Aug. 11 (UPI) — The U.S. Department of Energy intends to allocate $1.2 billion in climate funding on Friday to build two commercial-scale direct air capture facilities in Texas and Louisiana, with the goal of reducing carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere.
The funding is made available through President Joe Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and is part of the Regional Direct Air Capture Hubs program, an initiative aimed at establishing a network of carbon removal sites across the country to mitigate the escalating climate crisis.
The funding for this project is set to become the largest-ever investment in engineered carbon removal, enabling each new hub to remove more than 250 times the amount of carbon dioxide from the air than the largest existing capture facility. The Energy Department stated that direct air capture serves a dual purpose: removing perpetual carbon dioxide pollution from the atmosphere and extracting everyday emissions resulting from human activities such as transportation, industry, manufacturing, waste management, and even wildfires.
Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm emphasized the importance of carbon removal alongside carbon emission reduction, stating that achieving a net-zero global economy by 2050 requires removal of the CO2 already present in the atmosphere. The new facilities are projected to eliminate over 2 million metric tons of CO2 emissions annually, equivalent to the emissions of 445,000 gas-powered vehicles, according to the Energy Department.
President Biden’s net-zero emissions plan sets ambitious targets for removing and capturing between 400 million and 1.8 billion metric tons of CO2 from the atmosphere annually by 2050.
The construction of direct air capture hubs in Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana, and Kleberg County, Texas, will not only contribute to carbon removal efforts but also stimulate local labor and community growth. The government aims to find solutions to the increasing occurrence of extreme weather events caused by climate change.
The Energy Department stated that these developments will provide insight for future investments in the public and private sectors, jumpstarting an industry crucial to addressing the global climate crisis. The agency emphasizes the need for community benefits and the avoidance of harm while advancing the development of carbon capture, transport, and storage systems.
The direct air capture process effectively separates carbon from oxygen, resulting in a reduction of CO2 levels in the atmosphere. The captured CO2 can then be securely stored underground or converted into useful carbon products, such as concrete, preventing its release back into the air. The agency asserts that carbon dioxide removal technology is crucial for tackling climate change and positioning the United States as a competitive player in the future global economy.
The construction and ongoing maintenance of these facilities are expected to create approximately 5,000 new jobs in Texas and Louisiana, offering an economic boost to the region, according to the Energy Department. A recent report from the U.N.’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change recognizes carbon dioxide pollution as a significant driver of planetary and ocean warming, with detrimental effects on public health and ecosystems worldwide.
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