Carbon Capture and Storage

                With the high amount of carbon dioxide that is circling in the air at this time, the world is in a very difficult spot. In order for the world to return to a manageable amount of carbon in the atmosphere, the total needs to be cut by about twenty percent. Now this may sound like a daunting and difficult task, but there are solutions out there. One of these solutions is a technique called carbon capture and storage (CCS) and it involves taking carbon from the atmosphere and storing it below ground.

                After people have entirely drained a gas field or an oil reservoir of its contents, all that is left is a space in the ground that people will never think to look at again. CCS takes these spaces in the ground and finds use for them. The carbon that is taken from the atmosphere is stored down there and pretty much sealed away so that it will be taken out of the equation. This process has become fairly controversial in the past few years because of the risks that it can involve. There is a small chance that the carbon dioxide will leak from the reservoir and will contaminate its surroundings. The reason that this is so controversial is because the contaminants could spread into the groundwater that people drink. This is a controversial problem but a very unlikely occurrence because of how many times it has been tested and proven unlikely. A fairly modern storage facility in Australia proved that this was the case.

                In the case of carbon dioxide storage in depleted gas fields, the benefits highly outweigh the risks. The ability to take away almost a large chunk of the carbon in the atmosphere is a great necessity and people have found a way to do it. Now all that needs to happen is for the public to develop a greater understanding of the process and how insignificant the risks are when compared to the benefits.