Yes and...direct air capture
March 23, 2019
There's too much carbon in the air. We need energy efficiencies, carbon tax, and zero emissions.Even with all those things, *even* if we stopped all emissions today, there’s still too much carbon in the air.
So we need all of that AND we need new tools to pull carbon from the air. These tools are new but improving quickly. One of the most well known tools is direct air capture.
Climeworks is a leader in direct air capture. In Iceland they built a machine to pull carbon dioxide from the air and bury it underground. Underground, the carbon dioxide sticks to rocks and stays there forever.
The technology exists but isn’t very cost effective right now. Today, you can pay Climeworks to bury carbon dioxide the weight of a car about for $2,000. They anticipate bringing the cost down to half that over the next few years. Direct air capture technologies need the support of scientists, entrepreneurs, customers, and enthusiasts.
Direct air capture - Maybe you've heard it or maybe this is the first you’re hearing about it. Which way are you leaning...skeptical, interested, "eh", something else?
Learn more:
- Carbon180's DAC factsheet
- The Potential Pitfalls of Sucking Carbon from the Atmosphere (WIRED)
- One man’s two-decade quest to suck greenhouse gas out of the sky (MIT)
- Join the Carbon180 Slack group
SUBSCRIBE
I write a weekly newsletter highlighting the AirMiners community and carbon removal industry.
Every week you’ll get insider perspective and community stories from the cutting edge of carbon removal.
The purpose of this newsletter is to accelerate the carbontech industry by speeding up connections, progress, and coordination. It's ideal for people working in carbon removal already, or beginners who want one individual's perspective. People curious about carbon removal are encouraged to sign up and see what sticks.
Subscribe here to get the next weekly update as soon it comes out.