Carbon Removal Newsroom
A bite-sized podcast for carbon removal news on-the-go. Each episode features unique guests and perspectives.
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Robert Höglund refers to himself as a "chronicler of CDR" or Carbon Dioxide Removal. He has established himself as an authority in this area, providing enlightening insights through his popular blog, Marginal Carbon. His significant contributions to Milywire, a CDR fund, coupled with his extensive involvement in various roles as a Climate Advisor, have further solidified his status as a thought leader. Recently, Robert attended Carbon Unbound, the world's first conference solely focused on carbon removal businesses. His reflections from this groundbreaking event, which he shared under the intriguing title "Cautiously Optimistic Removers," shed light on the current state and future direction of the CDR sector. Radhika and Robert delve into his eight key insights from the event, uncovering the crucial issues facing the CDR sector - from the challenges of scale and certification standards to the essential role of public engagement. This episode is an inside look at the pressing issues of carbon removal and their significance in our increasingly carbon-conscious world. Why, despite the hurdles, is Robert’s mood was one of cautious optimism? Tune in to find out. *On This Episode* Radhika Moolgavkar Robert Höglund *Resources* Carbon Unbound Robert’s Blog Post about the conference Klarna Announcement JP Morgan Announcement Microsoft BECCS purchase *Connect with Nori* Nori Nori’s Twitter Nori’s other podcast Reversing Climate Change Nori’s CDR meme twitter account --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/carbonremovalnewsroom/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/carbonremovalnewsroom/support
Listen to the episodeFollowing 2015’s UN Paris Agreement, each signatory country submitted a strategy indicating how they intend to decarbonize their economy. While much of the work comes from cutting emissions, plans can also include a ‘residual emissions’ category- that’s where carbon removal comes in. But recent research from our panelist Holly Buck and her colleagues found no standard definition of residual emissions. Residual emissions are significant; most come from agriculture, industry, and mobility. Crucially, land-use sinks won’t offset all residual emissions by 2050- meaning many countries hope new CDR technologies are reliable. For the world to meet climate goals, countries must achieve the ambitions set out in their plans. If those plans are not well-defined, it is unlikely they will achieve success. Also on this episode, the panel discusses Climeworks’ call to differentiate CDR from emissions cuts, as well as Stanford’s new CDR program and some controversy surrounding it. One of the authors, Holly Buck, joins us today to talk about this important research. And returning to our policy panel is another leading expert in the legalities of CDR- Wil Burns, the Co-Director at the Institute for Carbon Removal Law & Policy at American University. *On This Episode* Holly Jean Buck Wil Burns Radhika Moolgavkar *Resources* Holly’s Research on Residual Emissions Climate Action Tracker SBTI Climework’s Announcement Stanford CDR Program Chronicle of Higher Education Article on Stanford + Oil Companies *Connect with Nori* Nori Nori’s Twitter Nori’s other podcast Reversing Climate Change Nori’s CDR meme twitter account --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/carbonremovalnewsroom/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/carbonremovalnewsroom/support
Listen to the episodeLast year Planetary Technologies won the Carbon Xprize Milestone award for their ocean-based CDR method. That same year they started testing their ocean alkalinity enhancement process in a small trial in England, partnering with the local water company. The test showed improved alkalinity and reduced CO2 in local waters. Now the company plans to do a longer, 120-day test this summer, hoping to remove 200 net tons of CO2 from the water. Planetary has conducted public outreach about their plan, and published a public code of conduct laying out how they intend to make the experiments safe. But last month protesters gathered at Gwithian beach in North Cornwall, expressing concerns about the potential impact on the bay's marine ecosystem. In a Guardian article about the project Mike Kelland CEO of Planetary Technologies said “People often say to me: ‘You wouldn’t want to swim in this stuff, would you?’ But the answer is that we already do because it’s already widely used in wastewater management.” He said that the company would be transparent and diligent in their evaluations and monitoring during the study. Joining us on this episode are two people who are working firsthand on the issues of public acceptability and community outreach that we’ve set out to explore CRN- Will Burt, Chief Ocean Scientist at Planetary and Pete Chargin, Planetary’s VP of Commercialization and Community Relations. * On This Episode* Will Burt Pete Chargin Radhika Moolgavkar *Resources* Planetary Technologies Milestone award Planetary’s public code of conduct Guardian article on Planetary’s proposal *Connect with Nori* Nori Nori’s Twitter Nori’s other podcast Reversing Climate Change Nori’s CDR meme twitter account --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/carbonremovalnewsroom/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/carbonremovalnewsroom/support
