If you happen to be in the Washington DC area on Sep 9-10, i.e.,
tomorrow (apology for the late message!), you are welcome to join a
small workshop that aims at critically assessing the feasibility of
the emerging concept 'carbon sequestration via wood burial and
storage'. Details are below.
Best Regards!
-Ning Zeng
Ecological carbon sequestration via wood burial and storage: A
strategy for climate mitigation and adaptation
September 9-10, 2010, the Heinz Center, 900 17th Street NW, Suite 700,
Washington, DC
Agenda (Draft #2)
The urgency of the climate problem is prompting serious policies that
will likely transform the role of forestry and agriculture in climate
mitigation and adaptation. A novel yet intuitive concept has emerged
recently for carbon sequestration by wood burial and storage (WBS), in
which forests are managed to optimal productivity and selected coarse
woody materials are harvested, then buried in trenches or stowed away
in above-ground piles or shelters to prevent decomposition. The stored
wood is also a carbon/energy bank that can be a biomass/bioenergy
reserve should future biofuel technologies become practical. Initial
estimate suggests a global potential of 1-5 GtC per year, and a US
potential to offset 10% of its fossil fuel emissions.
The aim of the workshop is to assess critically the carbon
sequestration potential of WBS, to identify the real-world
opportunities in the US forestry and internationally, in particular in
reducing tropical deforestation by providing a forest management
strategy that provides livelihood for local populations, and how it
can complement Reduced Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD) in
key aspects such as permanence, leakage, verifiability and long-term
sustainability. Strategies will be explored that will minimize its
drawbacks and maximize benefits. The workshop will assemble a group of
scientists, policy makers and stakeholders.
Anticipated outcome of the workshop A report will be produced to
summarize the findings, and results will be also presented as peer-
reviewed paper(s). An interdisciplinary group will be established to
advance future research and coordinate with relevant communities.
List of participants (some to be confirmed)
Tony King, Gregg Marland, Lianhong Gu, Stan Wullschleger (DOE/
ORNL)
Ning Zeng, Ross Salawitch, Robert Nelson, George Hurtt (UMD)
Cesar Izzaraulde, S. Smith, Tony Janetos, Tris West, Ben Bond-
Lamberty(DOE/PNNL)
Ben Zaitchik (Johns Hopkins U)
Brent Sonhgen (Ohio State U)
Richard Birdsey, Yude Pan (USDA Forest Service)
Dalia Abbas (Michigan State U)
Roger Sedjo (Resources for the Future)
Steve Hamburg, Ruben Lubowski, Alexander Golub (Environment Defense
Fund)
Matt Pearson (Morgan-Stanley)
Ian Noble (World Bank)
Eli Kintisch (AAAS/Science magazine)
Forest landowners association
Allen Solomon, Nancy Cavallaro (USDA/FS)
Bob Vallario (DOE)
Brian Cook, Jennifer Jenkins, Kimberley Todd (EPA)
Ken Mooney (NOAA)
Schedule (tentative)
Thursday, September 9
8:30 Registration
9:00 Opening Remarks and logistics (King, Zaitchik)
9:15 Background in biospheric carbon sequestration and carbon
management strategies (Presentation+discussion leader: Hamburg)
9:45 Introduction to WBS (Leader: Zeng)
10:15 Break
10:50 Implications for climate change policy (Leader: Zaitchik)
11:15 Practical considerations of WBS (Leader: King)
11:45 Cost of operation (Leader: Abbas)
12:10 Economics (Leader: West)
12:30 Lunch Break
2:00 Whole group discussion:
(1) Strawman draft on WBS practical potential;
(2) Identify main questions/themes for breakout discussion
3:15 Break
3:30 Breakout discussion (Placeholder themes)
1. Practical potential of WBS, and potential contribution to
climate goals and policies; Short-term possibilities; How does WBS
complement other carbon management strategies such as reforestation
and REDD?
2. Potential environmental impact and social concerns
3. How to carry out the operation in the real world in a cost
effective way?
5:00 Adjorn
5:30-6:30 (Informal session of a subgroup over beer: What have we
learned? Things to accomplish on Day 2)
6:30-8:30 Self-organized dinner
Friday, September 10
8:30 Report from the breakout session
9:45
Discussion
10:15 Break
10:30 Discussion: How to move forward?
Possible papers: Identify topics and lead authors
Research priorities and funding opportunities: Which agencies are
most interested? How to pass the message?
12:00 End of meeting
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