Climate Solutions: The Wow Factor
"We don’t need a trillion-dollar Stargate to solve the climate crisis."
I promise this was not AI-generated. It is from NASDAQ’s MarketSite:
JW: Thank you, Christina. Thank you for having me.
CA: Let’s start off broadly. Talk to me about Verde Resources and the company's mission.
JW: Verde Resources is a green tech company with a mission to provide commonsense, pragmatic, net zero solutions specifically for the construction industry, which is contributing 37% to global annual emissions.
CA: Wow. Let's dive deeper into that. What are some of the specific initiatives that the company is taking in the net zero space? I'm trying to make it as easy for laymen as possible.
JW: So we have in America alone, for example, we have about 200 million metric tons of waste biomass, plus or minus. And we can turn these wastes into a carbon rich charcoal called biochar—or biocharcoal. So instead of allowing biomass to decay and re-emit methane into the atmosphere, which is three times worse than CO2, we can integrate biochar into asphalt…
CA: Wow.
JW:…to make it a more durable, better performing and a cost-effective net zero solution.
CA: It really seems like you're at the intersection of both environmental and economic growth.
JW: Yes, we believe that ultimately when we are providing a better performing, more durable product, it allows, you know, government from local, state, federal to be fiscally conservative and responsible because the product is more durable and, you know, it would—oh, by the way—the product also generates carbon credits. So, what we do, we combine both carbon avoidance and carbon removal because there's biochar in there. Not only do we our initiatives generate carbon credits, they also create new jobs. And by the way, it also helps conserve the environment because we are sequestering so much CO2.
CA: So, are there any challenges that the company is facing and how do you overcome those obstacles?
JW: I would say the challenge that we are facing right now is two things. Number one, we are focusing on getting the technology and our blueprint validated at the highest level. We are working with the National Center for Asphalt Technology in Auburn, Alabama.
We have so far done two stages. So NCAT has, like, a 1.7-mile test track. Think of it like a NASCAR track, and the 1.7-mile track is divided into 12 cross-sections. We occupy one of the cross-sections. We are the first green tech company to do so. And we have already so far done two stages where we have successfully validated the carbon avoidance part because we have reduced Portland cement usage by 60% versus conventional methods. We have totally eliminated the usage of lime, which is very common, intensive and expensive. And also, in theory, we have drastically reduced the trucking of new virgin materials. So that part is on proving carbon avoidance and reduction.
Next month, we are going back to our cross-section during the winter months to put down the biochar asphalt. We want to prove that the product can be produced and installed in freezing temperatures, which is kind of unheard of, versus hot mix asphalt which is very carbon intensive.
And once we have put down the product, our goal is to get this blueprint validated at the highest level. Essentially, it will be the world's first net zero road construction blueprint that is validated at the highest level, which then allows us to license this blueprint to existing hot mixed asphalt producers in the country so that they can actually make more money.
CA: Wow, I think you turned those so called challenges into huge areas of opportunity.
JW: That's our goal. Obviously, talk is cheap. That's why we are very excited and eager to have this blueprint and technology proven at the highest level by next month. And then with that, then we hope to create more exciting stories to market ourselves.
CA: So how do you actively engage stakeholders in these Net zero initiatives?
JW: Because we are so laser-focused on just establishing the fundamentals, proving the technology, and proving that this technology would actually generate carbon avoidance and removal credits, and also proving that this model can be licensed to existing producers—that will actually allow them to generate more revenue. Hence, once we have proven that blueprint, we will work with investor relations consultants, people like y’all, to spread the story that we are providing a net zero solution that is based on common sense. And hopefully, that story will resonate with investors, with our existing shareholders, and hopefully, you know, drive our company's growth.
CA: Absolutely, well, Jack, we're looking forward to following your continued growth. Thank you so much for joining us.
JW: Thank you so much, Christina.
—Live from MarketSite, NASDAQ.com, Dec 17, 2024.
— Science
—Physics World, Jan 25, 2025
Asphalt pavement has two main components: (1) aggregate, which makes up roughly 95% of asphalt, and (2) binder (bitumen), responsible for holding the aggregate together and sealing the surface. Asphalt bitumen is typically made from petroleum refining residues, where all the toxic emissions arise. Anything too poisonous to be refined into a product like petroleum or plastic winds up in bitumen—the sludge at the bottom of the refinery sump. An emerging alternative, with most of the same beneficial properties and none of the toxic residues, is bio-oil (also called wood vinegar), a byproduct of biochar obtained through pyrolysis or by the hydrothermal liquefication of biomass. Bio-oil replacing petroleum-based asphalt has been found to reduce both energy requirements and costs, with CO2 storage potential keyed to carbon content (from ~0.3 kgC/kg for crop or food waste to 0.7 kgC/kg for wood waste). In general, adding bio-oil improves anti-aging, cracking, and temperature performance compared to traditional asphalt binder. [Van Roijen 2025]
Over the past 20 years, studies have demonstrated that adding small particles (<10mm) of biochar to asphalt can effectively improve high-temperature stability and reduce fatigue while not adversely affecting pavement performance. [Cleven 2000, Zhang 2022] Biochar asphalt has greater strength than conventional asphalt, approaching the strength of concrete. [Gupta 2018, Akhtar 2018] Biochar also provides a self-healing crack repair ability. [Yoo 2018, Dong 2020] Because of these attributes, market penetration will reduce costs for road surface maintenance, repair and replacement.
