a mobile application. The project undergoes auditing and certification by organizations such as Ceres Cert and Carbon Standards International under the Global Artisan C-Sink Standard, enabling the sequestration of carbon dioxide .

Carboneers focuses on decentralized biochar production to capitalize on the abundant biomass resources in rural agricultural areas of the Global South. By harnessing this potential and providing opportunities for farming communities to benefit economically, the initiative aligns with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Through certified biochar production, communities can improve soil health, increase crop productivity, generate additional income, and mitigate the adverse effects of climate change. This approach represents a win-win-win scenario, offering socio-economic benefits to communities, environmental gains through carbon sequestration, and progress toward achieving the SDGs.