New company highlights include:
The combined Company will be headquartered in Cannonsburg, Penna. led by a majority-independent board consisting of executives Daniel J. Rice, IV, Kyle Derham, Kate Jackson, Joe Malchow, and Jim Torgerson of RAC; Nicholas Stork, CEO of Archaea; and Scott Parkes of Aria.
(Source: Rice Acquisition Corp., PR, 7 Apr., 2021) Contact: Archea Energy, Nick Stork, CEO, info@archaea.energy, www.archaeaenergy.com;
Aria Energy, Richard DiGia, CEO, (248) 380-3920, www.ariaenergy.com: Rice Acquisition Corp., www.ricepac.com
More Low-Carbon Energy News RNG, Aria Energy, Archaea Energy, ,
Wetland Easements -- totaling over 2.8 million acres nationwide -- improve water quality by filtering sediments and chemicals, reducing flooding, recharging groundwater, protecting biological diversity while Agricultural Land Easements protect productive working lands being converted to non-agricultural uses. Agricultural land easements total more than 1.9 million acres.
Working with private landowners to protect, preserve and restore wetlands, grasslands, forests and farmlands is integral to USDA's efforts to build resiliency and reduce the impacts of climate change across the nation. Easements allow landowners to partner with NRCS to implement voluntary climate-smart management practices that maximize the amount of carbon sequestered from the atmosphere and stored in soils or plant biomass across these landscapes.
The Biden Administration USDA is engaged in a "whole-of-government effort to combat the climate crisis and conserve and protect our nation's lands, biodiversity and natural resources including our soil, air and water."
(Source: USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, PR, 3 April, 2021) Contact: USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, Terry Cosby, Acting Chief, 202-690-7246, www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/site/national/home
More Low-Carbon Energy News USDA, Carbon Sequestration,
The new law requires that greenhouse gas emissions in 2030 be at least 50 pct lower than 1990 emissions, and that 2040 emissions be at least 75 pct lower and that 2050 emissions be at least 85 pct below 1990 emissions. The remaining 15 pct will be achieved through carbon sequestration and carbon banking.
The bill also requires the Department of Public Utilities to consider emissions reductions on an equal footing as its considerations of power generation reliability and affordability within 90 days, that the governor appoint three green building experts to the Board of Building Regulations and Standards, and that the administration establish the first-ever greenhouse gas emissions reduction goal for the home energy efficiency program MassSave. (Source: Various Media, Sentinal Herald, 27 Mar., 2021)Contact: Office of Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker, (617) 725-4005, www.mass.gov/governor
More Low-Carbon Energy News Charlie Baker, Climate Change, MassSave,
According to a Schlumberger statement, a carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) feasibility study will focus on a pair of LafargeHolcim cement plants in Europe and North America. Schlumberger also noted its LafargeHolcim collaboration marks a step toward developing a blueprint for large-scale CCS deployment. (Source: Schlumberger New Energy, Rigzone, 10 Feb., 2021)Contact: LafargeHolcim Ltd, Magali Anderson, Chief Sustainability Officer, Stephanie Sulcer, Communications, 847 716 0368, stephanie.sulcer@lafargeholcim.com, www.lafargeholcim.com;
Schlumberger New Energy, Ashok Belani, Exec. VP, www.slb.com
More Low-Carbon Energy News LafargeHolcim, Schlumberger, CCS,
The company grows massive amounts of kelp seaweed on floating bouys. The kelp soaks up carbon, via photosynthesis, then after about seven months the mature kelp sink into the ocean floor where it will sequester carbon for thousands of years, according to the release.
This spring, the company plans to deploy 1,600 buoys to demonstrate that in principle, the system could safely and economically be expanded to a global scale with millions of microfarms floating in the open sea, moving billions of tons of carbon from sky to ocean floor every year, according to the company release.
(Source: Running Tide Technologies, MPR, 8 Feb., 2021) Contact: Running Tide Technologies, Marty Odlin, CEO, Adam Baske, Bus. Dev., media@runningtide.com, www.runningtide.com
To that end, the project is using compost, fertilizer and planting to increase the amount of carbon in the soil and has helped set up 200 carbon sequestration projects at 60 different Marin County farms.
The Marin Carbon Project's vision is for the county's landowners and land managers to serve as stewards of soil health and to undertake carbon farming in a manner that can improve on-farm productivity and viability, enhance ecosystem functions and stop and reverse climate change.
(Source: Marin Carbon Project, PR, NBC Bay Area, 28 Jan., 2021)
Contact: Marin Carbon Project, www.marincarbonproject.org
More Low-Carbon Energy News Carbon Sequestration, Soil Carbon,
The Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF) is a global partnership of governments, businesses, civil society, and Indigenous Peoples focused on reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation, forest carbon stock conservation, the sustainable management of forests, and the enhancement of forest carbon stocks in developing countries, activities commonly referred to as REDD+. The FCPF works with 47 developing countries across Africa, Asia, and Latin America and the Caribbean, along with 17 donors that have made contributions and commitments totaling $1.3 billion. The FCPF supports REDD+ efforts through its Readiness and Carbon Funds.