With normal repair resurfacing, road engineers could replace asphalt with 3.7 million miles of biochar pavement yearly. If you add sub-surfacing and aggregates, it could be ten times the quantity—a drawdown potential of >40 GtCO2/y. Until we no longer want or need so many roads.
There will be an added climate impact from the production of that much biochar. Transportation from field-to kiln-and kiln-to-use needs to be factored in, as well as the ecological footprint of laborers. This is where the new generation of mobile kilns begins to play a role.
But remember: as much as 40% of the carbon taken up by a tree goes deep underground. The carbon accretion rate beneath some types of woodlots exceeds that of adjoining crops by 0.7 tons/acre-yr. Carbon stored deep in the soil profile persists longer and is unlikely to be disturbed by events at the surface. [Hansen 1993] There is also carbon trapping of wind-blown organic detritus. Forests are better sequestrators than croplands.
While 100% market replacement is unlikely, any carbon removal by biochar road surfacing is a plus for the climate. Road builders will need to source locally and show their materials support forest ecosystem restoration to access continuing carbon credits.
Moreover, the engineers learned they did not need—or want—” food grade” biochar suitable for agriculture. They could make biochar from sewage sludge, salty seaweed, or municipal wastes that contained mixed media of plastic, foils, heavy metals and other contaminants. Pyrolysis at 500°C or above destroyed the pathogens in hospital wastes and antibiotic-laden feedlot manures. If the plastic or foil content was too high for “Class One” biochar, it could be blended with coconut coir or other woody wastes to get the carbon content up to 60%. Once poured into a roadbed, the plastics and other wastes would remain there essentially forever. The surface was inert, weather-resistant, and durable.
Drive to Survive
Like many people, I started watching the Formula One racing — Drive to Survive — on Netflix. And I wondered who else could promote this massive road-building paradigm change.
The International Federation owners of F-1 have pledged to become carbon neutral by 2030. How they will do that is a mystery because the offset market is already overwhelmed by demand outstripping supply. But they don’t have to unpave what is there. They only need to surface over the usual maintenance schedule with biochar. They could also put more carbon fiber into the racing cars and tires.
If covering Monaco’s 3.34 km circuit with 2 cm of biochar composite costs less than 4 million euros, it would be cheaper than purchasing the same amount of carbon offsets every year. The Principality spent 35 million on the 6000-seat grandstand - 15 times what it would cost to pave over the track.
If there is a future for humans, and I hope there will be, I do not believe it will be found in the past’s endless growth and expansion paradigms. I think it will be bioregional, permacultural, and recursively regenerative. I will grant you that Formula One racing is not precisely the best model to promote the lifestyle changes needed, but perhaps it can be a step in the right direction.
Solar car racing in the 1970s (shout out to one of our teams back then—Doug Cobb’s Solar Car Company of Melbourne, Florida) sped up the development of what later became the Tesla. Formula-E racing is already doing the same for automakers and battery technology. These are baby steps when we should be running four-minute miles now, but hey, you have to start somewhere, right? Mining roads in South Africa and Malaysia are already being paved with biochar. The Hummingbird Highway in Belize could be paved with coconut coir and avocado core biochar. Biochar highway verges soak up tire dust and PFAS. Biochar keeps it out of the ocean, restores the mangroves, and helps rebuild the coral reefs.
Verde Resources Inc. (OTCQB:
VRDR) led by Jack Wong, CEO and Eric Bava, COO, presented live at
the Small Cap Growth Virtual Investor Conference hosted by
VirtualInvestorConferences.com this week. It was an open stream for all
would-be investors. The session was recorded and is available.
DATE: February 6th
TIME: 2:30 – 3:00 pm ET
LINK: https://bit.ly/40GBUPa
Next week, we will look more at the solutions side, and what may be keeping us from backing out of this monster dilemma we find ourselves in.
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#RestorationGeneration.
當人類被關在籠内，地球持續美好，所以，給我們的教訓是:
人類毫不重要，空氣，土壤，天空和流水没有你們依然美好。
所以當你們走出籠子的時候，請記得你們是地球的客人，不是主人。
When humans are locked in a cage, the Earth continues to be beautiful. Therefore, the lesson for us is that human beings are not necessary. The air, soil, sky and water are still beautiful without you. So, when you step out of the cage, please remember that you are guests of the Earth, not its hosts.
We have a complete solution. We can restore whales to the ocean and bison to the plains. We can recover all the tremendous old-growth forests. We possess the knowledge and tools to rebuild savannah and wetland ecosystems. It is not too late. All of these great works are recoverable. We can have a human population sized to harmonize, not destabilize. We can have an atmosphere that heats and cools just the right amount, is easy on our lungs and sweet to our nostrils with the scent of ten thousand flowers. All of that beckons. All of that is within reach.
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