Well done. I already am climate-active, but you inspired me to step it up a notch!
_w8jliv29.png){kind=logo}
Our carbon removal portfolios include Enhanced Rock Weathering (ERW) which speeds up naturally occurring weathering cycles to sequester and store carbon in rocks for 100,000+ years, so it can't contribute to the heating up of the atmosphere that's causing climate change.
How does it work?
The natural weathering cycle is happening all around us. It takes hundreds of thousands of years. Enhanced Rock Weathering carbon removal takes this natural process and puts boosters on it.
This happens by crushing up and spreading silicate rock over large areas, like forests, farmland or grasslands. Rainwater combines with CO₂ as it falls through the atmosphere, forming carbonic acid. When this dilute acid hits the ground, the CO₂ interacts with the rock, mineralises and is safely stored as solid bicarbonate ions.
The carbon is then mineralized and is safely stored as a carbonate. It's very difficult to reverse this process so, in that form, the carbon is removed for thousands of years.
An added co-benefit is that the rock helps to improve soil nutrient health and can potentially support the regeneration of degraded soil.
Why do we like it?
ERW is a nature-inspired, technology-enabled carbon removal solution so as well as super long term permanence of locking away CO2, it also has co-benefits with enhancing soil and crop health. We also like it as there aren't technical hurdles to scaling the amount of carbon it can remove. For more detail on how we choose solutions, check out our Carbon Removal Portfolio Methodology.
We're delighted to be working with the incredible Undo. Based in the UK and USA, they are a leading Growth Stage provider of Enhanced Rock Weathering. They spread crushed basalt rock onto agricultural land, permanently removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere for 100,000+ years. Their ambition is to remove over one billion tonnes of atmospheric CO₂ in accessible, affordable, nature-friendly ways. UNDO's enhanced rock weathering process has a carbon efficiency of 95 per cent. They employ over 50 people in the UK and the US. Read more about UNDO.
Learn more by clicking on a partner to discover how the solution works and their company's progress.
-(1)-G_2pP.png)
We love questions! We want you to feel 100% comfortable and excited about joining our Carbon Removal Portfolio. It's something we wished existed but couldn't find, so we made it!
Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR) is anything that pulls planet-heating carbon dixoide out of the air and stores it safely for a period of time. The longer the better.
It's a range of solutions that include various Nature-based, some tech-enabled or nature-inspired and fully engineered approaches and technologies. For example:
Forests and oceans are crucial natural carbon sinks which already draw down and lock away huge amounts of emissions. They'll be a part of the solution, but likely only about 20-30% of the removal we need.
On the more technological and engineered side, you might have heard about things like Direct Air Capture, Bio-oil, Biochar or Enhanced Weathering or Ocean Blue Carbon. These approaches, and others being worked on, are going to be need to fill the gap.
Go deeper into the different types of carbon removal.
Our CDR portfolio is a blend of different carbon removal solutions, mixed together to make it an affordable cost per tonne. Here's more info.
We believe this approach is ideal, based on the science-backed pathways to support growing the global carbon removal capacity to gigatonnes per year.
Combined with large scale global decarbonization, we need to reach about 10 billion tonnes of annual removal by 2050. There is no silver bullet solution and no one category or company will be big enough, which is why we take a portfolio approach to invest in a range of approaches.
Following the science-backed approach to Net Zero we advocate for 90% emissions reductions and decarbonization from current levels (about 50 gigatonnes of CO2e per year). Then using high permanence removals for the 10% hard-to-reduce remaining emissions.
Our angle on CDR is that even for that 10% it's a huge lift from where we are. Investing and growing the industry now is crucial.
If our goal is to build up the carbon removal industry to be the size we'll need by 2050 it needs to grow about 40%+ every year. It's not something that we can switch on overnight, it's something we'll have to build-up over time.
Not so much. Offsetting has been traditionally used to counterbalance the continued release of emissions, which only adds to the challenge of slowing and then reversing the increase in global average temperatures.
The vast majority (cough - 95% - cough) of offsets available don't remove carbon. Some may be good projects and have other societal benefits that aren't primarily about removing the gigatonnes of harmful gases we humans have pumped out.
