Aug. 11 (UPI) — The U.S. Department of Energy is set to announce $1.2 billion in climate funding on Friday. This funding will be dedicated to the development of two commercial-scale direct air capture facilities in Texas and Louisiana. The primary goal of these facilities is to reduce the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
This initiative forms part of the Regional Direct Air Capture Hubs program, which aims to build a national network of carbon removal sites in order to mitigate the ever-increasing climate crisis.
The funding for this project will result in the largest-ever investment in engineered carbon removal. Each new hub will have the capability to remove over 250 times more carbon dioxide from the air compared to the largest capture facility currently in operation, according to a statement issued by the Energy Department.
The objective of direct air capture is twofold. It aims to eliminate ongoing carbon dioxide pollution from the atmosphere, as well as extract emissions produced by human activities such as transportation, industry, manufacturing, waste management, and even CO2 generated by wildfires.
“Reducing carbon emissions alone will not be enough to reverse the detrimental effects of climate change. We also need to remove the CO2 that has already been released into the atmosphere. This is essential in order to achieve a net-zero global economy by 2050, as indicated by almost every climate model,” stated Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm.
Combined, the new facilities are expected to eliminate over 2 million metric tons of CO2 emissions each year. To put this into perspective, it is equivalent to the emissions produced by 445,000 gas-powered vehicles, according to the Energy Department.
President Joe Biden’s net-zero emissions plan, however, is much more ambitious. It aims to remove between 400 million and 1.8 billion metric tons of CO2 from the atmosphere annually by 2050.
The upcoming hubs in Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana, and Kleberg County, Texas, will spearhead the effort while simultaneously fostering job creation and community growth. This is a crucial step in finding solutions to the increasing number of extreme weather events the country faces each year due to climate change.
“These hubs will provide valuable insights for future investments made by both the public and private sectors. Furthermore, they will kickstart a new industry that is vital in combating the climate crisis on a global scale,” stated the Energy Department. “The Department of Energy is committed to ensuring that the selected Regional DAC Hubs projects bring benefits to the local communities and avoid any harm, all while advancing the development of carbon capture, transport, and storage systems.”
The direct air capture process involves separating carbon from oxygen, ultimately leading to a reduction in atmospheric CO2 levels. The captured CO2 can then be safely stored underground or converted into useful carbon products, such as concrete, thereby preventing its re-release into the atmosphere.
Carbon dioxide removal technology is crucial in addressing climate change and has the potential to enhance the United States’ competitiveness in the future global economy, according to the Energy Department.
The construction and ongoing maintenance of these facilities are predicted to generate nearly 5,000 new jobs in Texas and Louisiana, as stated by the agency.
In a recent report, the U.N.’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change identified carbon dioxide pollution as the primary cause of continuous global warming, as well as the degradation of public health and ecosystems worldwide for over half a century.
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