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The difference between carbon removal and carbon capture
by Team Carbon180
Jul 29, 2024Carbon removal and carbon capture, though similar in name, refer to two separate processes. Until a few years ago, it was only scientists and climate wonks who might have been concerned with the difference. Now, these topics are gaining footholds in mainstream climate conversations as federal funding ramps up and projects begin to break ground. This blog will provide an overview of carbon removal and carbon capture, and why it’s so important to understand their different effects on the climate.
Defining carbon removal vs carbon capture
First, let’s get our definitions squared away. Carbon dioxide removal, CDR for short, is the process of taking existing CO2 out of the air and storing it for a long time in rocks, vegetation, the ocean, or products. There are technologies that can help us do this, but there are also biological methods — trees do it every day. At Carbon180, when we say CDR, we mean the deliberate process of removing carbon in a way that’s high quality, permanent, and just.
On the other hand, carbon capture and storage, often referred to as CCS or point source carbon capture, traps CO2 before it is released into the atmosphere, reducing emissions from power generation and industrial processes at the source. Carbon capture might lessen the carbon pollution from these point sources, but only carbon removal can lower the existing concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere.
Carbon removal and carbon capture sound similar and share some mechanical processes but have vastly different effects on our climate. CDR removes carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, lowering the overall concentration of atmospheric CO2, which is warming the planet and driving global impacts like extreme weather. CCS, meanwhile, stops CO2 from entering the atmosphere, reducing what would have otherwise been emitted. Carbon removal and carbon capture are both carbon management tools but, as outlined above, are distinct in many important ways.
Why it matters to be clear on these differences
While the conflation between CDR and CCS is subtle, the impacts extend beyond word choice. By blurring the lines between two different approaches, we undermine CDR’s unique potential to combat legacy emissions (those already in the atmosphere) and therefore mitigate climate impacts being felt across the globe today.
CCS is a purely technological solution, whereas carbon removal encompasses a diverse array of pathways for removing carbon from the ocean, land, and air. Describing all of these methods simply as “carbon capture” oversimplifies their complexities and overlooks how each pathway fits into a portfolio of climate action solutions that can be regionally specific.
Awareness of carbon removal, even in places where projects are hoping to be sited, remains low. People located near carbon removal or capture projects deserve a full understanding of these technologies. By accurately distinguishing between CDR and CCS, and offering accurate resources to explain what both of these approaches encompass, we can empower community members to engage with projects more effectively. This is especially important given the harmful history of energy projects in many frontline communities.
Building towards a carbon-removing future
Neither carbon removal nor carbon capture is a free pass to keep emitting — we need massive reductions in emissions across the entire economy. High-quality carbon removal can serve as a transition tool, facilitating the shift to climate goals beyond zero as decarbonization progresses. Only carbon removal can bring us into net negative territory, and that’s where we need to be.
Ultimately, conflating carbon removal and carbon capture is not accurate to what these technologies do for the climate. It prevents communities from understanding carbon removal at a time when it’s about to be implemented and invites a categorical rejection of both.
When it comes to addressing climate change, speed and scale aren’t the only objectives. We can’t create a carbon removal field that perpetuates the same injustices that got us to this point; we need a fundamentally new system shaped by and for the people affected most, enabling healthy, thriving communities for current and future generations. CDR developers, advocates, and policymakers must clearly make the distinction between carbon removal and carbon capture in order to enable effective community participation and move us towards our collective climate goals.
Edited by Ana Little-Saña. Image by Steve Thole.
https://carbon180.org/blog/the-difference-between-carbon-removal-and-carbon-capture/
