BAMBOO: roles in climate change, carbon

sequestration and poverty alleviation

Paper presented during CMU-CF alumni homecoming

September 17, 2010
 WHY
BAMBOO?
Part I: The bamboo resource and
its roles in environment, poverty
alleviation and sustainable
development
Bamboo plants and resources
 
•Bamboo is an ancient grass, a woody
plant.

•About 60 to 90 genera of bamboo with

over 1,200 species.

•Mostly distributed in tropical and

subtropical zones in Asia, Africa and
America.
Bamboo plants and resources
 
•Great features of bamboo are its fast
growth, adaptability, resilience and
substantial biomass production.

•Bamboo is also an environment friendly

plant and net carbon sink, producing
35% more oxygen than wood.
 
•Bamboos grow more rapidly than trees and
start to yield within three or four years of
planting.
•Plantation establishment requires minimal
capital investment and builds upon the
inherent plant-cultivation skills of local
farmers
•Bamboos can be harvested annually and
non-destructively.
•Bamboos are excellent for rejuvenating
degraded lands and protecting against soil
erosion.
•As well as the culms, all other parts of the
bamboo plant can be used in rural livelihoods
- shoots for food, leaves for fodder, and
branches for items such as brooms and for
firewood.
Characteristics of bamboo

strong bamboo culms

light but hard
come in different sizes
abundant
easy to propagate
short period to mature
suitable for various purposes
Bamboo’s economic and
environmental potential
Bamboo’s economic and environmental potential

About 1.5 billion

people depend on
bamboo for their
daily lives. Over 20
million tons of
bamboo are
collected and
utilized annually.
Those in rural areas
and the poor are
the prime users of
bamboo.
Poles can be made
into furniture and
crafts
Support agri-based industries

… as banana prop
Support agri-based industries

…as tomato stakes

 Support agri-based industries

… bamboo charcoal for seedlings

Support agri-based industries

… in poultries and piggeries

Support agri-based industries

… in shrimp cultivation
Support agri-based industries

… bamboo vinegar as spray

….bamboo charcoal as water purifier
Bamboo charcoal
for sewage
purification
Bamboo
charcoal for
sewage
purification
Low cost housing
fresh edible
shoots
With modern
processing
techniques,
many of which
are still quite
new, bamboo
can be
transformed into
many products
that compete
directly with
wood products
in price and Engineered bamboo products
performance.
 
Bamboo often
surpasses
wood in the
diversity of
products
produced. It is
also known to
be a valuable
ecological
resource for
soil and water
conservation
and restoration
of degraded
lands.
 
Less is known about bamboo as a
carbon sink. Carbon dioxide is
one of the major gases in the
Green House Gases (GHGs) family
responsible for global warming
 
Part II. Bamboo: Current
roles in the global carbon
cycle and in climate
change
 
Bamboo biomass and carbon
stock
 
•Bamboo is one of the most
productive and fastest growing plants
on earth

•The fastest-growing species may

grow up to 1.2 m a day. The unique
growing capacity makes bamboo a
valuable sink for carbon storage.
Bamboo biomass and carbon
stock
 
•Below ground bamboo biomass
makes up 25-50% of the total stock.

•Carbon content comprises usually

about 50% of the total biomass.

 
Bamboo biomass
and carbon stock
 
Sympodial bamboos
grow like a bush and
are generally non-
invasive. Sympodial
bamboo species are
normally substantially
more productive than
monopodial.
 
Bamboo biomass and
carbon stock

For instance tropical

Bambusa bambos may
produce twice as much
biomass compared to
monopodial Moso
bamboo (Phyllostachys
pubescens) - 280-290 vs
120-140 t/ha. The above
ground productivity of
Moso bamboo may reach
18-20 t/ha/yr.
 
