Minneapolis is making history by becoming the first city in North America to own and operate a biochar facility. With the City producing its own biochar, it is reinforcing its commitment to building a climate legacy.
Biochar is a specialized charcoal created by heating wood waste to 700 degrees in a low-oxygen environment. The Minneapolis biochar facility will be located at 670 25th Ave. SE and have the capacity to annually:
- Process over 3,000 tons of wood waste
- Produce over 500 tons of biochar
- Remove nearly 3,700 tons of carbon dioxide which is the equivalent of taking over 789 cars off the road
Construction on the facility is expected to begin this spring with biochar production beginning in the summer or early fall.
“Seeing this project come to life has been many years in the making and is currently the City’s only existing carbon-negative project,” said Jim Doten, Carbon Sequestration Program Manager. “Biochar is a versatile product that will benefit the green infrastructure of our city and its soil by creating drought resistance and improving nutrient delivery. I'm thrilled about the positive impact this facility and biochar will have on Minneapolis.”
City and Xcel Energy enter agreement to fuel biochar facility
Xcel Energy recently signed an agreement with the City of Minneapolis to supply wood waste for biochar production at the facility. The agreement allows Xcel Energy to provide tree trimmings and other vegetation from its power line maintenance operations to help produce the biochar.
"Minneapolis is at the forefront of biochar production, and partnerships like this are crucial to our mission of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050," said Mayor Jacob Frey. "Collaborating with Xcel to repurpose tree trimming and vegetation into biochar not only strengthens our sustainability efforts but also accelerates our progress toward a greener future. Building a climate-resilient future requires all of us, and we’re proud to work alongside dedicated partners in this effort."
Xcel Energy conducts routine tree trimming and other vegetation management services to minimize the risk of interference with electrical equipment. In 2024 alone, crews worked on more than 50 miles of distribution lines and 20 miles of transmission lines in Minneapolis, leaving an abundance of wood waste in need of disposal.
“Tree trimming is an important part of our year-round dedication to providing the residents and businesses of Minneapolis with safe and reliable electric service,” said John Marshall, regional vice president, Community Relations and Foundation at Xcel Energy. “Contributing these trimmings to the City of Minneapolis’s biochar project not only builds on our longstanding commitment to carbon reduction but also serves as a great model for how cities and the energy companies can work together on innovative solutions.”
Key elements of the agreement
- Xcel Energy will collect, chip and deliver vegetation resulting from its vegetation management operations in a six-mile radius to the City as it is available
- The City agrees the vegetation will be used for the production of biochar
- Each party will bear all of its costs and expenses and neither party will provide or receive funding from the other party under the agreement
More about biochar and its benefits
Biochar offers a myriad of benefits, one of its most valuable being carbon sequestration. Biochar created at the facility will:
- Address the oversupply of wood waste in the city (ash borer, utility line maintenance, etc.)
- Serve as a soil amendment for community gardens and city and county stormwater facilities and boulevards
- Improve soil nutrient utilization and drought resilience, reduce toxins, and filter and infiltrates stormwater
- Sequester carbon for over 1,000 years
- Achieve the City’s 2023 Climate Equity Plan goals
Learn more at the Biochar page of the website.
Dreaming of a climate-resilient city
Jim Doten, Carbon Sequestration Program Manager at the Minneapolis Health Department, has dedicated his career to improving food systems worldwide through biochar. Jim’s vision brought biochar to our city and paved the way for a new production facility in Minneapolis.
Hear from Jim as he shares information about biochar and its impact on our community.
Project partners
Community partners
- Little Earth
- Indian Health Board
- 24th Street Urban Farming Coalition
- Minneapolis Edible Boulevards
Government and institutional partners
- Minneapolis Community Planning and Economic Development (CPED), Public Works and Property Services
- Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community
- University of Minnesota Natural Resources Research Institute
- MnDOT, Hennepin County, Minnesota Pollution Control Agency
Funding partner
- Bloomberg Philanthropies