A new paper titled ‘Geological Net Zero and the need for disaggregated accounting for carbon sinks’ emphasizes the need for ‘active anthropogenic’ carbon removal.
The paper, published in Nature, argues that the widespread belief is that achieving net-zero global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, alongside a reduction in other greenhouse gases, will halt global warming.
However, says the paper, CO2 emissions will continue to fuel warming until they are completely offset by active human-induced CO2 removal.
Many greenhouse gas accounting systems, for practical reasons, allow the inclusion of “passive” CO2 uptake, such as increased plant growth due to CO2 fertilization, as removals in the definition of net anthropogenic emissions.
This inclusion of passive CO2 uptake in nominal net-zero emissions could undermine the Paris Agreement as it would not halt global warming.
To address this issue and ensure that residual fossil fuel use does not exacerbate global warming, the paper’s authors propose the following measures:
Relevant: EU Approves First Official Certification Framework For Carbon Removals
- Disaggregation of Land Management Categories: Emissions reporting and targets should differentiate between various land management categories to better understand the role of passive CO2 uptake.
- Additionality of Claimed Removals: Whenever possible, claimed removals should be additional to passive uptake.
- Geological Net Zero: Targets should recognize the need for Geological Net Zero, implying that one tonne of CO2 must be permanently stored in the solid Earth for every tonne emitted from fossil sources.
We also argue that the scientific understanding of net zero provides a foundation for assigning responsibility for the protection of passive carbon sinks during and post the transition to Geological Net Zero.
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