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→What Is It?
[[File:Biochar.jpg|thumb|Biochar <br> Photo credit: [[Acknowledgements|K.salo.85]]]]
[[File:Biochar.jpg|thumb|Biochar <br> Photo credit: [[Acknowledgements|K.salo.85]]]]
===What Is It?===
===What Is It?===
Biochar is a carbon-rich material produced by pyrolysis of organic feedstocks such as municipal, agricultural, and forestry wastes. It has a high surface area, which enhances soil aggregation, water holding capacity, and [[organic matter| organic carbon content]]. However, biochar properties and effectiveness for pollutant sorption depends on feedstock and pyrolysis conditions. <ref name=Iqbal>Iqbal H, Garcia-Perez M, Flury M. Effect of biochar on leaching of organic carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus from compost in bioretention systems. Science of the Total Environment. 2015;521-522: 37-45. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2015.03.060</ref>
Biochar is a carbon-rich material produced by pyrolysis of organic feedstocks such as municipal, agricultural, and forestry wastes. It has a high surface area, which enhances soil aggregation, water holding capacity, and [[organic matter| organic carbon content]]. However, biochar properties and effectiveness for pollutant sorption depends on feedstock and pyrolysis conditions (Iqbal et al., 2015). <ref name=Iqbal>Iqbal H, Garcia-Perez M, Flury M. 2015. Effect of biochar on leaching of organic carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus from compost in bioretention systems. Science of the Total Environment. 521-522: 37-45. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2015.03.060</ref>
===How is it being used?===
===How is it being used?===
Ongoing biochar research at the British Columbia Institute of Technology is testing the response of native plants to various soil/biochar mixes to be used in rain gardens and the comparison of biochar with different physico-chemical characteristics in chemical contaminants removal efficacy (BCIT, 2025) <ref>BCIT. 2025. Biochar Amended Soil Matrix for Green Stormwater Infrastructure. https://commons.bcit.ca/nbs/rain-gardens-bioretention-cells/</ref>.
Ongoing biochar research at the British Columbia Institute of Technology is testing the response of native plants to various soil/biochar mixes to be used in rain gardens and the comparison of biochar with different physico-chemical characteristics in chemical contaminants removal efficacy (BCIT, 2025) <ref>BCIT. 2025. Biochar Amended Soil Matrix for Green Stormwater Infrastructure. https://commons.bcit.ca/nbs/rain-gardens-bioretention-cells/</ref>.