‘STRIPPING’ CARBON FROM FOSSIL FUELS
Many climate activists believe we have to eliminate all fossil fuels as rapidly as possible. But what if we could harness the benefits of fossil fuels, without sending their harmful emissions into the atmosphere?
That’s the promise of carbon capture and storage (CCS). Several technologies exist that can strip most of the carbon out of fossil fuels, either before or after they are burned.
Once the carbon dioxide is removed, it can be used in other industrial processes, or even pumped deep underground. It sounds counterintuitive, but experts say certain deep geologic formations can safely store huge quantities of CO2 gas, essentially forever.
CCS looks particularly promising when paired with natural gas. Fracking has made gas plentiful and cheap. Power plants running on natural gas — but capturing most of its carbon — could nimbly supplement wind and solar.
A recent study from Columbia University showed that CCS could also reduce emissions from heavy industries, which currently produce over 20 percent of the world’s greenhouse gases. Many manufacturing processes — such as making cement and chemicals — require enormous quantities of heat, which is usually produced by burning fossil fuels. Reducing carbon emissions from those industries could have a huge impact
Forecast: Capturing carbon isn’t cheap. And the infrastructure to pipe carbon dioxide to areas where it can be pumped underground is just getting started. Industries will need well-crafted incentives to help make CCS attractive. A bipartisan energy bill, which includes money for CCS research, is currently stalled in the Senate.