Countering Climate Change: Google and Big Companies Invest in Carbon Dioxide Removal
In a bid to mitigate the impact of their pollution on the climate, Google and other prominent companies have joined forces with a startup called Terradot, which aims to trap carbon dioxide using rocks. This initiative was brokered by Frontier, a carbon removal effort led by Stripe, Google, Shopify, and McKinsey Sustainability.
A Multimillion-Dollar Deal
Google, H&M Group, and Salesforce are among the companies that collectively agreed to pay Terradot $27 million to remove 90,000 tons of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. This deal is part of a larger effort to combat climate change, which has been accelerated by the increasing amount of greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere due to human activities.
Enhanced Rock Weathering: A Low-Tech Solution
Terradot’s approach to carbon removal is based on enhanced rock weathering (ERW), a natural process that involves crushing rocks and spreading them over a large area. This increases the surface area of exposed rock, which reacts with CO2 and traps it in water as bicarbonate. The groundwater carrying this bicarbonate eventually makes its way to the ocean, where it is stored and keeps the carbon out of the atmosphere.
A Significant Milestone
Google’s deal with Terradot is considered a significant milestone in the effort to combat climate change. As Oliver Jagoutz, a professor of geology at MIT, notes, "It’s a big deal. I think it should go a little out of the academic world into the industrial world."
The Science Behind ERW
The process of enhanced rock weathering is relatively simple: by crushing rocks and spreading them over a large area, we can increase the surface area that reacts with CO2. This can help to slow down climate change by removing some of the excess carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
Challenges Ahead
While Terradot’s approach to ERW shows promise, there are still several challenges ahead. For one, it is difficult to measure precisely how much CO2 is removed from the atmosphere through this process. Additionally, fertilizer in the soil can potentially limit how much carbon is captured through enhanced rock weathering.
The Role of Carbon Removal
While carbon removal technologies like ERW hold promise, they should not be seen as a substitute for preventing greenhouse gas emissions in the first place. As experts note, "Carbon removal is no substitute for preventing greenhouse gas emissions in the first place."
A Small Step towards Sustainability
Google’s deal with Terradot is a small step towards sustainability, but it is an important one. By investing in carbon removal technologies like ERW, companies can help to mitigate some of the impact of their pollution on the climate.
The Need for Both Emissions Reductions and Carbon Removal
As Kanoff notes, "It’s very clear that this is not a substitute for emissions reductions at all… we need both of these tools." By combining efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions with investments in carbon removal technologies like ERW, companies can help to combat climate change.
A Call to Action
While there are challenges ahead, the science behind ERW holds promise. As Jagoutz notes, "I also think, why not try?… I don’t think we have the luxury to overthink it right now."
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