Speaking of Philip, he has been working on biochar for some time, and doing it from a soil scientist's perspective rather than a climate politician or a green weenie, and has the support of NSCSS.

Clearly there is much interest within NSCSS to dig deeper: we are developing guidance for NSCSS members on BioChar: Standards, Methods, and Opportunities.

Site navigation is idiosyncratic but you might be able to find your way to this page - Biochar: Effects and Benefits - which is one of the better exegeses of biochar, and has links to the more important research papers in the field.

You might also find this page, Biochar: Lab Characterization Options, which is a work in progress. It promises to adapt standards currently used for compost chemistry analysis to biochar. All compost is not equal, and all biochar isn't equal. It depends, and can be tested. This is what I need to make informed decisions about soil amendment.

One of my impossible fantasies is to have a home lab capable of analyzing such materials in great detail in the bat cave: CSI - Dirt. Well, not just dirt, since I'd like to be able to analyze forage and flesh too. It's so hard to manage what you can't accurately measure. You can go a long way with your human senses calibrated by experience, but I want more.