Initiative News – Page 7 – Sonoma Biochar Initiative

June 27, 2013

Cool Planet Energy Systems Secures More Funding

Cool Planet Energy Systems, a promising venture that seeks to make advanced biofuels and biochar from “waste” and sustainably produced biomass has secured $29.9 million in additional funding. Their distributed production model takes the production technology to the source of the biomass rather than bringing the biomass to a centralized facility. Cool Planet announces additional […]

June 12, 2013

Community Meeting Reminder—Tonight

Just a quick reminder that we are hosting a community meeting tonight at the Sonoma Grange, from 6:30 to 8:30 P.M., featuring Judith Harwood of the Mendocino Woody Biomass Working Group and Jason Aramburu of re:char. You can register online here: http://events.r20.constantcontact.com/register/event?llr=mausxnlab&oeidk=a07e7iq4sa59e54b840&oseq= or just come to the meeting. We are asking for donations at the […]

May 9, 2013

June 12 Community Meeting Speakers

We have just confirmed two keynote speakers for our next Community Meeting on June 12th at the Sonoma Grange. First, Judith Harwood of the Mendocino Woody Biomass Working Group will be filling us in on their exciting activities and plans for a biochar production facility to be used for sustainable forestry management. Our second speaker […]

May 8, 2013

May Meeting Postponed

SBI has been incredibly busy these last two months with grant proposals, educational outreach and Open Burn workshops. We have therefore postponed our May community meeting that was scheduled for May 8th until next month—June 12th. We will be featuring several great speakers—one of whom is Jason Aramburu of the re:char organization—and we will have […]

April 27, 2013

Citizen Science Project Reaches Goal!

The Citizen Science Project reached its goal today of distributing 200 free bags of biochar and compost to gardeners around the Bay Area. Attendees at the Sonoma Garden Park Plant Sale put us over the top and we now have now given out 204 bags—-with more going out to Thomas Page Elementary School and a […]

April 15, 2013

Re:Char Video

Here is a wonderful short video showing young people working to make the promise of biochar a reality.

April 14, 2013

Bagging the Biochar for the Citizen Science Project

Volunteers from the Sonoma Biochar Initiative, the Sonoma Ecology Center Garden Park, and Green Valley Village filled bags of biochar and compost this past Saturday in preparation for the big Citizen Science Project distribution on April 20th. We greatly appreciate everyone’s help and are looking forward to distributing the material next weekend! Volunteers from San […]

April 6, 2013

2013 Citizen Science Project Launches April 20th

Help us explore how biochar works in local soils using your personal, community, or school garden. Biochar has been shown in lab tests and scientific field trials around the world to be beneficial for soil health and plant production, and we want to test it in Sonoma County and the Bay Area. The project is […]

April 6, 2013

USDA Conservation Innovation Grant Application Goes to Second Phase

The Sonoma Biochar Initiative received word on Friday that our California GIG grant application to fund the development and study of a farm-scale biochar operation has made the cut to stage two, and a full 30-page proposal has been requested. This grant, with matching funds provided by the Sonoma County Water Agency, would allow for […]

April 4, 2013

Earth Day Celebration / Sonoma April 20th

The Sonoma Ecology Center, Transition Sonoma Valley, The Sonoma Biochar Initiative (SBI), and many other local organizations, businesses, and citizens will be gathering to create a fun and engaging community spirited celebration to honor the Earth on Saturday, April 20th 1:00 – 5:00 PM on the Sonoma Plaza. For more information, go here: Earth Day […]

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