Fijian Minister for Economy Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum noted
"The emission reduction program area includes forest protection, planting and ustainable management of over 37,000 hectares spread over 20 districts on the islands of Viti Levu, Vanua Levu and Taveuni, with the potential to expand to other areas that express interest. The contracted volume of greenhouse gases that Fiji is expected to sequester from these forest activities in the next five years is 2.5 million tonnes, for which a result-based payment of $12.5 million will be paid upon verification by the World Bank."(Source: FBN News, 27 Jan., 2021)
Contact: Forest Carbon Partnership Facility, www.forestcarbonpartnership.org
More Low-Carbon Energy News World Bank, REDD+, Forest Carbon Partnership, Fiji, Carbon Trading, Reforestation, Carbon Emissions, Climate Change ,
According to the USDA Climate Change Resource Center, grasslands cover approximately 25 pct of the earth's surface, contain nearly 12 pct of the land-based carbon stocks and are essential in supporting food and livestock production. Yet, citing the expansion of pasture lands and higher livestock numbers, researchers warn current management of grasslands is accelerating climate change.
Until recently, natural and managed grasslands emitted and removed an equal amount of greenhouse gases, canceling each other out. Researchers from the Austria-based International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) investigated how these fluctuations in greenhouse gases have contributed to climate change in both managed pastures and natural grasslands, between the years of 1750 and 2012. The IIASA researchers found that the ability for natural and sparsely grazed grasslands to absorb more carbon has intensified while grasslands heavily managed by humans became a source of greenhouse gases, emitting similar quantities of greenhouse gases to that of croplands.
While nearly half of all temperate grasslands and 16 pct of tropical grasslands have been transformed for agricultural or industrial use and conserving grasslands to preserve soil health and reduce emissions from managed grasslands could deliver a significant reduction in global greenhouse gas emissions, according to the study.
Download the Climate Warming from Managed Grasslands Cancels Cooling Effect of Carbon Sinks in Sparsely Grazed and Natural Grasslands report HERE. (Source: Nature Communications, EcoWatch, 6 Jan., 2020) Contact: USDA Climate Change Resource Center, www.fs.usda.gov/ccrc; International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis, www.iiasa.ac.at
More Low-Carbon Energy News Carbon Emissions, Climate Change, Carbon Sink,
The new bill requires a 100 pct carbon emissions reduction -- carbon neutrality -- by 2050 as opposed to the 2008 climate legislation requiring an 80 pct reduction of 1990 level emissions by 2050.
If passed into law, the new bill would impose emissions sub-limits for certain sectors of the economy, specifically electric power, transportation, commercial heating and cooling, residential, industrial processes and natural gas distribution and service.
The bill also calls for increased carbon sequestration and requires municipal lighting to purchase 50 pct of non-carbon-emitting electricity by 2030, increased energy efficiency, increased reliance on renewable energy,
a five-year moratorium on allowing wood-burning facilities to qualify as "non-carbon emitting resources", increased support for electric vehicles, and other initatives and requirements. (Source: Various Media, MassLive, Jan., 2021)
More Low-Carbon Energy News Massachusetts Climate Change,
The National Agricultural Soil Carbon Observatory will comprise up to 10 "Flux Towers" on agricultural systems across a range of soil types adding value to existing projects including; the industry co-funded SignPost farms and the Agricultural Catchments Programme. The Observatory will place Ireland at the forefront of EU carbon sequestration research and will enable Ireland to:
The researchers will use data from NASA's newly launched ecosystem LiDAR (Light Detecting and Ranging) instrument, orbiting the Earth on the International Space Station. Michigan State University and the University of Minnesota will also participate in the study and will add the LiDAR data to their "FORest Carbon Estimation" project aimed at understanding and predicting how forests respond to changes in climate.
Maine's forest and associated industry currently offset 75 pct of the state's annual carbon emissions, according to recent estimates by Center for Research on Sustainable Forests researchers. Maine is aiming to be carbon neutral by 2045 through reduced emissions and innovative policies to increase carbon sequestration, according to a release.
(Source: Univ. of Maine, Maine Biz, Nov., 2020)
Contact: NASA, (301) 286-2000, www.nasa.gov; University of Maine Center for Research on Sustainable Forests, Aaron Weiskittel, Dir., 207-581-3794, www.crsf.umaine.edu
More Low-Carbon Energy News NASA, Climate Change, GHG,
The company, which has applied for the necessary EPA Class VI UIC permits ,
believes the project will be "the largest geologic carbon capture sequestration project in the U.S. and one of the largest in the world", according to the release. (Source: Gulf Coast Sequestration LLC , Website PR, 20 Oct., 2020)
Contact: Gulf Coast Sequestration LLC, Colin Williams, Bus. Dev., info@gcscarbon.com, www.gcscarbon.com
More Low-Carbon Energy News Gulf Coast Sequestration , CCS,
Forest Carbon Works delivers premium payments to landowners for long-term conservation and climate outcomes on properties as small as forty acres. As members of Forest Carbon Works, some landowners are already getting paid more than $50,000 each year. Membership payments are substantial because carbon credits generated using the platform are legally recognized by the first enforced cap-and-trade program in the United States.
(Source: Forest Carbon Works, PR, 6 Oct., 2020) Contact: Forest Carbon Works , (415) 475-8966, inquire@forestcarbonworks.com, www.forestcarbonworks.org
More Low-Carbon Energy News Carbon Credits, Forest Carbon Works, Carbon Sequestration, Carbon Emissions,
The collaborative work will be funded by a five-year, $3.5 million grant to the Southern States Energy Board (SSEB) from the U.S. DOE Office of Fossil Energy. The board is including Texas, and two territories, focused on energy and environmental issues.
The Center for Carbon Management in Energy was launched as a University research center in 2019 to help industry reduce its carbon footprint and to find new business opportunities for carbon dioxide, methane and other greenhouse gases. SSEB's Carbon Management Program was created in 2003.
SSEB's previous work in carbon management, including the Southeast Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnership program and the regional CCUS as well workforce development focused on public, industry and education.
