Everyone loves a TED Talk. Here’s one of our favorites:
Using networks to capture CO2 emissions is the idea of this TED Talk from Bas Sudmeijer, carbon capture advisor at BCG in London. Through data analysis and geologic mapping, Sudmeijer has uncovered a way to scale up carbon capture and storage infrastructure over the next 20 years.
To slow or reverse climate change, “we need to capture between four and seven gigatons -- that's four to seven billion metric tons -- of CO2 per year by 2040 to stay at or below two degrees Celsius warming. And that's more than a 100 to 200 times increase in today's carbon capture capacity.”
Instead of trying to build carbon capture capacity for each CO2 emitting factory or power plant which is hugely expensive, Sudmeijer suggests we should instead build networks across states, provinces and cities where there are high CO2 emitters close to areas that can cost effectively capture and store carbon under the ground or sea. BCG has analyzed areas of high emitters with carbon sinks and found 200 potential clusters that could be scaled up.
One such potential network is around Edmonton, Alberta. Edmonton is home to abundant underground rock layers that can trap CO2 as well as an oil and gas industry that emits large quantities of CO2.
Another area is Scunthorpe in Lincolnshire in the UK that has similar potential. The North Sea offers sufficient CO2 storage, but is more costly to store than onshore. However, the cost can be reduced by reusing and repurposing existing oil and gas infrastructure en route to the North Sea.
Capturing and storing carbon emissions will be essential over the next 20 years as companies and the communities they support transition away from fossil fuels.