Storing carbon dioxide in the same shale formations that produce natural gas may be an effective way to sequester carbon dioxide produced by fossil fuel-burning power plants, according to a U.S. study. Computer models by researchers at the University of Virginia suggest the Marcellus Shale, a 600-square-mile formation in the northeastern U.S. that is a center of
A team of researchers says it has demonstrated a method of underground carbon storage that reduces the risk of triggering earthquakes, a safety concern cited by some scientists about the emerging field of carbon capture and sequestration.
While often cited as a potentially key option in
Plants “breathe in” CO2 and create biological mass. This is a form of sequestration. Forests, grasslands and shrublands and other ecosystems in the West sequester nearly 100 million tons of carbon each year, according to a Department of the Interior recent report. Grasslands occur naturally on all continents except Antarctica. In temperate
The earth’s oceans and lands continue to absorb more than half of the carbon dioxide emitted by human activity, suggesting that the planet has not yet reached its carbon storage capacity even as emissions continue to rise, a new study says.
Writing in the journal Nature, U.S. scientists calculate that the world’s natural systems — including seas,
A new study says that well-managed selective logging may be the only realistic solution to conserving tropical forests in the face of a rapacious global demand for timber resources.
In an analysis of more than 100 studies, researchers at the University of Florida found that while even
The fracturing of shale rock formations associated with the drilling process known as fracking might undermine future attempts to store carbon dioxide underground, according to a new study.
While many have called carbon storage a promising solution to reducing atmospheric levels of
Carbon capture and sequestration, refers to technology attempting to prevent release of large quantities of CO2 into the atmosphere. The process is based on capturing carbon dioxide (CO2) from large point sources and storing it where it will not enter the atmosphere. One of these methods is to inject it into the ground. Geologists are hoping to learn a great deal about
Forests play an even greater role in Earth’s climate system than previously known, according to the most comprehensive assessment yet of the carbon storage potential of the world’s wooded areas.
Between 1990 and 2007, the planet’s tropical, temperate, and boreal forests absorbed about 2.4
A new UK study says that cities and towns provide a large and underestimated amount of carbon storage, and can soak up even greater amounts of CO2 if city groups and gardeners plant more trees.
Using satellite data and information collected during visits to locally owned or managed properties
The question often is “Where do cleantech ideas come from?” The answer, simply put, is from universities. Today, many universities offer different initiatives to assist those looking to get into the clean technologies field. A university has the resources necessary for research, development, and innovation. Many of the
Twenty-one new carbon capture and storage (CCS) demonstration projects were launched worldwide in 2010, despite rising technology costs, according to a new report by Australia’s Global CCS Institute.
That growth represented a 10 percent increase from the previous year, and bumped the total number of projects active
The conversion of the planet’s ecosystems into cropland — particularly in tropical rainforests — is stretching the Earth’s ability to store carbon, according to a new study. The demand for new agricultural land is growing most rapidly in the tropics, due to growing populations,
Scientists have compiled the first map detailing the height of forests worldwide, an inventory they hope will provide new insights into global carbon storage. The map — compiled from data collected over seven years using NASA satellite laser technology that can measure vertical “slices” of different tree heights in forests —
Hot, nutrient-rich water seeping from a network of deep-sea volcanoes provides a consistent source of iron for the phytoplankton that soaks up carbon dioxide, playing a key role in limiting climate change, according to a new study by French and Australian scientists.
The world’s oceans capture about 25 percent of the carbon dioxide emitted by human activities, including the burning of fossil fuels, scientists say. Among the largest “carbon sinks” is the Southern Ocean between Antarctica and Australia.
Underpinning that cycle is the microscopic plant phytoplankton, which absorbs the carbon dioxide at the ocean surface and then eventually carries it to the ocean floor.
While it is well known that iron carried in dust or in coastal sediments can trigger phytoplankton blooms, the extent and consistency of deep-sea vents as a source of nutrients was not as well understood, according to the study published in the journal Nature Geoscience.