Abstract:Understanding of the dark fertile soil named "Terra Preta" from the ancient Amazonian agriculture has led to a global trend of an emerging science of biochar since the early 2000's. It has been well accepted as an approach for soil sustainable management by producing biochar via pyrolysis of agro-wastes and amending it into agricultural soils. It is a new way of organic wastes treatment and soil fertility improvement. With the development of large scaled industrial system of biochar from pyrolysis and biochar-based fertilizers manufacture, it has become an ample opportunity to enhance soil carbon stock, save chemical fertilizer, increase yield, and improve resource use efficiency in China's agriculture. Consequently, an emerging area of biochar science, technology, and engineering based on biomass carbonization, serving for the treatment of huge amount of bio-wastes and soil improvements and chemicals reduction in green agriculture. To promote the development of such a new paradigm, there has been urgent needs to investigate the components, structure, property, and functions of organic matter of biomass and biochar, the char-soil-plant-microbial interactions in croplands. Such issues are very critical for in depth understanding the system resistance enhanced with biochar and the products in agriculture. Meanwhile, there could be a great opportunity for soil science to serve for sustainable management of soils and of bio-waste treatment in agriculture of China.