Report: What does the latest IPCC report say about carbon capture? | Clean Air Task Force, Matt Bright and Toby Lockwood

Q: Report: What does the latest IPCC report say about carbon capture? | Clean Air Task Force, Matt Bright and Toby Lockwood

Summary: The IPCC Report identifies seven specific pathways, called “Illustrative Mitigation Pathways,” (IMPs) that best summarize and highlight different decarbonization strategies – four that achieve 1.5ºC and three that keep temperatures ‘likely below 2ºC. Only one of the seven IMPs includes no carbon capture. However, this scenario requires global energy demand to nearly halve in the next 30 years, which is unrealistic given the existing energy demand that will increase as much of the world industrializes and urbanizes. Emissions from the industrial sector (steel, cement, plastics) are growing faster since 2000 than any other sector. CCS is vital for decarbonizing hard-to-abate industrial emissions, which produce carbon dioxide. In the near-term, CCS is the only feasible technology solution to decarbonize cement. Net-zero energy systems entail: a substantial reduction in overall fossil fuel use, minimal use of unabated fossil fuels, and the use of CCS for remaining fossil fuels. CCS can also enable the low-emission production of zero-carbon fuels that will be needed for decarbonizing sectors such as industry, transport, and buildings.

Summary:

The IPCC Report identifies seven specific pathways, called “Illustrative Mitigation Pathways,” (IMPs) that best summarize and highlight different decarbonization strategies – four that achieve 1.5ºC and three that keep temperatures ‘likely below 2ºC. Only one of the seven IMPs includes no carbon capture.
- However, this scenario requires global energy demand to nearly halve in the next 30 years, which is unrealistic given the existing energy demand that will increase as much of the world industrializes and urbanizes.
Emissions from the industrial sector (steel, cement, plastics) are growing faster since 2000 than any other sector.
CCS is vital for decarbonizing hard-to-abate industrial emissions, which produce carbon dioxide. In the near-term, CCS is the only feasible technology solution to decarbonize cement.
Net-zero energy systems entail: a substantial reduction in overall fossil fuel use, minimal use of unabated fossil fuels, and the use of CCS for remaining fossil fuels.
CCS can also enable the low-emission production of zero-carbon fuels that will be needed for decarbonizing sectors such as industry, transport, and buildings.