Why Talk about Carbon Removal?
Carbon Removal Briefing Paper (Washington, DC: Institute for Carbon Removal Law and Policy, American University), DOI/10.17606/M6H66H, 2018
28 Pages Posted: 25 Jan 2019
Date Written: October 24, 2018
Abstract
Talk of removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere is spilling out of scientific circles and into the realm of climate politics and policy. Civil society has a vital role to play in ensuring that this conversation is responsive to social needs and develops in constructive and appropriate ways. This report provides a starting point to help environmental and social justice non-governmental organizations (NGOs) engage in the growing conversation about carbon removal.
Section 1 of the report argues that the world needs to grapple seriously with large-scale carbon removal and long-term storage, exploring both the rationale for considering carbon removal and the associated risks and downsides. Section 2 provides a brief introduction to the range of options for large-scale carbon removal. Section 3 surveys the existing conversation in different domains, from academia to philanthropy to civil society. Section 4 considers the relationship between carbon removal and mitigation. Section 5 sketches a research agenda for assessing various approaches to carbon removal.
Keywords: carbon removal, carbon dioxide removal, negative emissions, geoengineering, climate policy, climate change
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