Bamboo and wood
carbon
 
Bamboo has several
advantages over tree
species in terms of
sustainability and
carbon fixing capacity.
Available studies
conclude that bamboo
biomass and carbon
production may be 7-
30% higher compared
to the fast growing
wood species.
Bamboo and wood
carbon
 
For instance tropical
Bambusa bambos has
been measured at a
total above ground
biomass 287 t/ha with
a mean annual
production of around
47.8 t/ha/yr, almost
twice that of the
Eucalyptus clones.
Bamboo and
wood carbon
 
Interestingly,
the total
biomass of
mature
Bambusa at 6
years is in fact
higher than
that of teak at
40 years: 149 t
C/ha versus
only 126 t C/ha
for teak.
Bamboo and wood carbon
 
Sub-tropical moso bamboo
(Phyllostachys pubescens)
reaches above ground
biomass of 137.9 t/ha and
is generally harvested at 5-
8 years intervals.

Every 5 years it would

produce at least 86 t/ha
biomass and sequester 43
t/ C/ha, almost twice as
much as a teak plantation
under the same conditions.
This includes total biomass
as well as products.
 
Bamboo and wood
carbon
 
Besides higher biomass,
bamboo has other
advantages over wood as a
carbon stock. Unlike woody
crops bamboo offers the
possibility of annual
selective harvesting and
removal of about 15-20%
of the total stock without
damaging the environment
and stock productivity.
Bamboo and wood
carbon
 
Over 90% of bamboo
carbon can be sequestered
in durable products such as
boards, panels, floors,
furniture, buildings, cloth,
paper and activated
charcoal. These products
have a very long life span
and may retain carbon for
several decades.
Bamboo carbon for development
 
Bamboo can play a significant role in linking
climate change mitigation to sustainable
economic development in the developing
world. Carbon credits may trigger creation
of otherwise marginal bamboo plantations
for processing, jobs and wealth generation.
Bamboo carbon for development

 Already with the presently available

technologies bamboo production for energy
use may well make a significant contribution
to the current and future energy needs of
the developing world. Utilization of
renewable fuel from bamboo can save vast
natural forest resources and non-renewable
fossil fuel such as mine coal, oil and gas.
This would allow retention of carbon already
sequestered in forests and in fossil fuels
Part III: Using Bamboo in
forestry projects under the
Clean Development
Mechanism
Part III: Using
Bamboo in forestry
projects under the
Clean Development
Mechanism

Interest in carbon
trading under the
Clean Development
Mechanism (CDM) of
the Kyoto Protocol
have blossomed since
its ratification in 2004.
Bamboo in forestry projects under the
Clean Development Mechanism

Although no projects have been developed

for bamboo so far, it does qualify for the
forest carbon credits. Bamboo is a part of
the world’s forests and forest industries.
Bamboo in forestry projects under the
CDM

As has been outlined above, bamboo’s

carbon sequestration rate normally exceeds
the rates of most of the fast growing woody
species under the same or similar
conditions.

In addition bamboo has desirable

characteristics for producing durable
products as well as bio-fuel.
Bamboo in forestry
projects under the CDM

Bamboo often grows on small

plots on marginal lands
managed by poor people. It is
possible to group many small
plots under one project as
long as accurate
measurements are made.

Such groups could qualify for

carbon trading as small scale
forest project.
“Bamboo shoots up faster than
any other plant on earth, demand
for it is soaring; too.”

Jim Hutchison (2002)

On bamboo as a plant:

“Philosophers say the smooth expanse

between nodes represents virtue,
a long distance between faults and the
hollow interior bespeaks modesty and
humility.”

Luis Marden (1980)

Why Bamboo?
            Bamboo is an ancient plant
widely recognized for its symbolism of a
strong, healthy life.  It  is  an eco-friendly
building material, sustainable
resource, (meaning it is self reliant), 
and  benefits from cutting ( giving it the
ability to regenerate itself).  
          Bamboo just keeps on giving of
itself.
Thank you for listening
Bamboo
towel
Bamboo plates
THAT’S ALL
ABOUT
BAMBOOS
AND CARBON!