Project R-11731

Opportunities and Challenges in Biochar Production and Use. A legal Assessment of EU and Belgian-Flemish Law and Policy Recommendations. (Research)

Biochar is a stable, porous, carbonaceous material, produced through thermal decomposition (or pyrolysis) of biomass. Given its promising physicochemical characteristics, biochar can be used in agriculture, mainly as a soil amendment and fertilizer, in animal farming, as a soil remediation mean, but also as a NET (Negative Emission Technology) or CDR (Carbon Dioxide Removal) technology. The legal doctoral research is framed within a multidisciplinary project (FWO-BASTA project) that aims to close the gaps in a circular economy via efficient reuse of organic residual biomass with special attention to economic, environmental and societal outcomes and within optimal economic, ecological and legal boundaries. The project, therefore, includes a legal assessment – the finished doctoral thesis. Biochar is rather modern product, and it has taken some time for legislation to follow suit. In the early days, to compensate for the absence or sporadicity of legislation on the matter, definitions of biochar have been proposed, and voluntary product standards and certification schemes have been developed, the main ones being IBI's and EBC's. These are, however, voluntary schemes and are, therefore, not binding. At the moment, legislation on biochar is still rather exceptional, though the biochar subject-matter has gradually been introduced in the policy-making talks in the past few years and has been included or taken into account, directly or indirectly, in some legislation or programmes. However, even when not included or taken into account in legislation and policy, biochar remains relevant in a number of policy and law domains. The legal research will, therefore, focus on the European and Belgian Flemish legislation and policy on several areas relevant for biochar where bottlenecks and opportunities lie, e.g. fertilizers and chemicals, waste and circular economy, climate and energy, agriculture, human and animal health, pesticides and GMOs, water and air quality, biodiversity, etc. In addition, special attention will be paid to the integration of environmental science – in particular agroecology – into policy- and law-making. Accordingly, broader context legislation, policy and initiatives – which might allow for a more seamless integration of certain technologies (such as biochar) in the existing legal framework – are also being explored, e.g. carbon farming initiatives and initiatives pertaining to the restoration of degraded land. The final goal of the research, in addition to the legal analysis, is the formulation of policy recommendations and the development of a decision support tool for policymakers and companies to optimise the valorization potential of biochar while minimizing risks to people's health, environment and biodiversity.

01 September 2019 - 31 August 2023