- Location
- East Yorkshire
Probably not for use on high pH soils as it increases pH? Or wouldn't it matter? Ours already 7.5 to 8.5. Chalk!
Rock dust saves the planet
- Thread starter mo!
- Start date
ollie989898
Member
I don't know enough about it, but basalt- it's igneous rock. As in it used to be lava. It's hard as hell. I may be wrong but I'm not even sure it has much carbonate content to begin with and if it did it must be more resistant to dissolving into ions of anything than most things this side of diamonds?
betweenthelines
Member
- Location
- southwest
Just been featured on Countryfile (OH had the TV on while I cooked the tea) 4 tonne of Basalt dust will take 1 tonne of carbon out of the atmosphere. Currently trucking the dust from Scotland to Adam's farm in the Cotswolds and he (Adam) will flog carbon credits to polluters.
No mention of the carbon footprint of transporting & spreading dust (even if it can be sourced locally.
And all this just allows people to continue pumping carbon into the atmosphere! It's like telling an obese man he can carry on eating whatever he wants because someone else will run a couple hundred metres for him.
Edited to add: Some bright spark will suggest top dressing by plane!
No mention of the carbon footprint of transporting & spreading dust (even if it can be sourced locally.
And all this just allows people to continue pumping carbon into the atmosphere! It's like telling an obese man he can carry on eating whatever he wants because someone else will run a couple hundred metres for him.
Edited to add: Some bright spark will suggest top dressing by plane!
Chae1
Member
- Location
- Aberdeenshire
What is carbon? How do you measure it?
I've never seen any.
I've never seen any.
Arceye
Member
- Location
- South Norfolk
It's what I get out of the toaster most mornings after putting it down a second time to brown up, and forgetting it.What is carbon? How do you measure it?
I've never seen any.
Chae1
Member
- Location
- Aberdeenshire
livestock 1
Member
That’s what we have been saying here how can you buy and sell something you can’t seeWhat is carbon? How do you measure it?
I've never seen any.
- Location
- Aberdeenshire
I looked a few months at doing this. I spoke to a few of the carbon accreditation companies and none of them would touch it. They said there was no recognised standard for it. Only seems to be one company doing it who are taking the “carbon credits” for themselves to sell.
livestock 1
Member
It has a liming effect though apparently
- Location
- Wiltshire
I be just found this thread. I rent 20ac from someone who watched country file last night and they now want to pay to have basalt spread on their land to save the planet. I think i have explained enough so that i don’t have to organise it. High ph chalk soil (sticky lower chalk) maize next year so plenty of fym. I said the fym will have more benefit.
My question what is the basalt supposed to do?
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My question what is the basalt supposed to do?
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- Location
- Highland
I watched it. Adam is tying himself in knots trying to justify it, a sad show. He seemed to be parroting the sales pitch,rathwr than speaking normally. I was surprised he didn't make the obvious comparison to spreading lime - which is rock dust 
it's not an unusual practice to spread various types of rock dust because it's a form of slow release minerals. Doing it in the US 30 years ago.
I think I will scream next time I hear CARBON. It's carbon dioxide FFFFFS! Suppose that's too complicated a phrase for joe public.
If we got rid of all the carbon on earth we would have no life forms, limestone and marble etc., fossil fuels, at all. I think next time I meet one of these eco job nuts I'll ask him/her to explain the meaning of the word "organic"
. As in chemistry. As in, makes up all life on earth.
But hey, when did science have anything to do with it???
it's not an unusual practice to spread various types of rock dust because it's a form of slow release minerals. Doing it in the US 30 years ago.I think I will scream next time I hear CARBON. It's carbon dioxide FFFFFS! Suppose that's too complicated a phrase for joe public.
If we got rid of all the carbon on earth we would have no life forms, limestone and marble etc., fossil fuels, at all. I think next time I meet one of these eco job nuts I'll ask him/her to explain the meaning of the word "organic"
. As in chemistry. As in, makes up all life on earth.But hey, when did science have anything to do with it???
- Location
- East Sussex
If they're selling carbon credits based on spreading the stuff then the farmer should be charging for it.
We'll learn one day............
Tarw Coch
Member
- Location
- Bottom of Wats Dyke
Elsewhere on this forum in a thread about diversification, @neilo mentioned that if he did any sort of diversification on the farm, his landlord would want half the profits.
Perhaps this would be a good baseline, let them spread their fairy dust in return for half the carbon credit payment
Chae1
Member
- Location
- Aberdeenshire
The farmer gets the benefit of the magic basalt rock dust supplied and spread for free.
Been a few new spreaders bought off the back of it up here
- Location
- Montgomeryshire
A local farmer apparently did a trial with it via Farming Connect, applying to part fields and measuring grass growth with a plate meter. I am told that the grassland that had the magic dust applied yielded 2t/ha of DM less. Those carbon credits that you can sell through @Clive 's shiny suited mates had better be worth a lot money if they've got to make that up.
I doubt they'll be supplying much locally.
- Location
- Wiltshire
Yet another money making scam then. I guess there is no proper peer reviewed research.
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livestock 1
Member
There’s a quarry just over the hill from us supplies it. The quarry has been there forever it’s a whin quarry. I had never considered buying any for liming over the years I always thought the stone would be too hard and wouldn’t break downA local farmer apparently did a trial with it via Farming Connect, applying to part fields and measuring grass growth with a plate meter. I am told that the grassland that had the magic dust applied yielded 2t/ha of DM less. Those carbon credits that you can sell through @Clive 's shiny suited mates had better be worth a lot money if they've got to make that up.
I doubt they'll be supplying much locally.
ollie989898
Member
If someone has researched this and there is some genuine work backing this up they know of, I would like them to explain it to me because the whole thing mystifies me as it stands. I'd be grateful, particularly if the chemistry involved was explained along with the process involved as it removes CO2 from the air. If basalt does this, surely real-deal lime or similar would also?
Lime I can understand, it's calcium carbonate and usually reasonably soft and dissolves. That makes sense. Basalt is hard, so hard it's used to make roads and stuff? If it works in soil, can we dump the stuff in the sea and have it work also?
Lime I can understand, it's calcium carbonate and usually reasonably soft and dissolves. That makes sense. Basalt is hard, so hard it's used to make roads and stuff? If it works in soil, can we dump the stuff in the sea and have it work also?
ollie989898
Member
Paddington
Member
- Location
- Soggy Shropshire
10kg/m2 ? That's half a feed sack.