Can Carbon Capture Fix the Climate Crisis? Oil Companies Hope So.

As someone currently doing research in climate change mitigation, I found this concise yet quite accurate, which is seldom the case when a YouTube channel decides to make a 15-minute video about some complex scientific subject. Well done!

I feel like mostly its a boondoggle. A bridge to nowhere that makes these companies bookoos of money while doing nothing except raising the cost of petrochemical products. We already have a good example of how good stewards energy companies are: coal fly ash slurry ponds. These are used to make coal into "clean coal". Some of the nastiest particulates are captured and stored in giant settling ponds, presumably to eventually be buried. This is a common strategy used by many industries for dealing with byproducts. But the problem with settling ponds is that they concentrate toxic waste, which in the case of coal includes radioactive elements. And these are just earthen damns which can leak, or more disasterously, can be ruptuered and the waste can flood downhill. There are several cases in recent years of highly toxic coal fly ash slurry ponds rupturing in Tenneessee and North Carolina. These have in some cases washed out entire towns (it is unclear if the people were allowed to move back or what the long term impacts were) and at least once a slurry pond located directly beside a river used as a city water source burst contaminating the entire water supply. That wasnt the 1970s, that was 2008. I DO NOT trust that these same companies will suddenly know how to securely store carbon or be willing to put the money in to do it properly when they havnt even been safely storing literal radioactive waste. Also, how are they going to get the carbon to these deep wells with solid bedrock? Transport it by bunker-fuel powered container-ships? Seems more likely they will just toss it down the nearest leaky fracking well and call it a day.

One of the aspects of growing plants to store carbon is the depleted sea grass meadows around Europe. This would have the benefit of boosting aquatic life as well.

Wow, this isn't the type of content I would expect from Fully Charged. Keep it up. I love taking a closer look at the actual energy sources and alternative green products.

Also ask yourself: is plastic "recycling" an excuse to produce more unnecessary plastic packaging? (95% of western plastic goes into landfills, often in Asia and Africa, or gets burned) All CC does is give an excuse to blow more CO2 into the air instead of reducing it at the source, just like bottles and bags made from recycled plastic are an excuse to sell more plastic wrapped produce and ever smaller shampoo bottles instead of reducing plastic packaging to begin with.

I realize the benefits of newly planted trees is minimal in the overall capture equation, but more trees help in so many other ways. And who doesn't love all that comes with trees - more stable soil, biodiversity, cooling shade, and a more beautiful environment.

When it comes to Fully Charged Show l am always in awe of the content and level of detail, l just wish l could press the like button more than once! Love it all, keep telling the truth!

Folks here should check out the most recent Climate Town video about coal, which touches on the utter and complete failure of "Clean coal", which was coal-fired power plant with carbon capture attached.

Excellent episode. Well delivered. Easy to understand. Keep these coming.

Great episode. Lots of facts to support the information. More episodes like this, please. Many thanks

Yes. And so is hydrogen. Green hydrogen is a smoke screen to produce grey hydrogen.

Actually, in the 1980s, sulfur capture tech and low sulfur fuel reduced acid rain (resulting from SOx air pollution) measurably and probably saved a few lakes and rivers in the North American eastern seaboard. This was done in large part with pollution credits.

Problem solved if Fossil Fuel producers are forced to eliminate the CO2 created from their products. Seems fair to have them or their customers pay to clean up the mess they made.

Great video! The time machine analagy was very informative 👌

The time machine analogy was an excellent visual. Thank You

Brilliant show - this should be compulsory viewing for all politicians and poluters alike! Wouldn't it be great if main-stream media were producing this quality of work?!

Love the bag of flour analogy.

I would like Fully Charged to more address the fact that every kilowatt of energy used to drag a 5 seater electric car they promote (obviously better than petrol) is still a horrendous waste of energy compared to public transit. Not to mention the disastrous effects on the way we built our cities, fine particle pollution from tyres, excess road deaths and chronic underinvestment from govt's who see a Tesla the same way they see `blue` hydrogen

Thank you for another great episode. Your conclusion is in complete sync with my rational. As a chemist: one unit of CO2 contains 27% carbon, the rest is oxygen. There is nowhere enough space under ground to take so much added mass. The carbon must stay underground, never be burnt. CCS = Oxygen Sequestration

Enjoyed this episode very informative and well-presented, it would be good to include in the descriptor the research links used. The time machine graphics were really good at putting things in perspective, well done.