Opinion: Top 5 questions on carbon capture and storage (2024)

The federal government’s recent introduction of long-awaited tax credits for carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects helps pave the way for companies across Canada to advance significant CCS developments. These projects are essential in supporting greenhouse gas reductions. Nowhere is this more relevant than in Alberta, where most of the country’s new CCS activity is underway thanks to our province’s world-leading experience with this environmental technology.

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A key step in the early stages of building a CCS facility is consulting with those who may be affected by these large-scale construction projects. I was pleased to participate in public open houses near Edmonton recently about the Wabamun Carbon Hub, a CO2 transportation and storage project proposed by Enbridge. This project aims to serve CCS projects in the area, including Heidelberg Materials’ $1.4-billion Edmonton cement plant carbon capture project.

Speaking directly to members of the public is always valuable. It allows us to understand different viewpoints, answer questions, and hear any concerns they might have. My key takeaway from the open houses was that while Western Canada is home to many of the world’s existing CCS facilities, many people are not as familiar with CCS as they are with traditional forms of energy and industrial development. This naturally leads to some uncertainty and valid questions about the need for CCS infrastructure in their communities, and whether it is a safe and effective solution for managing emissions.

As activity ramps up in the months ahead, it is important to address the most common questions people have about CCS. Here are my answers to the top five questions about CCS I encountered:

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1. What is carbon capture and storage (CCS)?

Carbon capture and storage is an emissions-reduction process designed to prevent large amounts of carbon dioxide from being released into the atmosphere. The technology involves capturing CO2 produced by industrial plants, compressing it for transportation (typically by pipeline, or train) and then injecting it deep into carefully selected and evaluated underground rock formations where it is permanently stored.

2. Why is CCS necessary?

Reaching our net-zero targets requires all the tools we have at our disposal. CCS stands out as one of the only proven solutions available today that is capable of significantly reducing CO2 emissions from crucial sectors of our economy including oil and gas, cement, steel, chemical and fertilizer production. The International Energy Agency anticipates CCS will account for approximately 20 per cent of the GHG reductions necessary to reach the Paris Agreement goal of net-zero emissions by 2050.

Canada’s federal emissions reduction plan calls for more than tripling Canada’s current CCS capacity, adding at least 15 million tonnes by 2030. According to the Canadian Energy Regulator, expanding Canada’s CCS capacity from today’s seven million tonnes per year to 60-80 million tonnes per year is necessary to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050.

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3. How do we know CCS works?

CCS has been used successfully for decades. There are currently 41 CCS projects operating worldwide with the capacity to capture more than 50 million tonnes of CO2 per year. Canada has been a leader in the development and implementation of CCS, accounting for approximately 15 per cent of the world’s current CCS capacity, even though our nation contributes less than two per cent of global CO2 emissions.

CCS projects in Canada have securely stored more than 50 million tonnes of carbon dioxide, equivalent to removing more than 10 million cars from our roads. Canada is home to the world’s first CCS facility on a commercial power plant, SaskPower’s Boundary Dam Unit 3 CCS facility, which has captured more than six million tonnes of CO2 since 2014. In Alberta, the Quest CCS facility, operated by Shell, has effectively sequestered over nine million tonnes of CO2 since 2015 from the Scotford Refinery near Edmonton.

4. How do we know it is safe to put so much CO2 underground?

The process for storing CO2 underground is well understood and has been safely used for decades in the oil and gas industry, as well as at existing CCS sites around the world. Underground CO2 storage uses natural geologic processes to trap compressed CO2 in porous rock formations approximately one kilometre below the surface. The CO2 is contained below impermeable “cap rock” formations — layers of impermeable rock to prevent the CO2 from migrating up the formation — helping to ensure it remains underground indefinitely.

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Each storage site has a measurement, monitoring and verification plan in place, detecting the CO2 movement beneath the surface, so operators can respond to any changes in behaviour quickly. Over time, trapped CO2 in saline aquifers returns to a mineralized state.

5. What jobs and benefits do CCS projects generate for communities?

CCS projects are large-scale developments that create significant direct and indirect jobs, generate economic activity in communities, and keep important industries running over the long term. The world’s first CCS facility on a power plant located in southeast Saskatchewan employed a workforce of 1,700 people during peak construction and has been operational for nearly a decade. The facility employs process engineers, facility operators, technical and maintenance personnel, and more.

Breanne O’Reilly is vice-president of Business Development and Strategic Initiatives at the International CCS Knowledge Centre.

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