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This group brings together the best thinkers on energy and climate. Join us for smart, insightful posts and conversations about where the energy industry is and where it is going.
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Iowa experiment tests potential to pair solar with carbon sequestration
When it comes to the fight against climate change, one things is very clear -- there is no single solution to the problem. It's going to take every tool in the toolbox, plus some that have yet to be invented. Were I the global czar of climate research funding, my mantra would be "nothing is off the table."
Having grown up in Iowa, with farmers in the family, this article caught my eye and got me thinking more about carbon sequestration as a tool in the battle against climate change.
Iowa experiment tests potential to pair solar with carbon sequestration (renewableenergyworld.com)
The thing that I like about this project is that it is not just a science experiment to identify plants that have the greatest potential to capture carbon, but it also has a financial component that seeks to address the economic aspects. I am a huge fan of projects like "8 Billion Trees" that focus on large scale forest restoration (for more reasons than just carbon sequestration), but asking the general population to open their charitable purse-strings only goes so far. We also need to pursue solutions that provide economic motivation to businesses and individuals to invest in carbon mitigation solutions.
As this other interesting article from UC Davis points out, there may be regional situations where grasslands are a more reliable carbon sink than trees (such as in the dry, fire-ridden western US), but on a global scale it's not grass OR trees, it's grass AND trees. As I said, nothing is off the table!
Grasslands More Reliable Carbon Sink than Trees - Science and Climate (ucdavis.edu)
- Iowa experiment tests potential to pair solar with carbon sequestration
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