(Source: Univ. of Houston, PR, 17 Sept., 2020)
Contact: Univ. of Houston, Charles McConnell, Exec. Dir. Carbon Management and Energy Sustainability, 832-922-5799, www.uh.edu;
Southern States Energy Board, Kenneth J. Nemeth, Exec. Dir., 770-242-7712, www.sseb.org
More Low-Carbon Energy News University of Houston , CCUS, Southern States Energy Board,
If passed into law, CARB would be required to set GHG emissions reductions and carbon sequestration targets on the state's working and natural lands by January 1, 2023. CARB would also be mandated to identify policies and practices to achieve its objectives, along with tracking methods for the state to monitor progress.
Carbon sequestration practices such as mulching fields, reducing tillage, and planting ground-cover crops and others would be included in CARB's updated Scoping Plan.
California has stated a goal of achieving net-zero GHG emissions standards statewide by 2045, meaning measures such as those proposed by this bill must be incorporated by the state's legislature. (Source: CARB, EHS Daily Advisor, 17 Sept., 2020)Contact: CARB, Richard Perry, CEO, Melanie Turner, Information Officer, (916) 322-2990, melanie.turner@arb.ca.gov, www.arb.ca.gov
More Low-Carbon Energy News California Air Resources Board , CCS, Carbon Emissions, Carbon Sequestration ,
On December 13, 2019, the Company announced an Emissions Reduction Benefits Management Agreement (ERBMA) with Lac Seul to develop forest carbon sequestration opportunities in the First Nation's territory in Northwestern Ontario. Under the terms of the ERBMA, AurCrest is the sole and exclusive agent for LSFN to manage and develop projects within LSFN traditional territory to harvest ERBs. AurCrest entered into the CDMA with Bluesource to provide the expertise associated with development and monetizing the carbon offsets.
Bluesource helps forest owners evaluate opportunities and generate value in diverse carbon markets by developing and monetizing offsets on their behalf.
(Source: AurCrest Gold Inc., PR, 11 May, 2020) Contact: AurCrest Gold Inc., Christopher Angeconeb, Pres., CEO, (807) 737-5353,
christopherangeconeb@gmail.com,
Ian Brodie-Brown, Dir. Bus. Dev., (416) 844-9969, ianbrodiebrown@gmail.com, www.aurcrest.ca; Blue Source Canada, (403) 262-3026, www.bluesource.com
More Low-Carbon Energy News AurCrest Gold, Blue Source Canada, Carbon Offset,
Of the total 550 million ISK, roughly 200 million ISK will be invested in projects aiming to naturally store carbon dioxide long-term in order to reduce levels of greenhouse gases in the earth's atmosphere. Carbon sequestration is a key part of the government's plan to achieve the Paris Climate Agreement's terms.
Additional grants totaling 75 million ISK will support the creation of new birch forests; 25 million ISK will address land reclamation projects; 60 million ISK for land quality recovery schemes; and 20 million ISK will be dedicated to wetland recovery.
A further 300 million ISK will be used to reduce Iceland's energy consumption and 50 million ISK has been earmarked for the government's recently launched climate fund to support climate change research and projects raising awareness of the impacts of global warming.
The release notes the government aims to reduce carbon emissions by 40 pct by 2030.
(Source: : Iceland Minister for the Environment, Reykjavik Grapevine, 1 May, 2020) Contact: Iceland Minister for the Environment, Gudmundur Ingi Guobrandsson, www.government.is/ministries/ministry-for-the-environment-and-natural-resources
More Low-Carbon Energy News Climate Change, CCS, Carbon Emissions,
"From an emissions standpoint, the UK would be better off burning coal and leaving those (older) trees standing as long as possible." -- Bill Moomaw, Biomass Energy Researcher, UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) (Source: IPCC, Eco Business, Mongabay, 20 April, 2020)
A Bioenergy & Alternative Fuels report subscriber noted the following:
First, the 40 million acres, more or less, of managed southern pine plantations are loblolly pine not longleaf pine. These two pine varieties have important differences in growth rate and ecological values.
Second, and more much importantly, mature pine forest do not 'accelerate' their storage as they mature. These are privately owned lands and the details of the site and management practices are very important, but the annually growth rate (carbon accumulation) on most pine sites slows after 15-20 years. The TOTAL carbon on the acre/hectare increase, but at a slower annual rate.
Finally, and completely absent from these discussion that are typically led by scientist or environmental groups who do not have a clear understanding of the on the ground ownership and motivations of private landowners in the southern US, is that without a source of income some of these forest will be converted to some other uses, probably pasture, which has very limited carbon storage potential. In effect these EU experts are trying to shift the costs of carbon sequestration to private landowners. One can argue that if they want to sequester carbon in trees, and take on the additional risk of unplanned, large scale release from fire, disease or hurricane, that is fine, but they should pay the landowner for the carbon and the lost income.
Editor's Note: We thank our reader for his input and clarification of our report.
More Low-Carbon Energy News Woody Biomass,
"From an emissions standpoint, the UK would be better off burning coal and leaving those (older) trees standing as long as possible." --
Bill Moomaw, Biomass Energy Researcher, UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) (Source: Eco Business, Mongabay, 20 April, 2020)
More Low-Carbon Energy News Carbon Emissions ,
Reseacrhers led by Professor Belinda Medlyn, spent four years pumping roughy 38 pct more CO2 than would naturally be absorbed into an adult eucalyptus forest and then measured how much CO2 the trees could absorb. Initially the trees absorbed 12 pct of the CO2 but were unable to capture the additional CO2 to prevent it from re-entering the atmosphere. Current climate change models estimate that mature trees should absorb and capture approximately 12 pct of the CO2 in the atmosphere.
