At a time when economic recovery must be accompanied by strong measures to facilitate the climate transition, many organizations are setting themselves a goal of net-zero carbon emissions.
But What exactly does net-zero emission mean?
For organizations, setting a goal of net-zero emissions means committing to drastically reducing their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by getting as close as possible to zero and offsetting residual emissions. This is typically achieved by eliminating and /or sequestering a quantity equivalent in carbon sinks (forest, mangrove, ocean, wetlands, soils, etc.).
The concept of net-zero emissions differs from carbon neutrality because the latter does not necessarily imply carbon sequestration. For example, if a company, which measures and reduces its emissions, offsets its residual emissions through an investment project in renewable energies, it will be able to achieve carbon neutrality by avoiding the production of the equivalent quantity of emissions.
If the same company wants to go further and aim for net-zero emissions, it will have to reduce its emissions as much as possible and finance emissions sequestration projects, such as planting forests or preserving mangroves, which, this time, will eliminate all emissions. Carbon neutrality is therefore a key step towards attaining net-zero emissions.
At the same time, the carbon neutrality and net zero emissions strategies have in common that they advocate a drastic reduction in emissions. For organizations, this involves defining a science-based decarbonization trajectory (SBT) and then implementing this strategy through a panel of solutions:
- Improving the energy efficiency of your activities,
- Optimizing innovation via better collaboration between stakeholders or even use 100% renewable energies.
- etc.
After reaching the goal of net-zero emissions, organizations can continue their transformation and become negative in net carbon emissions, provided they meet the conditions mentioned above and allow more emissions to be sequestered than they produce. For example, in January 2020, Microsoft pledged to be carbon negative by 2030 by eliminating all of its emissions.
Why is the goal of net-zero emissions the key to climate transition?
At present, we must avoid a global warming of more than 1.5 ° C by 2100 compared to pre-industrial levels. This will avoid catastrophic consequences of climatic disturbances such as the disappearance of coral reefs, the regularity of extreme weather phenomena, or the endangerment of millions of people in the face of rising sea levels.
Companies are coming up with technologies that help reduce emissions and even capture CO2 from our environmental systems. One such company is Blue Planet Systems. Let’s take a quick look at where they’re coming from and what they have archived so far.
Blue Planet Systems
The Company/Team
Blue Planet Systems is a California-based technology company founded in 2012 by Brent Constantz. The company specializes in developing carbon capture and carbon aggregates designed to cut down the impact of carbon on our planet.
The founder, Brent Constantz is a serial entrepreneur who successfully founded and led several other companies as CEO, including Norian Corporation, Skeletal Kinetics, Corazon Technologies, DeepWater Desal, and Calera Corporation. He holds more than 100 US patents and another 100 pending. Currently, Brent Constantz is a Consulting Associate Professor at Stanford University, where he teaches biomineralization.
In 2012, Dr. Constantz established a new discovery of basic biomineralization into a scalable solution to address climate change in a highly efficient and cost-effective way. The idea turned into Blue Planet Systems.
The overall team at Blue Planet comprises scientists drawn from diverse backgrounds with expertise ranging from geology to chemical engineering and experience spanning global finance to green building.
The management team comprises seven members including Brent Constantz, the founder and CEO. Ray Harris brings over 30 years of experience in the energy and utility industries on board as the president, while Kevin Dow serves as the Chief Finance Officer. The team has 5 board members with diverse experience in global leadership, entrepreneurship, and management.
Blue Planet Systems is backed by a strong scientific advisory board made up of Gordon E. Brown, Jr., Professor Emeritus, Geological Science, Stanford University; James R. O’Neil, a Professor Emeritus of Geochemistry at the University of Michigan; Michael F. Doherty, a Professor of Chemical Engineering at the University of California; and Dr. Sarah Saltzer is the Managing Director of the Stanford Centre for Carbon Storage.
Investors
- Chevron (Cooperation) – Minority Shares
- Chevron Technology Ventures (Venture Capital) – Minority Shares
- For Good Ventures (Venture Capital) – Minority Shares
- Leonardo DiCaprio (Angel (individual) – Minority Shares
The Technology
Blue Planet’s technology uses CO2 as a raw material for making carbonate rocks. The carbonate rock is then used in the place of the regular natural limestone rock which is mined from quarries and forms the main component of concrete.
Blue Planet converts CO2 from flue gas to carbonate by using advanced water-based capture solutions. This process means there is no need for the purification step used in other methods, saving time, energy, and resources. This makes Blue Planet’s capture method highly efficient and cost-effective compared to other traditional methods.
Perhaps what makes Blue Planet’s patented mineralization technology timely and attractive is the fact that it’s scalable to the tune of capturing billions of CO2. Their refined processes can capture and dilute CO2 at any concentration and profitability turn it into building materials. The technology can mineralize 440 kg of CO2 for each tonne of aggregate they make.
The company estimates that if they can manage to replace just about 16% of all aggregate used globally with Blue Planet Aggregate, we could easily manage to keep the temperature rise below 1.5 degrees Celcius by 2050.
Blue Planet has secured several successful funding rounds and investments from various investors including recently from Mitsubishi, Chevron, and last year from Knife River. Looking ahead, the company is largely focused on scalability and wide adoption of their mineralization technology by the key players.
References
Microsoft will be carbon negative by 2030
https://blogs.microsoft.com/blog/2020/01/16/microsoft-will-be-carbon-negative-by-2030/