Listen to the episodeIn December 2022, the carbon credit platform Puro added a methodology for enhanced rock weathering (ERW) credits. This announcement opens the door for the ERW to be sold into the billion-dollar voluntary carbon marks. ERW is one of the oldest known forms of carbon removal, long studied by geologists. But it is only recently that a growing number of startups are applying the science of this technique on a larger scale. Other businesses are taking note. Microsoft is expanding its carbon removal portfolio to include ERW credits purchased from UNDO. They will pay the Scottish company to spread basaltic rock onto farmland, hoping to sequester 5000 tons of CO2 over the next few decades. ERW can potentially deliver massive amounts of CDR if scaled up. Nearly every country has the necessary basaltic rock to spread on its farmland and it doesn’t require any new technological innovations. But an industry large enough to affect global temperatures will need to build lots of new infrastructure, supply chains, and rock crushers. That’s going to take significant investment, along with MRV, that can grow with the industry. Is all that possible? Today we’ll discuss this exciting technique's business dimensions with our business panel. Welcome, Susan Su and Na’im Merchant. *On This Episode* Na’im Merchant Susan Su Radhika Moolgavkar *Resources* New Puro Methodology UNDO/Microsoft Announcement Energy Monitor Article on ERW Business South Pole Investigation Climeworks Expansion Announcement Ebb Carbon Funding *Connect with Nori* Nori Nori’s Twitter Nori’s other podcast Reversing Climate Change Nori’s CDR meme twitter account --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/carbonremovalnewsroom/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/carbonremovalnewsroom/support
Listen to the episodeAbout one year ago we were joined on this show by Toby Bryce, who works with the volunteer-advocacy group the OpenAir Collective on a variety of projects that support the growth of carbon removal. Toby told us about the groups work advocating for state-level legislation called the Carbon Dioxide Removal Leadership Act in New York State. Since then, the legislation has been proposed in several more states, and the group’s network of policy advocates has grown along with it. Today we’ll talk to Toby about what’s going on with CDRLA, and what kind of political dynamics he’s found as OpenAir wades into state-level policymaking. Radhika and Toby will also delve into some of the bigger questions about the public acceptability challenges of growing carbon removal. What should advocates and CDR companies be doing to communicate with the public, and what are the stakes? *On This Episode* Toby Bryce Radhika Moolgavkar *Resources* OpenAir Collective Carbon Dioxide Removal Leadership Act MA Legislation CO Cleantech Legislation Co Biochar to Oil Wells Legislation CA Legislation Xprize Report DFP Wyoming polling *Connect with Nori* Nori Nori’s Twitter Nori’s other podcast Reversing Climate Change Nori’s CDR meme twitter account --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/carbonremovalnewsroom/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/carbonremovalnewsroom/support
Listen to the episodeThe ramifications of Silicon Valley Bank’s collapse two weeks ago are still rippling across the global economy. SVB was a major lender to VCs, and served silicon valley: two factors that meant its rapid demise will affect the climate tech industry. SVB worked with 1550 climate tech companies, and gave the industry billions in loans. Other banks may fill the void to support this lucrative sector, but many carbon removal companies are now spending time figuring out their financial stability, rather than developing their CDR products. Peter Reinhardt, Founder and CEO of Charm Industrial, told Semafor that “…the SVB collapse will cause a one to two-quarter delay on a lot of things in climate tech. That doesn’t sound like a lot, but when you look at how much needs to get deployed in the next decade, losing half a year is really not good.” The business panel also discusses some other recent CDR business news: - South Korea’s announced carbon exchange - a new alliance of carbon removal companies - Na’im’s work as the ED of the brand-new org Carbon Removal Canada *On This Episode* Na’im Merchant Susan Su Radhika Moolgavkar *Resources* NYT Article on SVB’s climate lending Semafor Article w/ Reinhardt quote Jeff Snider’s podcast Na’im on diverse sources of funding Dai Ellis blog post South Korea’s new carbon exchange Carbon Removal Alliance Giana Amador Carbon Business Council Carbon Removal Canada Carbon Removal Canada jobs- work with Na’im! *Connect with Nori* Nori Nori’s Twitter Nori’s other podcast Reversing Climate Change Nori’s CDR meme twitter account --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/carbonremovalnewsroom/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/carbonremovalnewsroom/support
Listen to the episodeBlue carbon has emerged as a popular climate solution, with offset marketplaces like Verra and Gold Standard eyeing blue carbon methodologies and Salesforce and the World Economic Forum teaming up to announce their own blue carbon credit framework at COP27 last year. Crediting for blue carbon usually means protecting ecosystems like mangrove forests, seagrass beds, and salt marshes. It can also include restoring these ecosystems when they’ve been degraded or destroyed. A recent paper published in the journal “Earth Science Reviews” titled “Remote Sensing for Effective Blue Carbon Accounting” reviewed the potential for new technology to improve the remote sensing of blue carbon ecosystems. Carbon markets continue to grow, and billions of dollars will likely flow toward blue carbon projects. So how well can scientists even tell when ecosystems are sequestering CO2? And what is the promise of new technologies to improve those