The study found that although the trees could absorb the expected 12 pct, they were unable to retain the CO2 through sequestration and passed about half of the CO2 they had absorbed into the soil, where it was processed and then returned to the atmosphere via soil bacteria or small fungi on the forest floor.
The other half of the carbon dioxide was released through the trees themselves.
(Source: Western Sydney University, Lifesly, 17 April, 2020)
Contact: Western Sydney University, Prof. Belinda Medlyn, Research Leader, www.westernsydney.edu.au
More Low-Carbon Energy News Carbon Sequestration, Carbon Storage, Carbon Emissions,
The Family Forest Carbon Program offers a practice-based approach, where landowners are given incentive payments to implement science-based sustainable forest practices guaranteed to produce additional carbon sequestration. This unique, practice-based methodology takes into account the constraints of small forest ownership, yet is more credible and scalable, to allow small landowners to contribute at a landscape level. The program also provides a range of co-benefits that address biodiversity, forest health, water quality, ecosystem resilience and related issues.
Download Family Forest Carbon Program details HERE .
(Source: American Forest Foundation, Sustainable Brands, Mar. Apr., 2020) Contact: Family Forest Carbon Program, Tom Martin,
President & CEO, 202-765-3472,
tmartin@forestfoundation.org,
www.forestfoundation.org
More Low-Carbon Energy News American Forest Foundation, Carbon Credits, ,
According to Bassio, "Much of the ongoing destruction in these ecosystems is the footprint of expanding agriculture. In other words, slowing or stopping this expansion is a very important strategy.
So the restoration of the soil will be of great benefit to humanity. In this way, the quality of water, food production and resistance of crops will increase. The incentive structure in agriculture should be directed from payments to ecosystem services, food, water, climate and biodiversity, Bassio added. (Source: SOMAG, 22 Mar., 2020)Contact: UC Davis, Dr, Deborah Bassio, www.asi.ucdavis.edu/people/deborah-bossio; UC Davis, www.ucdavis.edu; Nature Conservancy,(703) 841-5300, www.nature.org
More Low-Carbon Energy News Soil Carbon, UC Davis, Nature Conservancy, ,
Having been amended in the Senate, House Bill 2528 returns to the the Washington State House for full approval the on to the governor to be signed into law. (Source: The World, Various Media, chronicleonline. 7 Mar., 2020)
More Low-Carbon Energy News Woody Biomass, Reforestation, Carbon Sequestration,
Consumers previously committed to being coal-free by 2040 in its Integrated Resource Plan which included building 6,000 MW of new solar by 2030. The utility also launched a public outreach campaign focused on energy efficiency.
The new commitment will supplement Consumers' existing plan to eliminate coal, expand renewable energy resources and help customers reduce their energy use.
Consumers also may offset further emissions through strategies such as carbon sequestration, landfill methane capture or large-scale tree planting.
(Source: Consumers Energy, PR, Grand Rapids Business Journal, Mar., 2020) Contact: Consumers Energy, Patti Poppe, CEO, (517) 788-0550, info@cmsenergy.com, www.ConsumersEnergy.com
More Low-Carbon Energy News Consumers Energy, Net-Zero Carbon,
According to the release, over the 50-year lifetime of a single tree, it will produce $31,250 worth of oxygen and $62,000 worth of air pollution control.
Each tree will recycle $37,500 worth of water and prevent $31,250 of soil erosion. This data suggests that one tree will produce a societal benefit of $162,000. (Source: Hawaiian Legacy Reforestation Initiative, Big Island Now, 23 Feb., 2020) Contact: Hawaiian Legacy Reforestation Initiative , www.legacyforest.org
More Low-Carbon Energy News Carbon Capture, Reforestation, Carbon Emissions,
Prof. Underhill believes the southern North Sea is one of the UK's most promising options for large-scale carbon capture and storage (CCS).
The £1.4 million study, which is funded by the Oil and Gas Technology Centre's (OGTC) Subsurface Solution Centre and matched funding from industry and Heriot-Watt University,
is intended to help policymakers determine the most suitable CCS sites.
(Source: Heriot-Watt University Website, insider.co.uk, 5 Feb., 2020)
Contact: Heriot-Watt University, Prof. John Underhill, Dr Susana Garcia, Assoc. Dir., Heriot-Watt Research Centre for Carbon Solutions, www.hw.ac.uk; Oil and Gas Technology Centre, +44 1224 063200, www.theogtc.com
More Low-Carbon Energy News Heriot-Watt University, CCS, Carbon Storage, Carbon Sequestration,
The government also announced it will encourage "clean investments" by gradually lowering the electricity tax for manufacturing industries as of next year to the minimum level allowed in the European Union.
The government also intends to increase carbon sequestration by three megatonnes by adopting a new climate programme for the land use, land-use change and forestry sector. The increase would account for less than 10 pct of the 35-megatonne change needed in the carbon balance to achieve carbon neutrality by 2035, according to the Finnish Climate Change Panel at the University of Helsinki.
To meet its goal,
Finland must cut its CO2e emissions from roughly 56.5 to 21.5 megatonnes by 2035.
(Source: Finnish Climate Change Panel, Helsinki Times, 4 Feb., 2020) Contact: Finland Minister of the Interior, Maria Ohisalo, +358 295 480 171,
+358 9 160 44635 - fax, www.intermin.fi/en/frontpage; Finnish Climate Change Panel, +358 50 4151201, www.ilmastopaneeli.fi
More Low-Carbon Energy News Carbon Neutral, Carbon Emissions, CO2, Climate Change, Carbon Sequestration, CCS,
Steven Wilhelm, the Kenneth and Blaire Mossman Professor of Microbiology, is part of a team led by Jean-Philippe Gibert, a food web expert and assistant professor of biology at Duke University. Wilhelm's co-investigators include David Weston and Dale Pelletier, staff scientists in the Biosciences Division of Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and Jonathan Shaw, professor of biology at Duke. In the three-year project, the group will study and model the effects of warming on the complex network of bacteria, protists, and viruses that interact with peat moss.
Peat moss plays a key role in slowing climate change by keeping 370 million metric tpy of CO2 out of the atmosphere -- equivalent to the emissions from nearly half the car traffic in the US.
Though peatlands cover just 3 pct of the Earth's surface they store twice as much carbon as all the world's forests. Over hundreds or thousands of years, Sphagnum and other peatland plants pull carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere as they grow, trapping the carbon inside layers of partially decayed plant material up to 20 feet deep. But warming trends could put that carbon storage at risk. Rising temperatures could thaw or dry out peat wetlands, making them more prone to decay and wildfires. Decomposing or burning plants mean the heat-trapping gas long locked up in peatlands could be released, accelerating the global warming process.
To better predict the impacts of warming on peatlands and the carbon they contain, the team is studying a set of players they say are largely overlooked: microbes. Their previous work suggests that under future warming, the community of microbes and other tiny organisms that grow in and around peat mosses could shift balance, which could affect the ability of peatlands to sequester carbon. (Source: University of Tennessee, Knoxville, PR, 27 Jan., 2020) Contact:
University of Tennessee, Karen Dunlap, 865-974-8674, kdunlap6@utk.edu,
Amanda Womac , 865-974-2992, awomac1@utk.edu, www.utk.edu; Duke University,
Robin Smith, (919-681-8057, robin.a.smith@duke.edu, www.duke.edu
More Low-Carbon Energy News Peatland, Carbon Storage, Carbon Sequestration, Carbon Emissions, University of Tennessee,
GTI focuses its R&D efforts on the generation of clean hydrogen using hydrocarbon fuels that incorporate carbon capture and/or carbon sequestration CCS) in a cost-effective manner. These technology efforts are directed at both large-scale hydrogen production using natural gas feedstock, and smaller distributed hydrogen production for transportation or remote power generation using either gaseous or liquid hydrocarbon fuels, according to the release.
Additionally, GTI is partnered with private industry to develop, evaluate, and demonstrate technologies that further the use of hydrogen (H2) as a transportation fuel by delivering infrastructure, vehicle, engine, fuel dispensing, and system solutions for clean transportation fuel cell vehicles.
(Source: GTI, Green Car Congress, 26 Jan., 2020) Contact: GTI, 847-768-0500
847-768-0501 - fax, info@gti.energy,
www.gti.energy
More Low-Carbon Energy News Gas Technology Institute , Alternative Fuel, Hydrogen Fuel, Alternative Fuel, GTI, ,
Blue Carbon is the carbon stored in coastal ecosystems of mangroves, tidal marshes and sea grass meadows contain large stores of carbon deposited by vegetation and various natural processes over centuries. These ecosystems sequester and store more carbon per unit area than terrestrial forests.
(Source: Florida Daily, IUCN Global Marine and Polar Programme, 13 Jan., 2019) Contact:
The Blue Carbon Initiative, www.thebluecarboninitiative.org
More Low-Carbon Energy News Blue Carbon, Carbon Sequestration, Carbon Sink,
The legislation would temporarily pause all new fossil fuel leasing on public lands until the Department of the Interior develops a comprehensive strategy to achieve "net zero" emissions on these lands.
If interim benchmarks for greenhouse gas emissions reductions are not met by 2025, fossil fuel leasing, as well as drilling and other permits to develop fossil fuels on existing leases, would be curtailed until the bill's targets were achieved. Unfortunately the legislation fails to permanently end new fossil fuel leasing which would be allowed to continue even beyond 2040 if emissions resulting from federal lands fossil fuel use were sufficiently offset by carbon capture and sequestration (CCS), forest regrowth and other land-use changes, or by the deployment of large-scale renewable energy facilities on public lands.
The federal government owns roughly 640 million acres, about 28 pct of the 2.27 billion acres of land in the United States. Four major federal land management agencies administer 610.1 million acres of this land
(Source: Center for Biological Diversity, 17 Dec., 2019) Contact: Center for Biological Diversity, www.biologicaldiversity.org
More Low-Carbon Energy News GHG, Greenhouse Gas Emissions,
Among the measures recommended by the study were richer countries transitioning to plant-based diets and reducing food waste, while aiding poorer nations to curb deforestation and restore degraded land. If a concerted global effort was made, land could be absorbing three gigatons of carbon by 2050, turning one of our biggest liabilities into a helping hand in the fight against climate change. The study also recommends:
FAO supports countries to enhance their planning and capacities for climate change-related investments under the GCF Readiness and Preparatory Support Programme.
In Chile, GCF has approved a new $63 million REDD+ Results Based Payment Funding Proposal to restore and conserve about 25,000 hectares of native forest. The project is expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 1.1 million tons of CO2, while promoting afforestation in more than 7,000 hectares and the sustainable management and conservation of over 17,000 hectares of forest.
Land-locked Kyrgyzstan will benefit from a $30 million GCF grant supplemented by another $20 million for a project aimed at increasing carbon sequestration through forest and pasture rehabilitation.
In Nepal, GCF allocated nearly $40 million in grant funding to address forest degradation, flooding and soil erosion in the Churia hills region. The Nepal Ministry of Forests and Environment will contribute $8 million to the 7-year effort.
