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CARBON CAPTURE AND STORAGE - A REAL SOLUTION?

nicolasch

Member since: 13/09/2010

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Topics: 8

Replies: 0

Posted on 13/09/2010

The Independent on Sunday ran a supplement the other weekend titled "The New Energy Future" (sponsored by Shell), written by Michael McCarthy. In it he suggested that one of the 'low-carbon forms of energy production that we need to turn' to is Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) from new coal, gas and oil generating power stations. Clearly CCS is no relation to a 'low-carbon form of energy' it is simply a way of hiding the carbon and hoping it never inconveniently reappears! He pointed out that this was an untried technology that may not even work but a few sentences later 'It is hard to overemphasise just how vital CCS will be...'. It is clear that currently CCS is just a wish and a hope but we have to ask whether this is really a long-term, permanent solution to our problems and if not, whether we should be pursuing it at all? In my book, a fix is not a permanent solution and we should be very clear when talking about things like CCS into which category they fall. If we acknowledge that CCS really is just a temporary fix and not a permanent solution (TQM), would the government be willing to pour the same enormous amounts of money into developing it??! We need clarity in our thinking about possible solutions.

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