Why Canada Is Poised To Become A Carbon Removal Superpower
- Media Manager
- Nov 6, 2023
- 1 min read
Forbes
Written By: Phil De Luna
Published: November 6th, 2023
Climate change has hit with relentless force, and the signs are undeniable. Month after month of record-breaking heat and soaring ocean temperatures has prompted the UN to declare the era of global boiling has begun. This summer is not an outlier, but a sign of things to come.
The initial goal of reducing emissions to zero, though essential, is now a starting point rather than the finish line. It has become evident that to combat climate change effectively, we must not only halt our contribution to the problem but actively reverse the damage we’ve caused since the industrial revolution. Planting trees alone will not save us, especially as Canada sets records for wildfires and the federal government’s commitment of planting 2 billion trees by 2030 is not sufficient to reduce the necessary emissions. We need to go beyond net-zero and aspire for a net-negative world, actively engineering solutions to draw down billions of tons of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere by 2050.
In the global race to develop and scale carbon removal solutions, Canada stands out. Key to engineered carbon removal technologies, such as direct air and direct ocean capture, is access to vast amounts of clean electricity. Canada's abundance of hydroelectricity, particularly in Quebec, is an envy of many countries. It also has immense wind power potential and rich geological makeup, ideal for carbon removal and storage.