The GCF supports developing countries efforts to respond to the challenge of climate change, limit or reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, adapt to climate change, and promote low-emission and climate-resilient development. (Source: UN Food and Agriculture Organization, PR, 13 Nov., 2019) Contact: UN Food and Agriculture Organization,
+39 06 570 53625, FAO-Newsroom@fao.org, www.fao.org/home/en; Green Climate Fund, www.greenclimate.fund
More Low-Carbon Energy News Green Climate Fund, Reforestation, Carbon Sequestration, Climate Change,
The report notes that global climate models, which scientists use to predict climate change and its impacts, rarely account for the carbon that peat and other soils absorb, store and release.
Their new study incorporates 4,139 radiocarbon measurements from 645 peatland sites in northern Europe, Asia, and North America. But the main innovation is in how the researchers calculated the carbon storage in peatlands.
The report notes researchershave calculated that northern peatlands hold 1.1 trillion tons of carbon rather than previous estimates of roughly 545 billion tons.
The report concludes
that peatlands are decaying faster and releasing more carbon as the planet's thermostat climbs. (Source: Columbia University, Earth Institute, 21 Oct., 2019) Contact: Columbia University Earth Institute,
Prof. Jonathan Nichols, 212-854-3830, www.earth.columbia.edu
More Low-Carbon Energy News Peatland, CO2, Carbon Sequestrartion, Carbon Emissions, Carbon Sequestration,
Sixty percent of Santa Rosa's GHG emissions come from motor vehicles. As Sonoma County prepares to extend Measure M -- a quarter-cent sales tax that has leveraged $5 of state and federal funding for every $1 of local transportation tax revenue -- the city needs to take a critical look at reliable and frequent public transit.
With 29 pct of the city's emissions coming from inefficient building energy use, the subcommittee is recommending all city buildings join Sonoma Clean Power's "Evergreen" program, which delivers 100 pct renewable and local energy, promising an immediate 41 pct reduction in building emissions.
The subcommittee has also advanced a comprehensive zero-waste plan that could reduce the city's GHG emissions by up to 9 pct. The city also maximized its recyclabling and composting efforts.
The city is also exploring .
(Source: City of Santa Rosa, Santa Rosa Press Democrat, 13 Oct., 2019) Contact: City of Santa Rosa,
www.srcity.org
More Low-Carbon Energy News Climate Change,
The report lays out how we can build the 100 pct Clean Future in two parts. First, it highlights successful climate action by governors and legislatures in nine states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico that have committed to 100 pct clean goals. CAP recommends building on that success at the national level by embracing three key pillars from some of those states: an ambitious 100 pct clean target; a worker-centered approach to ensure good paying, quality jobs; and a plan that is committed to reductions in legacy pollution that has disproportionately affected economically disadvantaged communities and communities of color.
The second part of the report considers emissions by sector and recommends achievable benchmarks to guide a sustained, concerted, and urgent policy program to achieve a 100 pct Clean Future by 2050:
CAP offers policy recommendations to accomplish these benchmarks and deliver additional emission reductions throughout the report, including a combination of sector-specific deployment policies, direct federal spending, a broad price on carbon pollution, and mandatory emissions reductions in communities historically overburdened by pollution.
Download the A 100 Percent Clean Future report HERE.
Download CAP fact sheet HERE.
(Source: Center for American Progress, PR, Oct., 2019) Contact: Center for Amercian Progress, Neera Tanden, CEO, Sam Hananel, 202-478-6327, www.americanprogress.org
More Low-Carbon Energy News Center for American Progress, Climate Change, Clean Energy, Carbon Emissions,
The Exmooor National Park Authority noted it has already cut its carbon emissions by 30 pct by: improving energy efficiency within Authority-owned buildings; installing renewable energy along with a scheme to facilitate installation of 73 new renewable energy systems in local communities, farms and houses across Exmoor; the restoration of nearly 2,500 hectares of peatland in the National Park through the Exmoor Mires Partnership, with plans to extend this to at least 3,000 hectares.
Peatlands are the UK's single most important terrestrial carbon store, containing 20 times more carbon than all UK forests.
A functioning bog absorbs around 0.87 tpy of carbon per hectare year while dry peatland releases CO2 -- degraded peat in England is emitting an estimated 11 million tpy of CO2. (Source: Exmoor National Park Authority, Somerset County Gazette, 6 Oct., 2019) Contact: Exmoor National Park Authority, +44 1398 323665, www.exmoor-nationalpark.gov.uk
More Low-Carbon Energy News Peatland, CO2, Carbon Sequestrartion, Carbon Emissions, Carbon Sequestration,
Download the Climate Restoration: Solutions to the Greatest Threat Facing Humanity and Nature Today White Paper HERE.
Climate Restoration is the global movement to return the Earth's climate systems to the safe and healthy state in which humanity and our natural world evolved. This requires returning atmospheric CO2 to safe levels of less than 300 parts per million (ppm) and restoring sufficient Arctic ice to prevent permafrost melt and the resulting disastrous methane emissions. Over the course of the last 100 years, CO2 levels have already increased by nearly 50 pct, exceeding 415 ppm in 2019, and continue to climb.
(Source: Foundation for Climate Restoration , PR, 17 Sept., 2019) Contact: Foundation for Climate Restoration, Rick Parnell, CEO, (347) 741-1503, www.f4cr.org
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As previously reported, three Northwestern Ontario First Nations groups, AurCrest and carbon offset developer Blue Source, will work together to assess the potential of forests to capture and sequester carbon dioxide (CO2) within the First Nation's traditional territory for the development of Greenhouse Gas offsets.
