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Carbon Super-Eaters

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John Benson 397,940

Senior Consultant, Microgrid Labs

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE: Microgrid Labs, Inc. Advisor: 2014 to Present Developed product plans, conceptual and preliminary designs for projects, performed industry surveys and developed...

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Aug 3, 2023Aug 3, 2023 3:20 pm GMT
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It is widely recognized that old-growth trees in normal forests are excellent way to sequester carbon for hundreds of years. One variant of this technique is to harvest mature trees and use them to build long-lived structures. Another variant is to harvest woody biomass (which could even include wood from structures at the end of their lives) burn it, and geologically sequester the CO₂ and other greenhouse gasses emitted by the combustion.

Most or all of the above techniques would benefit from tree-like plants that have accelerated growth-rates. This post is about two variants of these carbon super-eaters: bamboo and genetically modified variants of normal trees.

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Jim Stack on Aug 4, 2023

You had the soulution right in your hands until you added GMO Genetically Modified trees. Why mess with the unknown when you already have the answer. QUOTE= "two variants of these carbon super-eaters: bamboo and genetically modified variants of normal trees."

Rick Engebretson on Aug 7, 2023

I appreciate your efforts to explore new topics directly pertaining to achievable climate and energy goals. If we have different ideas sometimes; that is good.

Many years ago (about 1987) I ventured into advocating hay crop agriculture and recycled plastic livestock septic tanks. My "on farm" opinions differed greatly from cubicle desk-bound Democrat bureaucrats. I had never heard of the CO2, etc., climate change stuff. And I never imagined how corrupt environmentalism had become.

Hay crop farmers are the healers of "marginal" ag. land. On a single field are dozens of ecosystems changing from day to day. The "corn and beans farmer" works with bankers to produce one single product.

Industrial environmentalism should not be invited into forestry. Too many lobbyists, too much PR, too little protection of something we can't replicate.

John Benson on Aug 7, 2023

Rick & Jim, thanks for the comments.

I believe that GMO will be needed within a decade to keep agriculture alive. Although increasing invasive species are probably at the top of the "why?" list right now, there will be many other higher-order effects coming along shortly, as the ate of climate change is accelerating.

The IPCC AR6 Synthesis Report was released in Marck, and I have been working on a summary of this. Even though this report was short by IPPC Report standards, it was still 84 pages long, so even though I spent much time summarizing it, this will still take three successive posts. The first will be on Aug 17.

Even though this is probably the most reasonable IPCC report to date, I still feel it has some major issues, and point these out in my summary. If you really want to get a good sense of what our future might hold, I suggest you either read this report, and/or my summary (or both). The link to the IPCC AR6 Synthesis Report home page is below.

AR6 Synthesis Report: Climate Change 2023 (ipcc.ch)

-John

Rick Engebretson on Aug 8, 2023

Sorry John. GMO agriculture is already here. You (and I) have a lot to learn (and I had a big head start doing well in advanced genetics in the late 1970s). When I studied genetics, recombinant DNA was considered dangerous.

And those of us seeing the results of careless genetics experiments don't like such casual dismissal. In our area, "hybrid poplar and willow" plantations are highly visible dead zone scars. Here, we have enough trouble with wildlife refusing to go near corn and beans fields and devouring our human edible food.

I stand by well maintained hay crops for the very reasons you claim to care about. (and many more)

John Benson on Aug 8, 2023

Hi Rick:

I understand that GMOs have been here for a while, although most food and beverage crop species variants still use the traditional methods. regarding beverages, I was an amateur wine maker for a while, but decided I was much better at drinking it than making it. I still have five vines in my back yard, and Livermore (my primary residence) is a major wine producing area.

Climate change seems to be accelerating, and widespread GMOs may be the only option we have shortly.

Also, I just rean an article in my latest Time about how farmworkers are one of the two classes of workers (other are construction workers) whose heat-related deaths are skyrocketing. This is a big problem in California, but I expect a bigger problem in other areas. It gets very hot in the summer here, but our humidity is very low, so we usually have relatively cool nights and mornings, even when afternoon temperatures are well over 100 degrees.

-John

Rick Engebretson on Aug 9, 2023

John, we are both dreamers. I'm just dumb enough to learn the hard way.

People talk and write about "old growth forests," then show a picture such as above this article. I moved into an "old growth forest" in northern Minnesota with a wife and three children. Big, dead, heavy, wet trees laying everywhere in every direction on the ground. With big, fragile, dead trees they call "widow makers" hung up high above.

I appreciate the plantation, mono-culture forestry dream. And I appreciate the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources offering bargain bulk native species seedlings to enhance the biodiversity dream.

You are right, anything we do will require hard work. Perennial crops are "The Carbon Super-Eaters." Hay crops have aspects of simplicity worth considering.

John Benson on Aug 9, 2023

In California our farmers have a unique issue - three to four crops a year. In the winter the annual crops are either winter-wheat or a cover crop in the San Joaquin Valley (which I drive through an average on once a week). In the spring to fall these farms grow a wide range of crops: Roma tomatoes, onions, melons, pumpkins, corn, etc. The fields used for annual crops and range land are being displaced by orchards (mainly almond) and vineyards (mixture of table grapes and wine grapes).

In the primary vineyard areas (like Livermore), there are also a few hop fields and olive orchards.

In many coastal areas they grow specialty crops like artichokes, garlic and asparagus year-round.

Agriculture and ranching (including dairy) are two of our largest industries. For the gory details, go through the link below.

California Agriculture Statistics Review 2021-2022

As far as forestry, my second home is in a National Forest (in Arnold at 4,000 ft in the Sierras), The primary tree varieties in the zone around Arnold are mostly Jeffery Pines and Incense Cedars, with a few Douglas Fir, Sugar Pine, Black Oak, etc.. I used to hike in the national forest, and I would occasionally come across an old growth grove, but since this is a producing forest, these are few and far between.

By the way, although I didn't move there, I spent about a year in Minneapolis when I worked for Siemens. The weather: in winter was fine (I'm a cross-country skier). I really hated the summer humidity though. In California our humidity is generally low.

-John

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