Mulch Man Part 3: Why it is time to reinvent wood debris management?

Why It’s Time to Reinvent Wood Debris Recovery

When major storms strike, they leave behind more than just broken infrastructure and flooded homes—they scatter vast amounts of tree debris across landscapes and waterways. After Hurricane Helene, the devastation was staggering: forests flattened, farmland eroded, and rivers choked with downed trees. Managing this debris isn’t just a logistical challenge—it’s an opportunity to rethink how we restore land and rebuild ecosystems.

The Traditional Model: Six Steps, One Solution

For decades, FEMA has guided counties through a standardized debris recovery process centered around one key technology: the horizontal grinder. This machine efficiently reduces wood volume, making it easier to transport and repurpose. The process typically involves:

1. Collection – Tree debris is gathered and piled roadside.

2. Transport – Trucks haul the debris to a transition station.

3. Initial Grinding – Wood is ground into single-pass mulch.

4. Storage – Mulch is moved to a yard for further processing.

5. Final Grinding or Composting – Material is refined for sale.

6. Distribution – Mulch or compost is delivered to farms.

This system has its merits. Grinding at a nearby site reduces truck trips by up to fivefold, and composted mulch plays a vital role in soil repair. But it’s a one-size-fits-all solution that’s beginning to show its limits.

The Problem: Oversupply, Emissions, and Missed Potential

Despite its efficiency, the traditional model faces several challenges:

• Oversupply of Mulch – With only one end product, the system floods markets with mulch, often exceeding demand.

• Carbon Emissions – Composting and mulching release most of the carbon stored in trees back into the atmosphere.

• Limited Soil Benefits – While mulch helps, it lacks the structural and microbial benefits that truly regenerate soil.

The Reinvention: Biochar as a Game-Changer

Biochar—a carbon-rich material produced by heating wood in a low-oxygen environment—offers a transformative alternative. With the right technology, biochar can simplify and amplify debris recovery:

• Fewer Steps – Just three: collection, biochar production, and distribution.

• Greater Volume Reduction – Wood is reduced by over 90%, slashing transportation needs.

• Superior Soil Repair – Biochar improves water retention, nutrient availability, and microbial activity.

• Carbon Sequestration – Instead of releasing carbon, biochar locks it into the soil for centuries.

The Science Behind Biochar’s Impact

Recent studies underscore biochar’s powerful benefits:

• Carbon Sequestration: Biochar can sequester carbon in soil for up to 2,000 years, making it one of the most stable forms of carbon storage available 1.

• Water Retention: Biochar increases soil water-holding capacity by up to 18–30%, especially in sandy or degraded soils 2.

• Nutrient Retention: Its high cation exchange capacity helps retain nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus, reducing leaching and improving fertilizer efficiency 1.

• Crop Yield: In optimized systems, biochar has led to yield increases of up to 294% and net returns exceeding $5,000 per hectare 3.

• Greenhouse Gas Reduction: Biochar-amended soils emit significantly less CO₂, CH₄, and N₂O compared to compost or chemical fertilizers 1.

• Microbial Health: Biochar fosters microbial diversity and activity, enhancing soil resilience and nutrient cycling 2.

A Dual-Product Model for Resilience

By integrating biochar into debris recovery, we create a dual-product system—mulch and biochar—each serving distinct but complementary roles in soil restoration. This not only balances supply but also enhances ecological outcomes, gets solutions to farmers whose soil has been damaged faster and saves millions and millions of dollars that could be put to other uses in disaster recovery.

Turning Disaster into Opportunity

Storms will continue to come. But with innovative technologies, we can turn their aftermath into a catalyst for regeneration. Our goal was to find such a technology—and we did. Now, it’s time to scale it, share it, and shift the paradigm. But that is for future blogs.

Principle 1: Understand how the trends are affecting your industry or eco-system. Helene is a harbinger of the degree of recovery locations will be engaged in and there is a new technology that has just arrived to help.