Where carbon removal is different is that the only reason many of the technologies exist is to take out and sequester carbon dioxide - from the air or elsewhere - for hundreds to thousands of years, so it can't contribute to the continued heating of the planet and all the impacts of that.
Carbon removal is what's called highly additional, meaning the primary reason it exists is to do exactly as its name suggests.
This said, carbon removal can be used to offset emissions, though this should be only as part of a concerted effort to reduce as large a chunk of emissions as possible. It can also be used to remove older emissions that happened in the past.
We think that now is the time to fund and invest in carbon removal. Even if it is still more expensive than traditional offsets and it's not always viable to buy the same tonnes, it works in the way we need by literally removing the carbon dioxide so it can't contribute to climate change.
Find out more about Avoidance Offsets and the Voluntary Carbon Market.
There are a whole range of reasons. To us, some of the most compelling are:
- So the industry reaches about 10 billion tonnes of capacity by 2050 - the "net" bit of Net Zero
- The ratio of carbon removal in the Voluntary Carbon Markets needs to increase (compared to other approaches like avoidance or reduction)
- No one carbon removal type or company is going to be big enough on its own, we need a range of solutions and providers
- When combined with reducing emissions from everything we do, carbon removal will be a key tool to slow and then reverse climate change
- Funding and investing in it now helps to reduce the cost per tonne it takes to remove the carbon. Decreasing the cost by increasing demand will support the growth in supply of high-quality carbon removal options and capacity volume.
More on why we should invest in carbon removal now.
Our ready-made, curated, portfolio of high quality carbon dioxide removal (CDR) solutions is live. It aims for the highest permanence-for-the-$-per-tonne that we can find.
We're excited to be working with an inspiring group of global CDR companies taking the fight to the Climate Crisis. They're doing amazing work that holds a tonne - pun intended - of promise.
Well done. I already am climate-active, but you inspired me to step it up a notch!
Peter H 🇺🇸
It took me literally 3 clicks to remove my carbon emissions from this SFO-NYC-SFO trip. I'm officially impressed! What a lovely thing you are all building over there. Bravo!
Karen 🇺🇸
It’s pretty amazing! Thank you for making confusing climate science so clear and giving people a way to contribute effectively.
Andrea 🇪🇸
If you're feeling a bit overwhelmed and hopeless about the climate crisis, you're not alone. But here's something that can help! A realistic but hopeful picture of what we need to do.
Josh S 🇩🇪
I thought it was very well presented and easy to follow, it has a friendly feel. I have heard about Climate change and the dangers we face but this is the first time I feel I have been given information to put what is happening into perspective
Karen E 🇬🇧
This is the format in which I like to learn. And, the content is really good and well paced.
Clyde 🇺🇸
I’ve been finding it a super easy way to spread the word and to get more people joining our mission.
Mariana D 🇬🇧
I can't thank you enough for all you're doing, Zopeful Team! I loved it. It was informative, approachable, hopeful and empowering. Keep up the incredible work. Cheers!
Caitlin 🇺🇸
Really enjoyed Intro to Climate!
Looking forward to the next one!
Jorim S 🇳🇱
It's a great opportunity to really ponder the Climate Crisis and assess what you can do to have an impact
Courtney 🇬🇧
Love what you are doing here, and impressive what you have pulled together :-) Thanks for being at pains to cut through the jargon – this educational work you're doing is so key.
Tom 🇺🇸
Does a brilliant job of taking a huge...& complex subject & breaking it down into easily digestible chunks.
Cherry 🇬🇧
I admire your dedication to the project & you've clearly done a lot of research!
Kai 🇦🇺
You’re doing the grunt work so others don’t have to! #climatehero.
Pooja 🇮🇳
The Climate Crisis doesn't have to be a horror movie. It can become a story about hope, opportunity, personal choice, and collective effort. Nobody has to be perfect, but we all have to do something!
Enrico 🇩🇪
Have hope, make progress 💚
©2024 Zopeful Climate Ltd. All rights reserved.
Made in 🇬🇧 🇺🇸 🇪🇺 🇦🇺 with ❤️ for the 🌍