Posted on 07/15/2015 10:25:21 AM PDT by Oldeconomybuyer
It appears to be the obvious answer to the global-warming problem. We suck carbon dioxide out of the air and either recycle it into low-carbon fuel or stick it underground. As solutions go, it's simple, logical, even elegant. Also necessary.
"Scientists are increasingly convinced that we are going to need large-scale removal systems to fight climate change," says Noah Deich, founder of the nonprofit Center for Carbon Removal.
The key problem apparently isn't technological. Three startups are making significant strides in their efforts to create processes that could "harvest" millions of tons of CO2 from the air around us. The inconvenient truth is that no one wants to pay for it.
All three startups lack a practical business model. At this time, no one will pay them just to take CO2 out of the air. And the market for CO2 -- which has a variety of uses, from injecting bubbles into fizzy drinks to recovering hard-to-get-oil from tapped-out wells -- is limited.
What's more, if direct air capture of CO2 is to emerge as a meaningful climate solution, it would have to be built out at a global, industrial scale, costing billions of dollars.
(Excerpt) Read more at oregonlive.com ...
“The inconvenient truth is that no one wants to pay for it.”
Here is my idea. For a period of no less than 10 years, all monies by countries supporting the UN will go to the following:
1) Desalination facilities along the east and west coast of Africa. At the least it prevents the sea from rising and destroying the continent.
2) Build an infrastructure throughout Africa to pipe the water which will be used to grow crops and stop citizens from bathing and drinking dirty, parasite laden water. A new global economy will be created and the continent will be a major player.
3) Kill every despot and terrorist in every country. They starve their citizens, kill them and treat them like crap. They will steal everything. No point on keeping them around.
Finally, take all this technology and everything else that is “green” and build a country in Sinai. Give it to the Palestinians as a grand experiment in humanity. Then move the UN there.
Funny thing about this is the only people who won’t like this are the people that want to subjugate people to slavery.
If we actually succeed in vacuuming most of the CO2 out of the atmosphere the liberals will get their dream. The population reduction due to famine will be immense.
“Isn’t this what trees and plants do?”
You’re so worried about carbon dioxide? Plant trees. Give a tax deduction for planting a tree. Have trees available for visitors to public parks to plant. For my part, I would like to see apple trees everywhere. Fat deer, happy bears, hard cider :)
I have an idea where they can stick their CO2.
Three start-up companies, so far, can’t fool enough people to have viable business models.
For the rest of us, any organism capable of photosynthesis (doesn’t really have to be trees, takes too long) will do what nature intends.
The solution is so simple that no one sees it. We simply fuel our electric plants by burning environmentalists. They are cheap, readily-available and seem to desire the depopulation of the Earth. I would imagine they would volunteer since they are humans, and humans are the enemy.
Lost me when he said “elegant”.
“We already have a method of harvesting CO2 out of the air, it’s called TREES!!!!”
About 20 years ago I was invited to a brainstorming session at the industrial research lab where I worked. The issue was to develop ideas for carbon sequestration to fight global warming (I went because brainstorming sessions are fun and there are usually donuts). The session leader outlined the goals- to develop a material that would convert CO2 in the air to a solid form that could be buried or used as a fuel. I said “Its called WOOD”. That got quite a laugh as everyone immediately realized that we were unlikely to come up with something that was easier or more cost effective than planting trees.
“What’s more, if direct air capture of CO2 is to emerge as a meaningful climate solution, it would have to be built out at a global, industrial scale, costing billions of dollars.”
Yeah! Well, that and we would end up like Mars! Idiots.
The solution to global warming is simply to wait for fifteen years until the sun goes silent and we all freeze - cheap....
Yeah - but if you burn it - indeed, if you do anything with it but sequester it somewhere (Antarctica?) where it won’t ever decay, it’ll eventually revert to CO2 again . . .
One thing I have always wondered about; how does a person working for a “NON PROFIT” earn a living.
Can you answer that one for me, Noah Deich?
The cure is 10 times worse than the disease, which may not even be a disease (nor have that as THE cause) to begin with.
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