Carbon+Sequestration

Justin Williams Created 9/30/06 ** CARBON SEQUESTRATION FACT SHEET ** __ Natural Carbon Sinks: __ and other plants, as well as in the forest soil. Peat bogs (marshes) store approximately 1/4 of all carbon stored as biomass. carbon sinks. Carbon in ocean stored as: As the level of carbon dioxide increases in the atmosphere, the level in the oceans also increases. Plankton (biomass) Organisms convert CO2 in the water to calcite to build their skeletons and shells __ Natural Sequestration Enhancement: __ Problems: Forests are only carbon sinks while they grow in size, when they are capturing CO2 from the atmosphere. Fossil fuel emission (i.e. creation of CO2) far outpaces the rate at which forests could sequester carbon. Advantages: Erosion control; economic benefits (logging); recreation. Adding the common mineral hematite to water causes plankton to bloom. When plankton bloom (and thus photosynthesize), they sequester CO2 from the atmosphere. Problems: Unknown effects, not enough studies. Plankton blooms have possible effects on cloud formations, and thus weather patterns. //t// Advantages: Increases declining ocean productivity. Huge scale of operation. Relatively low cost. Adding organic material to soil sequesters carbon that would otherwise be added to the atmosphere. Problems: Won't sequester CO2 from the atmosphere Advantages: Improves soil quality for fanning. __ Artificial Sequestration: __ A. Capture CO2 released from fossil fuel burning power plants (see Clean Coal Fact Sheet). out of carbon. Very new, highly experimental, but non-toxic and fairly predictable. 1. Direct Injection into Ocean: Pump carbon into deep ocean, where it will theoretically form liquid "lakes" of CO2; effects on deep ocean life are unclear, but will probably increase acidity of ocean. 2. Geosequestration: Pump carbon into natural underground holding tanks, such as spent oil fields and unmineable coal seams (not spent coal mines). Problems: Can only store limited amount of carbon. Limited geographic distribution. Advantages: Already in use; oil companies have pumped CO2 into oil fields to increase oil production for the past 30 years. Overall cost is low because it helps increase revenues. Existing infrastructure.
 * Carbon Sequestration: ** A naturally occurring process wherein CO2 from the atmosphere is accumulated and stored in biomass and in the ocean.
 * Carbon Sink: ** A CO2 storage reservoir; where carbon is stored after it is sequestered; mainly biomass and the ocean.
 * A. **** Biomass/Forests:  ** Enormous amounts of carbon are naturally stored in the forest by trees
 * B. **** Ocean:  ** Oceans are natural carbon dioxide sinks, and are the largest active
 * A. Forest: ** Planting forests may help to sequester carbon.
 * B. Ocean: **
 * C. Soil: **
 * B. **** Mineral Sequestration:  ** Speed up naturally occurring reactions which produce minerals
 * C. **** Use hydroxides to "scrub" air of carbon. ** After carbon is captured: