The climate crisis is an unprecedented reality, driven by the large release of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere by anthropogenic activities, particularly the burning of fossil fuels, industrial activities, agriculture and deforestation. The increase in these gases, with a significant contribution from carbon dioxide and methane, has generated record temperatures and increasingly frequent extreme weather events, affecting the entire world population, especially the most vulnerable groups. In 2015, warned by scientists specializing in climate change who had been studying the subject for decades, world leaders committed to limiting the increase in global temperature to less than 2°C – with efforts to limit it to 1.5°C – through the Paris Agreement signed during the 21st Conference of the Parties (COP21). This agreement aims to reduce carbon dioxide emissions and strengthen the response to climate change through global targets, specific nationally determined contributions (NDCs) for each country and financing from the most developed countries. Every year, international summits (COPs) are held to discuss climate commitments. Although the initial targets were not sufficient to limit global warming to 1.5°C, current pledges still put the world on track for around 2.1°C of warming by 2100. The current outlook is quite challenging, but facing this climate breakdown in a fatalistic way tends to accelerate its consequences. We need to be aware of the reality with its challenges and possibilities. Given this urgency, carbon sequestration emerges as an important tool to mitigate the impacts of climate change. The capture and storage of carbon dioxide (CO2) is widely recognized by the scientific community as a crucial approach to mitigating the effects of global warming and tackling climate change. To better understand it, it is important to remember that CO2 has the ability to retain heat in the atmosphere, which leads it to contribute to global warming. This gas is produced both naturally, through biological processes in the ocean, decomposition of organic matter and forest fires, and through human activities, such as the burning of fossil fuels for energy and transportation.
Carbon sequestration is the process of capturing CO2 from the atmosphere and storing it for the long term. This involves natural methods, such as the absorption of CO2 by forests and other vegetation during photosynthesis, as well as its storage in soils, wetlands and oceans. There are also artificial methods, such as capturing CO2 emissions from industries or directly from the air and storing them in underground geological formations. These practices aim to reduce CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere and mitigate the effects of climate change.
Effective implementation of carbon sequestration initiatives presents significant challenges. Ensuring the permanence and integrity of carbon storage, addressing potential risks of leakage, minimizing adverse environmental impacts and ensuring cost-effectiveness are among the key considerations. Furthermore, for carbon sequestration efforts to have a significant global impact, political support, international cooperation, and the development of appropriate regulatory frameworks are required.
This article inaugurates a series that will address the carbon sequestration approach, its potential, and challenges in the face of climate change. In the next article, we will address the carbon market.
References
Agreement, Paris. “Paris agreement.” Report of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (21st session, 2015: Paris). Retrieved December 2017. Vol. 4. No. 2015. Getzville, NY, USA: HeinOnline, 2015.
PRAJAPATI, Sunil Kumar et al. Carbon Sequestration: A Key Strategy for Climate Change Mitigation towards a Sustainable Future. 2023.
ROY, Poritosh; MOHANTY, Amar K.; MISRA, Manjusri. Prospects of carbon capture, utilization and storage for mitigating climate change.Environmental Science: Advances, vol. 2, no. 3, p. 409-423, 2023.
