Currently, European forests are facing massive impacts from climate change, which are manifested not only by destructive wind disasters, but also by a large-scale gradation of bark beetles, especially the bark beetle. Dead trees left in the landscape or quickly harvested Wood without industrial use poses a challenge for waste management, but also the risk of releasing greenhouse gases during its decomposition. However, the latest scientific knowledge indicates that this Calamitous wood can serve as an ideal raw material for the production of biochar (biochar), transforming it from an environmental risk into a strategic tool for sustainable carbon removal (CDR) and agricultural land protection.

Calamitous wood as a high-quality substrate

Research shows that approximately 31 % of all biochars studied are derived from woody biomass. Utilizing trees infested with bark beetles or wood from windstorms solves a key problem in the biochar business model – availability and price of input raw materials.

From a scientific perspective, the processing temperature is crucial for the effectiveness of biochar. If woody biomass from calamities is pyrolyzed at temperatures above 500 °C, the resulting product shows:

• Higher carbon content and the extreme physical stability of the material.
• Larger internal surface and high porosity, which is key for water retention in the soil.
• Doubling efficiency in mitigating soil erosion compared to biochars produced at lower temperatures.

Protecting soil from erosion: The "soil sponge" mechanism„

The application of biochar from woody biomass to the soil is not only about fertilizing it, but also about creating the so-called. functions of the soil sponge. Dead wood converted into biochar helps the soil absorb and retain water, dramatically reducing surface runoff. Global data confirms that biochar on average reduces surface water runoff by 25 % and physical soil erosion by 16 %.

In extreme conditions, such as steep vineyard slopes or fields threatened by drought, the results are even more striking. Experiments have shown that biochar can reduce erosion rates by up to 65 % and in dry periods increase water retention in the soil by incredible amounts 300 %. In this way, biochar from calamity wood protects not only itself but also the natural soil organic carbon (SOC) reserves from being washed away during intense rainfall.

Synergy with vegetation and landscape restoration

The use of biochar from trees attacked by bark beetles also has a regenerative dimension. Biochar in the soil improves pH and the availability of key nutrients (NPK), leading to increase in vegetation cover by more than 260 %. This new biomass then mechanically stabilizes the soil and increases its resistance to further degradation. The synergy between biochar and plants is so strong that the erosion-reducing effect is more than double on vegetated soils compared to bare soil.

Economic and political framework: Waste as value

From the perspective of European businesses and forest managers, the processing of disaster wood into biochar represents a new business model. Current trends within EU Carbon Removal Certification Framework (CRCF) increasingly require verifiable permanence of carbon storage. Biochar from woody biomass is an ideal candidate in this regard, as its stability in soil is estimated to be decades to centuries.

Integrating erosion metrics into monitoring (MRV) will allow companies to quantify not only the carbon stored directly in biochar, but also retained original soil carbon, which would be irretrievably lost to erosion without the application of biochar.

Converting dead trees and disaster wood into biochar represents a circular solution that combines forest damage restoration with agricultural land protection. This approach not only ensures the permanent removal of CO2 from the atmosphere, but also builds a climate-resilient landscape capable of withstanding hydrological extremes. Recognition of these synergies in international emissions inventories can accelerate the deployment of biochar as a key pillar of the European strategy for carbon neutrality. JRi&CO2AI