CANBERRA, Nov. 7 (Xinhua) -- Australia's national science agency has released a roadmap for carbon dioxide removal (CDR) detailing the potential for a novel CDR industry that could help the nation and the rest of the world reach net zero.
Australia is projected to require between 133-200 megatonnes (Mt) of carbon dioxide removed from the atmosphere per year by 2050, according to a news release on Friday by the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO).
Achieving net-zero emissions to meet the goals of the international Paris Agreement is only possible if countries simultaneously remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and reduce emissions, the news release said, adding CDR differs from carbon capture and storage, which seeks to remove carbon before it enters the atmosphere.
The roadmap considers approaches including direct air capture and storage, biomass carbon removal and storage, ocean alkalinity enhancement, and enhanced rock weathering, providing a framework for government, industry, researchers, and communities to foster the responsible development of a new CDR industry, it said.
CSIRO CarbonLock Director Andrew Lenton, the report's co-author, said Australia's natural resources and renewable energy assets provide a unique value proposition for the large-scale deployment of novel CDR.
"There are also other emerging novel CDR approaches, such as mineral carbonation, that will only strengthen Australia's position," Lenton said. ■