Tuesday, November 21, 2006

New law permits the burying of CO2 -

Many countries would love to bury the problem of rising carbon dioxide levels and forget about it. Soon they will be able to do just that, hiding CO2 away in caverns, aquifers and porous rocks beneath the seabed.
“Burial could cut British carbon dioxide emissions far faster than any other option”
The London Convention governing burial of material in the sea was amended on 2 November, making it legal to bury CO2 in natural structures under the oceans. Twenty-nine countries ratified it, including the UK, China and Australia.
"It's great news," says Jeff Chapman, chief executive of the Carbon Capture & Storage Association in London, representing 37 multinational companies eager to press on with burial schemes linked to electricity generation. He says that seven prototype schemes are planned in the UK alone, and that by 2025 they could cut British CO2 emissions by a quarter, far faster than any other option.
The idea is controversial, however, because of fears that the buried CO2 may escape back into the atmosphere, causing a surge in warming. Chapman claims this is unlikely because caverns would be sealed once they were full.
From issue 2578 of New Scientist magazine, 20 November 2006, page 6

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