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Title: The proposed climate fix tech companies just spent millions on? Rocks.
Google and other major tech companies have recently invested heavily in a revolutionary new approach to combatting climate change: rocks. Specifically, they’ve committed millions of dollars to Terradot, a startup that uses crushed basalt rock to capture and remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
As part of its efforts to reduce its own environmental impact, Google has partnered with Terradot to accelerate the process of enhanced rock weathering (ERW). ERW involves crushing rocks into fine particles and spreading them out across large areas of land. The reaction between the rock’s minerals and atmospheric CO2 triggers a chemical reaction that traps the carbon in water as bicarbonate. This process is then accelerated by the ocean, which permanently sequesters the carbon.
Terradot plans to capture 90,000 tons of carbon dioxide under its initial agreement with Google, with the goal of capturing an additional 200,000 tons in the early 2030s. While this may seem like a small fraction compared to the massive amounts of pollution emitted by the tech industry as a whole, it’s still a crucial step towards addressing climate change.
The method is still in its early stages and faces significant challenges. Measuring the actual effectiveness of the technology has proven difficult due to a lack of precise measurement tools. Terradot plans to address this issue by collecting soil samples and monitoring the rock degradation process over time.
However, even without an exact figure on how much carbon can be captured, it’s clear that ERW is a vital component in the fight against climate change. The technology has the potential to make a significant impact, especially if combined with other efforts to reduce emissions.
Google’s support for Terradot and its innovative approach will undoubtedly help accelerate the development of this technology. It’s a crucial step towards mitigating the devastating effects of climate change.
Source: www.theverge.com
