Carbon Conscious Creations

Carbon Conscious Creations develops small-scale systems for producing biochar and wood vinegar, from a base in Algoz, Algarve. The company is young and operates with a carbon-negative philosophy. Its biochar is made at high temperature, 750–900 °C, which leaves the biomass fully carbonised with minimal volatile compounds left in it. That makes it a permanently stable form of carbon in the soil, able to improve soil health for hundreds to thousands of years and to act as a significant tool for long-term carbon sequestration. Wood vinegar, also known as liquid smoke or pyroligneous acid, is an amber-to-red liquid made by condensing the smoke given off when biomass is pyrolysed in an oxygen-starved environment. Wood vinegar is a powerful natural growth stimulant. The company also designs and builds equipment for producing both, including carbon-negative cookstoves. A selected group of plants is propagated and promoted alongside all this, chosen as invaluable for regenerative landscape design: Chrysopogon zizanioides (vetiver); to help prevent soil erosion and to combat root knot nematodes, Casuarina equisetifolia; a fast growing nitrogen fixing support species which provides shade, windbreak and is a valuable biomass producer. This is a small artisanal producer that puts quality before quantity. They travel to clients' own sites to produce biochar there and to run educational workshops, spreading knowledge of carbon-negative technologies across different regions of Portugal. Production, consultation and education are combined in the service model, with the aim of making soil improvement and carbon sequestration accessible to individuals, communities and agricultural operations throughout the country. Visits are by appointment, and the company keeps an active presence at regional markets and events in the Algarve.