World's Biggest Carbon Absorbing Plant Opens In Iceland
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Carbon dioxide (CO2), released by burning fossil fuels like oil and coal, is a large contributor to global warming. Switching to renewable energy sources like solar panels and wind turbines can help reduce the harmful emissions. However, phasing out fossil fuels entirely will take time. Meanwhile, companies like Climeworks are developing innovative solutions to reduce atmospheric CO2 levels. On May 8, 2024, the Switzerland-based startup turned on Mammoth, the world's largest direct air capture (DAC) plant.
Located in Iceland, Mammoth is similar to an in-home air purifier. It uses fans to pull air through specialized filters, trapping carbon molecules. These molecules are mixed with water and pumped deep underground. Here, they react with the volcanic rocks and eventually turn into stone. The DAC plant is powered by geothermal energy and produces no carbon emissions.
Mammoth is nine times bigger than Climeworks' Orca plant, which opened in 2021. It can absorb up to 39,000 tons of carbon from the air annually. This is the equivalent of removing over 7,000 cars from the road.
Critics say this alone is not enough to reduce overall emissions. They also argue that DAC plants are too expensive and distract from efforts to minimize the use of fossil fuels. But many environmentalists disagree. They believe efforts beyond reducing our reliance on fossil fuels are needed to decrease carbon emissions.
“It’s a drop in the bucket, but it’s a much bigger drop in the bucket than any we’ve seen so far,” said Klaus Lackner, director of the Center for Negative Carbon Emissions at Arizona State University.
Besides, Climeworks is just getting started. The company is currently in the final stages of planning an even bigger DAC plant in Louisiana, USA. This new plant is expected to capture a million tons of CO2 annually by 2030. That is nearly 30 times more than Mammoth!
Moreover, Climeworks is not alone in this endeavor. US-based Occidental is building its first commercial-scale DAC plant in Texas. It is expected to remove 500,000 tons of carbon annually when ready in 2025.
Resources: Washingtonpost.com, cinemaworks.com, eenews.net
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26 Comments
- pawugobaneta15 daysCool! I would love to try a career in something similar to this one day :)
heyheyitsme16 daysYay! I wonder if there planning on opening some in the U.S and how that would be possible.
viratkholi2896about 2 monthsVery good- wawopore-169477173097about 2 monthsvery good
moonbeamluvabout 2 monthsyea they should just plant trees tbh
summers2 monthsthis is an interesting passage to learn about.
summer_beach2 monthsThis is cool but... trees and plants kinda already do that.- zufipyfybiwaabout 1 monthits like the phone. It started small, but now its a thing people cant live without. This started small but it could turn into a thing every state has or even more.
- heyheyitsme16 daysExactly!
forthepineapple2 monthsMammoth is cool- datizedi-1598549258582 monthsI guess that its helpful by taking Co2 out of the air faster and an extra thing could be to plant more like trees and grasses and flowers.
breckmuell2 monthsIt supa cool!
