What does Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR) mean?

Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR)  Carbon dioxide removal,  refers to approaches that remove carbon dioxide (CO ₂ ) from the atmosphere. CDR covers a wide range of approaches including direct air capture (DAC) coupled with permanent storage, soil carbon sequestration, biomass carbon removal and storage, enhanced mineralization, ocean CDR and afforestation/reforestation. The CDR does not apply to point source carbon capture for the fossil fuel or industrial sector. In conjunction with the current deployment of mitigation measures and other carbon management practices, the CDR is a tool to address emissions from the hardest-to-decarbonize sectors – such as agriculture and transport – and potentially eliminate legacy CO emissions ₂ from the atmosphere.

The world faces an urgent need to stop the increase in atmospheric greenhouse gas (GHG) levels and their devastating effects of climate change. Given the limited progress in rapidly reducing – or mitigating – global greenhouse gas emissions over the past several decades, CDR is now considered a critical element in achieving ambitious climate goals such as a net-zero economy by 2050. To achieve these goals FECM envisages the implementation of various CDR approaches to facilitate gigaton phase-out by mid-century, with rigorous analysis of life-cycle impacts and a deep commitment to environmental justice.

The following is a list of known CDR methods in order of their Technology Readiness Level (TRL). Those in the upper part have a high TRL of 8 to 9 (9 is the maximum possible value, which means that the technology is proven), those in the lower part have a low TRL of 1 to 2, which means that the technology is not proven or only validated in the laboratory scale.

1. Afforestation / forest restoration
2. Sequestration of soil carbon in arable and grassland soils
3. Restoration of bogs and coastal wetlands
4. Agroforestry, improvement of forestry
5. Biochar Carbon Removal (BCR)
6. Direct Airborne Carbon Capture and Storage (DACCS)
7. Bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS)
8. Improved weathering (increasing alkalinity)
9. Blue Carbon Management in Coastal Wetlands (Restoration of Vegetated Coastal Ecosystems; an ocean biological CDR method that includes
10.  mangroves, salt marshes and sea grasses)
11. Ocean fertilization, an increase in ocean alkalinity that amplifies the ocean carbon cycle

The CDR methods with the greatest potential to contribute to climate change mitigation efforts according to illustrative mitigation methods are terrestrial biological CDR methods (mainly afforestation/reforestation (A/R)) and/or bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS). . Some of the routes also include direct air capture and storage (DACCS).