Natural
Soil carbon sequestration
Afforestation/ reforestation
Other land-use/ wetlands
Biochar
- Less costly
- Less permanent
- Closer to deployment
What is carbon removal?
Carbon removal literally takes carbon dioxide out of the sky.
Carbon dioxide removal (also referred to as CDR) comes in two forms: natural solutions like tree planting; and technological solutions like direct air capture — which uses fans to filter carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and inject it underground for permanent storage.
Nature-based solutions like trees are great because we know how to plant trees and can do it at scale today. But the problem with natural solutions is that the carbon storage they offer is not permanent. When that tree you planted dies or goes up in flames, its CO₂ is released into the atmosphere.
Then there are early-stage technologies like direct air capture. These have a lot of promise, but are very early in their lifecycle. More research needs to be done to scale these technologies and bring them down the cost curve.
Technological
Ocean alkanlinity enhancement
Enhanced weathering
CO2 to permanent carbon
Direct air capture
- More costly
- More permanent
- Greater R&D needs
How can carbon removal impact the climate emergency?
The consensus among scientists and policymakers is that the Earth needs to stay below 1.5 degrees Celsius of warming to prevent catastrophic climate change impacts. This warming threshold aims to avert catastrophic climate impacts, safeguard vital resources, and protect vulnerable populations from the worst consequences of climate change.
To stay below 1.5°C of warming, the UN‘s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) estimates we need to remove at least 8 billion tons of CO₂ from the atmosphere every year by 2050.
To date, we’ve collectively removed fewer than a million tonnes.
There is no viable scenario for maintaining a habitable planet that does not necessitate carbon removal. We need to both reduce our emissions and remove them from the atmosphere, now.
Bringing these technologies to scale takes decades: we need to start today.
There is no viable scenario for maintaining a habitable planet that does not necessitate carbon removal.
Why is this so complex?
One might assume that planting enough trees would get us out of this mess.
Unfortunately, as much as we love trees, they alone cannot sequester the amount of carbon needed to get to net zero by 2050. We require natural and technological solutions — and given the mere decades we have to solve this problem, we have to start scaling the technology today.
By aggregating demand across our customers, Supercritical is creating an important new market for carbon removal companies. Our customers are early adopters who understand the importance of buying carbon removal today.
Annual carbon removal rates need to grow about 14,000x to meet 2050 requirements, according to the IPCC.
That’s approximately the difference in height between a raspberry and The Shard.
Supercritical offers a portfolio of carbon removal options, including tree planting, biochar, enhanced weathering, bio-oil sequestration, and direct air capture. Supercritical’s climate team works to source the next promising methods.
When working with us, our experts guide you through the various carbon removal options and explain their pros and cons. Our team then constructs a portfolio of carbon removal offsets to meet your budget.
Supercritical’s mission is to scale carbon removal. Ambitious companies that are serious about climate action should both reduce their emissions as much as possible, and pay for carbon removal.
Buy high quality carbon removal
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Biochar
Biochar is charcoal-like material rich in stable carbon. It is produced by heating biomass in an oxygen-limited environment in a process called pyrolysis.
Permanence: MEDIUM From: $162/t
Enhanced weathering
Enhanced rock weathering (ERW) takes natural weathering of silicate rocks that removes & mineralizes atmospheric CO₂ and speeds it up dramatically.
Permanence: HIGH From: $312/t
Woody biomass sinking
This is a method that sequesters carbon by submerging leftover woody materials in the oxygen-depleted layer of the Black Sea, which is approximately 2 kilometers deep.
Permanence: MEDIUM From: $375/t
Direct air capture
Direct air capture (DAC) is a chemical process to capture ambient CO₂ from the atmosphere.
Permanence: HIGH From: $618/t
Bio-oil
Bio-oil and biochar production both convert waste biomass through pyrolysis. Bio-oil is a liquid stored in geological repositories, while biochar is applied to soils.
Permanence: HIGH From: $750/t
DAC with ocean storage
This employs seawater electrolysis to capture and convert atmospheric CO₂ into carbonate solids for construction and permanently stores dissolved bicarbonate ions in the ocean.
Permanence: HIGH From: $812/t
Tree planting
Afforestation and forest restoration, if done effectively, combat climate change by removing carbon dioxide and protecting biodiversity.
Permanence: LOW From: $38/t