AurCrest, a mineral exploration company focused on the acquisition, exploration, and development of gold properties, holds a portfolio of properties in Ontario, which include the Richardson Lake and Bridget Lake gold properties. (Source: AurCrest Gold Inc., PR, 19 Aug., 2019)
Contact: AurCrest Gold Inc.
Christopher Angeconeb , CEO, (807) 737-5353, christopherangeconeb@gmail.com; Blue Source, (403) 262-3026, www.bluesource.com
More Low-Carbon Energy News AurCrest Gold, Blue Source, Carbon Sequestration, Carbon Offset,
LocusAG's Rhizolizer® line of fresh, non-GMO soil probiotic treatments have been used to treat 40,000 commercial agriculture acres across several crops, with positive results in improving crop productivity, crop quality, vigor and sustainability. Treatments are now being tested on Gevo's 30-acre farm co-located at its Luverne, MN ethanol facility.
According to LocusAG, the treatments have the potential to amplify crop soil carbon sequestration by up to an additional 3 to 6 metric tpy of CO2 equivalents per acre while increasing crop yields and grower profits.
(Source: GEVO, PR, Newswire, 31 July, 2019) Contact: LocusAG, Paul Zorner, CEO, www.LocusAG.com; Gevo, Patrick Gruber, CEO, 303-858-8358, pgruber@gevo.com, www.gevo.com
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Current U.N. guidelines only allow countries to count the carbon stored in wood products created from domestic timber harvests, not the timber grown locally and shipped internationally, nor products produced from imported lumber. These regulations create a gap between the actual amount of carbon stored in the world's wood products and what is officially counted.
The researchers asked the question, can we continue to consume wood products and have climate change benefits associated with that consumption?" To address that question, the researchers developed a consistent, international analysis of the carbon storage potential of these products, which countries must now account for under the global Paris Agreement to reduce carbon emissions.
They used data on lumber harvests and wood product production from 1961 to 2015, the most recent year available, from the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization. The researchers modeled future carbon sequestration in wood products using five broad models of possible economic and population growth, the two factors that most affect demand for these products. In 2015, that gap amounted to 71 million tons of CO2, equivalent to the emissions from 15 million cars. If those guidelines remain unchanged, by 2065 another 50 million tons of CO2 may go unaccounted for due to this gap. But this additional, uncounted carbon does not significantly increase the proportion of global emissions offset by wood products, according to the study.
Craig Johnston, a professor of forest economics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and Volker Radeloff, a UW-Madison professor of forest and wildlife ecology, published their findings July 1 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
(Source: WU-Madison, PR, July, 2019) Contact: WU-Madison, Craig Johnston, (608) 890-3609, craig.johnston@wisc.edu, www.wisc.edu
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The Terraton Initiative is a global effort to capture 1 trillion tons of CO2 from the atmosphere by using agricultural plants and then storing that carbon in the soil. Through farming practices, such as cover crops, no-till, crop rotations and complimentary livestock enterprises, farmers can develop carbon-enriched soils, the company says. Basically, more plants equal more photosynthesis, which captures more carbon and creates healthier soil for better crop yields, the company says.
As part of the Terraton Initiative, Indigo created Indigo Carbon, which is the platform that will pay farmers for increasing the carbon content of their soil and reducing overall emissions. Farmers joining Indigo Carbon within the first 12 months are eligible to receive a minimum of $15 per metric ton of carbon dioxide sequestered. Most farmers can sequester 2 to 3 tons per acre per year, which would be an added revenue of $30 to $60 per acre, the company adds.
Indigo's Terraton Initiative details are HERE. (Source: IndigoAg, PR, AgPro, 20 June, 2019) Contact: Indigo Ag, David Perry, CEO, (844) 828-0240, info@indigoag.com, www.indigoag.com
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The Rutgers University researchers, from the New Brunswick, Newark and Camden campuses, will conduct monitoring and research at the largely wooded Duke Farms over five years.
The study will begin by compiling baseline data on the presence of carbon in various land types and land management protocols. The Rutgers scientists will then create strategies to remove CO2 from the atmosphere and store it in soil and vegetation.
The study will also determine the greenhouse gas emissions supporting the Duke Farms operations compared to the carbon stored on the property.
(Source: Rutgers, Bridgewater Courier, 13 June, 2019) Contact: Rutgers Climate Institute, Marjorie Kaplan, Assoc. Dir., (848) 932-5739, www.climatechange.rutgers.edu; Duke Farms, Michael Catania, Exec. Dir., www.dukefarms.org
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The plant, which would be located in the Permian Basin, is being billed the world's largest Direct Air Capture (DAC) and sequestration facility and is designed to capture 500 kilotonnes per year of CO2 directly from the atmosphere.
Plant construction could get underway in 2021 for operation in 2023. Plant costs and other details have not been revealed. (Source: Carbon Engineering, Kallanish Energy, May, 2019)
Contact: Oxy Low Carbon Ventures, www.oxy.com/OurBusinesses/midstreamMarketing/LowCarbonVentures; Carbon Engineering, Steve Oldham, CEO, info@carbonengineering.com, www.carbonengineering.com
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Assessments by the IPCC show that these approaches are essential parts of the technology mix needed to limit global warming to less than 2 degrees C.
In Europe the largest potential to store CO2 is located offshore in deep saline aquifers and other sub-seabed geological formations of the North Sea where over 10,000 oil and gas wells have been drilled. At many of these wells, methane gas from shallow biogenic deposits is leaking into the environment because the surrounding sediments were mechanically disturbed and weakened during the drilling process. The study notes that CO2 stored in the vicinity of these wells may leak and ultimately return into the atmosphere.
"We have performed a release experiment in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea to determine the footprint and consequences of such a leak", explains study lead author Dr. Lisa Vielstadte from GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel.
In the study, CO2 released at the seabed in 82 meters of water was tracked and traced using a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) equipped with chemical and acoustic sensors and additional measurements on board of Research Vessel Celtic Explorer. The resulting data showed that CO2 gas bubbles were completely dissolved close to the seafloor and the pH value of ambient bottom waters was lowered from a background value of 8.0 to a more acidic value of 7.0 at the release site as a consequence of the dissolution process. This bottom water acidification has detrimental effects on organisms living at the seabed", However, strong bottom currents induced a rapid dispersion of the dissolved CO2 such that the area at the seabed where potentially harmful effects can occur is small.
Accordingly, the study tentatively concluded it is possible to store CO2 safely in sub-seabed formations if the storage site is located in an area with a small number of leaky wells, the report summarizes.
(Source: Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel , PR, 14 May, 2019) Contact:
GEOMAR - Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel, Dr. Lisa Vielstadte, +49 431 600-0,
Fax:+49 431 600-2805, www.geomar.de/en
More Low-Carbon Energy News CO2, Carbon Emissions, Carbon Sequestration, CCS,
One project, led by Dr Jin Xuan, a Senior Lecturer in Low Carbon Processes, will examine the role of e-biofuel in reducing emissions and increasing the sustainability of the road transport sector while enhancing renewable energy security. The research will examine the feasibility of a novel electrochemical process to produce biofuels while reusing the captured CO2.
The project will develop a new concept of e-biofuel which combines the advantages of both e-fuel (produced from renewable electricity and CO2) and biofuel (produced from biomass) to intensively decarbonise the road transport sector. It also provides Loughborough researchers with a new link to the Supergen Bioenergy Hub and the Department of Transport.
A second project led by Dr Tanja Radu, a Lecturer in Water Engineering, will research algae-based biomethane fuel purification and carbon sequestration. The project aims to develop and assess an innovative process for the simultaneous production of high-purity biomethane as a potential natural gas vehicle fuel, together with the sequestration of remaining biomass and biogas carbon into algal co-product and biochar.
The Supergen Bioenergy Hub at Aston University aims to bring together industry, academia and other stakeholders to focus on the research and knowledge challenges associated with increasing the contribution of UK bioenergy to meet strategic environmental targets in a coherent, sustainable and cost-effective manner.
(Source: DfT, Loughborough University, East Midlands Business Link, 8 May, 2019) Contact: Loughborough University, www.lboro.ac.uk;
Supergen Bioenergy Hub, Professor Patricia Thornley, Dir., p.thornley@aston.ac.uk, www.supergen-bioenergy.net
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Lac Seul First Nations seeks to determine the feasibility of valuing their traditional territory for purposes of CCS and monetizing carbon offset credits for sale to the benefit of the First Nation and its business partners.
AurCrest and its subsidiary Wiigwaasaatig Energy Inc. will work with the First Nation to finalize a definitive carbon credit management agreement to develop and implement sequestration project opportunities. (Source: AurCrest Gold Inc., Accesswire, 7 May, 2019) Contact:
AurCrest Gold, www.aurcrest.ca; Lac Seul First Nation, www.lacseul.firstnation.ca
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"The underlying principle of carbon farming is straightforward -- to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, where it drives climate change, and put it back into plants and the pedosphere, the Earth's living soil layer. One way farmers do this is by fertilizing their lands with nutrient-rich compost.
"As plants grow, they store carbon in their leaves and roots and bank it in organic matter, such as decomposing plant pieces in the soil. Soil microorganisms, including bacteria and fungi, also store carbon. This prevents the carbon from escaping into the atmosphere and joining oxygen to form carbon dioxide.
"Carbon farming has taken hold in California, which is increasingly stepping up as a pioneer of progressive climate policy in the U.S., even as the Trump administration denies the reality of climate change.
"Today, more than 80 ranchers and farmers in the state are implementing the practice. And the number is likely to increase, since the 2018 Farm Bill includes provisions for a pilot program that gives farmers an incentive to farm carbon.
"Grassland soils naturally absorb and store carbon in soil organic matter, but common agricultural practices, like plowing and tilling, diminish this ability by breaking apart the soil and releasing its stored carbon into the atmosphere. The good news is that carbon can be reabsorbed by the very same soil. Dozens of farming methods, including composting, managed grazing, no-till agriculture and cover crops, are thought to achieve this feat. Many of them mirror age-old, organic farming techniques.
"The potential for land-based carbon sequestration in California is significant. Rangelands cover about 56 million acres, half the state's overall land area. According to The New York Times, if 5 pct of that soil is treated with compost, the carbon sequestered would offset about 80 pct of the state's agricultural emissions, the equivalent of removing nearly 6 million cars from the road. If scaled to 41 pct, it would render the state's agricultural sector -- now accounting for 8 pct of the state's overall emissions -- carbon neutral for years. This amount is anything but negligible: California is the most populous state in the U.S. and the country's second-largest emitter of greenhouse gases. Overall, it's responsible for 1 pct of global greenhouse emissions.
"Ultimately, carbon farming may only pull a limited amount of carbon from the atmosphere. But in California, grasslands appear to be a less vulnerable carbon storage option than fire-prone forests. With global greenhouse gas emissions on the rise, we need to commit to using carbon farming." (Source: NPR, High Country News, May, 2019)
More Low-Carbon Energy News Carbon Emissions, Carbon Sequestration, Carbon Farming, CO2, Carbon Emissions,