estimates? Joining Radhika on this episode are Holly Jean Buck and Shannon Valley. *On This Episode* Holly Jean Buck Shannon* Valley* Radhika Moolgavkar *Resources* Verra Blue Carbon Project Article about Gold Standard Blue Carbon Project Salesforce Blue Carbon initiative Paper*: Remote Sensing for Effective Blue Carbon Accounting* Bloomberg NEF Report on Potential Growth of Carbon Markets Vox Article about Palm Oil Industry WSJ Article about Indonesia Deforestation Inside Climate News Article on Satellite Monitoring of Flood Zones Report on 50 Years of Endangered Species Act *Connect with Nori* Nori Nori’s Twitter *Join *Nori’s Discord* to hang out with other fans of the podcast and Nori* *Nori’s other podcast *Reversing Climate Change *Nori’s CDR *meme twitter account --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/carbonremovalnewsroom/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/carbonremovalnewsroom/support
Listen to the episodeThe Emission Trading Systems is the cap-and-trade carbon market that Europe has been using since 2005 to decarbonize its economy. Companies have to pay to pollute, and this week that price hit an all-time high as it traded for over 100 euros/ton. In the first segment of today’s show Na’im Merchant and Asa Kamer discuss the significance of that milestone, what it might mean for the CDR industry, and news that Lanzatech became the first carbon capture company ever to go public. On the other side of the planet a different government made steps towards capitalizing on the money flowing towards carbon markets. Earlier this month, Alaska’s GOP Governor proposed a package of bills that would expand the state’s ability to store carbon via both forestry projects and underground storage of CO2 if passed. Will these ambitions contribute to actually increasing carbon sequestration? On the second segment of today’s show we explored this topic with one of the people behind Alaska’s push toward carbon management: the state Department of Natural Resource’s Deputy Commissioner John Crowther. Radhika is out this week, this episode is hosted by CRN producer Asa Kamer. *On This Episode* Na’im Merchant Asa Kamer John Crowther *Resources* ETS Price Hits All-Time High CCUS Investment Hits All-Time High Lanzatech SPAC Alaska Governor’s Proposed Legislation Legislation FAQ *Connect with Nori* Nori Nori’s Twitter Nori’s other podcast Reversing Climate Change Nori’s CDR meme twitter account --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/carbonremovalnewsroom/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/carbonremovalnewsroom/support
Listen to the episodeShould carbon removal be included in institutional climate plans? It’s a debate that’s taken place across business, government, and science in recent years. The rise of the net-zero framework has sharpened the focus on how and when organizations should decarbonize. And how carbon removal fits in. Last week two influential organizations weighed in on how they plan to use carbon removal in the coming years. The Net-Zero Owner Alliance, a UN-convened group of 84 large investors, declared that their members will not be able to invest in carbon removal to reach their climate goals until at least 2030. And the European Commission released its draft Green Deal Industrial Plan, a new set of policy objectives to build out their climate infrastructure. It includes support for many decarbonization technologies, but at least one CDR NGO says it doesn’t do enough for carbon removal. We’re pleased to announce the return of long-time friend of the show Holly Jean Buck. Welcome back, Holly! On a less happy note, it is the last episode for Chris Barnard as a regular panelist. Chris, you will be missed. On This Episode Holly Jean Buck Chris Barnard Radhika Moolgavkar Resources Net-Zero Owner Alliance Glasgow Alliance for Net-Zero NZOA coverage from Reuters European Commission’s Green Deal Industrial Plan EC’s Q&A about new plan Carbon Gap Carbon Gap post about Green Deal Reuters article about US/EU trade dynamics Clean Energy is Cheaper Than Coal Across Whole US, Study Finds Connect with Nori Nori Nori’s Twitter Nori’s other podcast Reversing Climate Change Nori’s CDR meme twitter account --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/carbonremovalnewsroom/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/carbonremovalnewsroom/support
Listen to the episodeIn January, a team of researchers led by the University of Oxford’s Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment released a report titled “The State of Carbon Dioxide Removal.” The authors called it the first global assessment of the field and what gaps need to be closed to scale carbon removal. The 101-page report covered how much CDR currently exists, the research landscape, existing policy support, and the gap between current plans and what will be needed to reach climate goals. It contained some good news: CDR is scaling fast, and managed forests are doing a lot of drawdown already- and some bad: we’re not on track to have enough. Today we’ll review this comprehensive snapshot with our science panel: Dr. Jane Zelikova and CRN producer Asa Kamer. *On This Episode* Dr. Jane Zelikova Asa Kamer Radhika Moolgavkar *Resources* State of CDR Report CarbonBrief article about the report- w/ charts Guardian article on Verra Bloomberg article on potential of voluntary carbon markets *Connect with Nori* Nori Nori’s Twitter Nori’s other podcast Reversing Climate Change Nori’s CDR meme twitter account --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/carbonremovalnewsroom/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/carbonremovalnewsroom/support
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