InterEarth Bowgada

The Company:
InterEarth is a Climate Change Mitigation Technology Company. We are an internationally owned, Australian private company. Our mission is to accelerate the global production of Premium Quality Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR) credits with our Dry Stack biomass sequestration technology.

The Project:
Located in Western Australia ~400km NE of Perth, on our Bowgada Demonstration farm, this project is a significant milestone for InterEarth as we begin our CDR journey. Using our patented “Dry Stack” technology, we have successfully stored our first 49 CORC’s.

The Biomass:
The woody biomass was collected from a farmer’s property proximal to our 400ha Demonstration farm. It was native Australian hardwood re-growth, cleared during periodic, routine construction of a property-boundary fire break, in compliance with local fire management legislation and regulations. If not for its use as Dry Stack feedstock, the woody biomass would have been in-field incinerated by the farmer returning its captured CO2 to the atmosphere.

The Dry Stack:
Our above ground “Dry Stack” technology has a number of design features that disrupt biomass decomposition pathways, ensuring woody biomass preserves its contained carbon for +100 years:

- An impermeable roof ensures dry storage, which inhibits fungus, rot and mould.
- A thick soil covering acts as a fire proof shield and also prevents UV light (and thus oxidation facilitated by light) from reaching the biomass.
- The ventilation system prevents anaerobic decomposition from occurring by introducing oxygen to the system, breaking anaerobic pathways.
- Mesh ember guards on the ventilation inlets prevent any rogue embers from being drawn into the dry stack from nearby bushfires.
- The termite barrier and fumigation system combine to firstly prevent ingress but also eradicate any insect activity from the biomass in the unlikely event of an incursion.

The land hosting the Dry Stack is unsuitable for agriculture due to its saline and infertile soils; the Dry Stack cover soil is seeded with shallow rooted plants to mitigate potential erosion. Dry land woody biomass production for Dry Stack CO2 sequestration offers local farmers a net carbon removal alternative land use suited to declining rainfalls as a result of climate-change.

The Sampling and Monitoring Program:
All biomass is weighted, sampled and analysed for moisture and Total organic Carbon (TOC) at the point of Dry Stack deposition and at regular intervals post Dry Stack closure. Our Dry Stack biomass TOC results demonstrate zero carbon loss, over several years of storage.

Further, low-detection-limit gas analysers monitor Dry Stack exhaust gases for CO2, CH4, CO and O2 plus temperature and Relative Humidity (RH). The long-run, Dry Stack exhaust gas data confirms the maintenance of biomass-inert conditions and zero organic gas re-emissions. It also provide us with early warnings of a potential biomass decomposition event.

The Future:
Completion of the Demonstration Dry Stack and approval of first CORC’s, is an important proof of concept milestone for InterEarth. It provides us with a solid scientific and regulatory foundation for scale up. We are targeting the generation of 10,000 CORCs in our first Commercial Dry Stack, with regular, similarly sized completions, thereafter. We aim to make a meaningful contribution to climate action in the next 12 months.

Beyond our Premium CDR, InterEarth provides additional benefits such as:

Biological:
This first production facility (where we have stored our first 49 CORC’s) is located on our 400ha Demonstration farm. The farm is planted with a diverse mixture of native species that are known for their biomass production, drought tolerance and coppicing ability. Our long-term approach involves the regular harvesting of the Above Ground Biomass (AGB) of these species. Once harvested the biomass is dried and stored in the Dry Stack. During the periods between harvests the farm is a refuge for native species including cockatoos, echidnas, kangaroos, West Australian wildflowers. Once the trees are planted and established soil biology will return to its natural balance.

Fire Mitigation:
Plantation AGB will be regularly harvested and stored in Dry Stack storage sites, significantly reducing local woody biomass fuel loads; a serious fire-risk concern for many wheatbelt farmers. To withstand a wildfire, Dry Stacks are buried under a thick soil cover, have ember guards on all vents and are fitted with early warning telemetry.

Community:
InterEarth continues to work closely with local farmer, contractors and government. This first storage facility was built entirely with local woody biomass by local contractors with local government approval. We regularly engage with the local community at social and regional events and at local council meetings. We buy-local whenever possible, and are doing our bit to counter population decline in Western Australia’s wheatbelt (>2% pa since 1960). Our operations provide employment for locals and boost the local economy.

Air Quality:
The regular harvesting of AGB reduces in-field incineration of woody biomass and carbon remissions. It also benefits local air quality by reducing smoke and haze during the burning season.