Source: Injecting Gas, New York Times
A pumping station at American Electric Power's Mountaineer plant in New Haven, West Virginia (above)
Global warming. It's a huge and significant environmental problem in the world today. However, the main cause of the actual warming of the planet is that of carbon dioxide (CO2). This gas is emitted by burning fossil fuels, such as oil and natural gas. Carbon dioxide is then put out into the atmosphere. From there, heat bouncing off of the Earth from the Sun is trapped by the carbon dioxide molecules' bonds, therefore heating the planet.
There are many different ways in which scientists are trying to keep carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere, but the one that is focused in this post is that of burying this greenhouse gas into the ground. This method is called carbon capture and sequestration (C.C.S.) Sequestration is the act of taking possession of something, in this case, CO2.
Near Meredosia, Illinois, there is a project to try and inject the gas into sandstone, a porous type of stone found under much of the Midwest and North America. The carbon dioxide that gets injected into the rock replaces the saline water inside the pores. In November 2010, Lisa P. Jackson, the administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) approved a new rule that created a new class of wells to be used for injecting carbon dioxide. This rule focuses on the protection and safety of drinking water. Although carbon dioxide itself is not toxic, it can change the acidity of water. Because of this, the EPA does not allow for carbon dioxide to be injected in water that passes the drinking water standards; it will be injected in saline water that is deemed too salty to drink and for irrigation.
“We’ve been very encouraged,” said Gary O. Spitznogle, the manager of carbon capture and sequestration engineering at American Electric Power, a company that produces electricity in 11 states, mostly by burning coal. In late 2009, it began capturing carbon dioxide from a portion of the flue gases at its Mountaineer coal plant in New Haven.
In my opinion, the idea of tucking carbon dioxide into the ground is interesting. Of all of the ways I have heard about trying to prevent or slow down global warming, I have never heard about injecting CO2 into rocks.
Source:
Wald, Matthew L. "Tucking Carbon Into the Ground." The New York Times. The New
York Times, 30 Mar. 2011. Web. 7 Apr. 2011. <http://www.nytimes.com/2011/
03/31/business/energy-environment/31CARBON.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&ref=earth>.
