Carbon Dioxide Removal: Best-Practice Guidelines

In 2022, global emissions were 2 billion tonnes more than in 2015 – a 5% rise. Yet achieving the Paris climate goals requires a decline in emissions of 40–60% by 2030. Decarbonizing 90% of the global economy is the priority according to the Science Based Targets initiative. The remaining 10% will need to come from “negative emissions” – capturing CO2 from the atmosphere and storing it permanently, known as carbon dioxide removal (CDR). CDR is required for three reasons: 1) to compensate for those last 10% of “hard-to-abate” emissions; 2) to draw down Earth’s own emissions from natural feedback loops exacerbated by global warming (e.g. forest fires); and 3) to reverse the accumulation of historic emissions. By 2050, global emissions must reach net zero, which means removing up to 10 billion tonnes (or “gigatonnes”, Gt) of CO2 from the atmosphere every year. Throughout the second half of the century, global emissions have to stay net-negative (where more CO2 is removed than emitted). This report is aimed at sustainability professionals. It makes the case for engineered CDR solutions and presents guidelines on how to enter the nascent removals market. It draws on interviews with members of the First Movers Coalition (FMC), who have each committed to contract for 50,000 tonnes – or $25 million worth – of durable, scalable carbon removal by 2030. The engineered CDR landscape Biochar carbon removal (BCR): creates charcoal when biomass is heated without oxygen, enabling the carbon in the biomass to resist decay. Biochar is more affordable than other engineered CDR but is limited by the availability of sustainable biomass. Bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS): burns sustainable biomass to produce power and heat or processes biomass. The resulting CO2 is stripped from the flue gas, compressed and stored permanently. Carbon capture is performed by the biomass through photosynthesis. Direct air capture with carbon storage (DACCS): uses filters to trap CO2 , which is compressed and stored underground. It uses a small land footprint and offers permanent geological storage, but costs are very high ($600–$1,000/tonne), due to the clean energy required. Enhanced rock weathering (ERW): involves spreading forest soils, croplands and beaches with minerals that dissolve in water and absorb CO2 , binding it for hundreds of years. Uncertainty remains about the cost, side effects, permanence and scalability.

source :

https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Carbon_Dioxide_Removal_Best_Practice_Guidelines_2023.pdf