Can other land-based approaches to greenhouse gas removal, such as enhanced weathering and biochar, help achieve net zero without negative environmental impacts?
Background
To limit future warming requires rapid reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and achieving net zero by 2050, as required by UK legislation. Climate mitigation is led in government by the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS). But Defra is responsible for efforts to reduce GHG emissions from four sectors: agriculture, waste and wastewater, land-use, and fluorinated gases (F-gases). Defra also has responsibility to promote forestry, which acts as a carbon sink. Together, the four Defra sectors represent 15% of the total net UK GHGs, with agriculture being the biggest contributor (about 10% of UK emissions).
Defra has research interests in reduction of emissions, the removal of GHG from the atmosphere, and in understanding the impacts of mitigation activities on other environmental outcomes.
Next steps
Get in touch with ari.comment@go-science.gov.uk
Source
This question was published as part of the set of ARIs in this document:
Topics
Related UKRI funded projects
-
Soils Research to deliver Greenhouse Gas REmovals and Abatement Technologies (Soils-R-GGREAT)
GGR Consortium - Soils Research to deliver Greenhouse Gas REmovals and Abatement Technologies (Soils-R-GGREAT). Scenario modelling studies show that it is unlikely that we will be able to meet the target to limit climate...
Funded by: NERC
Why might this be relevant?
The project focuses on soil carbon sequestration and biochar, which are land-based approaches to greenhouse gas removal, and provides a comprehensive global assessment of their potential, feasibility, barriers, and impacts.
-
Biochar Demonstrator Addressing Key Deployment Barriers for Carbon Sequestration
For the UK to achieve net carbon neutrality by 2050, it is estimated that the mix of Greenhouse Gas Removal (GGR) technologies required will equate to ca. 35 M tonnes of carbon (MtC) p.a. Biochar can potentially make a m...
Funded by: UKRI
Why might this be relevant?
The project specifically addresses the deployment barriers for biochar, a land-based approach to greenhouse gas removal, and aims to establish its potential contribution to meeting the UK's net carbon neutrality target.
-
Greenhouse Gas Removal in the Land Sector - Addressing the Gaps (GGRiLS - Gaps)
Greenhouse Gas Removal in the Land Sector - Addressing the Gaps (GGRiLS - Gaps) is a Topic-specific proposal under the GGR programme. The Paris agreement commits countries to limit climate warming to "well below 2 d...
Funded by: NERC
Why might this be relevant?
The project addresses the gaps in understanding land sector greenhouse gas removal options and aims to quantify the emissions reduction gap at a country level, but it does not specifically focus on enhanced weathering and biochar.