Hi Josh,
Thanks for that. It could be very useful to know, as I may just possibly be
meeting Ms Figueres later this month, thanks to a high-flying neighbour who
knows her! He also knows Lord Stern, of the Stern Review, to whom I have
written without effect, but Ms Figueres seems to be more open to CDR
possibilities! She may also be interested in the Methane Workshop -
September 3-4th - that I'm organising.
Critical to CDR could be the cost. Unfortunately a body of scientists in
the US has come out with a very high cost - at over $600 per tC (tonne of
carbon) [1]. This needs to be repudiated. Oliver Tickell reckons that rock
grinding could work out at only a few dollars per tC - it would be done with
renewable energy of course. And biochar is potentially self-funding - with
advantages of soil improvement, etc.
Cheers,
John
[1]
http://www.inewsone.com/2011/05/10/direct-removal-of-co2-from-air-impractical-scientists/49447
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On Tue, Jun 7, 2011 at 2:18 PM, Josh Horton joshuahorton...@gmail.comwrote:
The UNFCCC Executive Secretary has raised the possibility of negative
emissions ...
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2011/jun/05/global-warming-suck-greenhouse-gases?intcmp=122
Global warming crisis may mean world has to suck greenhouse gases from
air
As Bonn talks begin, UN climate chief warns of temperature goals set
too low and clock ticking on climate change action
Fiona Harvey, environment correspondent
guardian.co.uk, Sunday 5 June 2011 18.10 BST
Article history
The world may have to resort to technology that sucks greenhouse gases
from the air to stave off the worst effects of global warming, the UN
climate change chief has said before talks on the issue beginning on
Monday.
We are putting ourselves in a scenario where we will have to develop
more powerful technologies to capture emissions out of the
atmosphere, said Christiana Figueres, executive secretary of the UN
Framework Convention on Climate Change. We are getting into very
risky territory, she added, stressing that time was running out.
The UN climate talks starting on Monday in Bonn, which run for the
next two weeks, will try to revive the negotiations before the next
climate conference, taking place in Durban, South Africa, in December.
But little progress is expected, as the negotiating time is likely to
be taken up with details such as rules on monitoring emissions.
Figueres tried to inject a greater sense of urgency into the
proceedings by pointing to research from the International Energy
Agency that found that emissions had soared last year by a record
amount. The strong rise means it will take more effort by governments
to curb emissions.
Figueres told the Guardian in an interview that governments should act
now to save money: We add $1 trillion to the cost [of tackling
climate change] with every year of delay.
However, as the latest talks begin, the world's leading climate change
official has upset governments by insisting that the aim of the
negotiations ought to be to hold warming to less than 1.5C. That would
be a much tougher goal than that set by governments last year, which
seeks to limit the temperature rise to no more than 2C – the safety
threshold, scientists say, beyond which warming becomes catastrophic
and irreversible.
In my book, there is no way we can stick to the goal that we know is
completely unacceptable to the most exposed [countries], Figueres
said.
The difference between the two goals may not seem great, but since it
has taken more than 20 years of talks for countries to agree on the 2C
limit, many are unwilling to reopen the debate. Delegates are
conscious that wrangling over whether to stick to 1.5C or 2C was one
of the main sources of conflict at the Copenhagen climate summit in
2009; the hope has been that talks can move on to other issues such as
how to pay for emissions curbs in poorer countries.
This is an extraordinary intervention, said one official involved in
the climate talks, who could not be named.
Figueres said that she had the support of the world's least developed
countries, most of Africa, and small island states.
Another factor casting a pall over this year's talks, which are
intended to forge a new global treaty on climate change, is criticism
of the South African government, which will host the Durban talks. No
interim meetings have yet been set up, and countries have complained
of disorganisation and a lack of enthusiasm. But Figueres said: South
Africa has been very carefully listening, trying to understand where
there are commonalities and where the weaknesses are.
She also predicted the US would play a strong role in the talks,
despite the Obama administration facing Republican opposition in
Congress to action on emissions. It's very evident that the
legislative body in the US has disengaged, but … the administration
continues to be engaged. she said.
But Todd Stern, chief negotiator for
