No Easy Solution for Carbon Capture

No Easy Solution for Carbon Capture

碳捕获并无简单解决方案

【原文听力】

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　　By John Russell

　　29 November 2023

　　Countries are gathering for the 28th United Nations climate change conference in the United Arab Emirates at the end of November. Many will pay special attention to carbon capture to meet international commitments to decarbonize by mid-century.

　　Here are some details about the carbon capture industry as well as some of the issues facing its future.

　　Different kinds of carbon capture

　　There are two main kinds of carbon capture technology: carbon capture and storage (CCS) and carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS).

　　CCS, the most common form of carbon capture technology, involves capturing the gas from a source like an industrial smokestack. From there, the carbon can be moved directly to underground storage.

　　CCUS involves capturing the gas and using it in another industrial activity before storage.

　　There are currently 42 CCS and CCUS projects across the world. The Global CCS Institute says these projects can store 49 million metric tons of carbon dioxide each year. That amount is about 0.13 percent of the world's roughly 37 billion metric tons of yearly energy and industry-related carbon dioxide emissions.

　　Another form of carbon capture is direct air capture (DAC), in which carbon emissions are captured from the air.

　　About 130 DAC facilities are being planned around the world, says the International Energy Agency (IEA).

　　In August, the United States announced $1.2 billion in financing for two DAC projects in the states of Texas and Louisiana that promise to capture 2 million metric tons of carbon per year. However, a final investment decision on the projects has not been made.

　　High costs

　　Cost is one issue facing carbon capture technology.

　　CCS costs can go from $15 to $120 per metric ton of captured carbon depending on the emissions source. DAC projects are even more costly, between $600 and $1,000 per metric ton.

　　Some CCS projects in countries like Norway and Canada have been paused for financial reasons.

　　Developers say they need a carbon price, either in the form of a carbon tax, trading system or tax break, that makes it profitable to capture and store the carbon. Without that, only carbon capture projects that increase money in a different way - like through increased oil output - are profitable.

　　Countries including the U.S. have announced public subsidies for carbon capture projects. The Inflation Reduction Act, passed in 2022, offers a $50 tax credit per metric ton of carbon captured for CCUS and $85 per metric ton captured for CCS. The law also offers $180 per metric ton captured through DAC.

　　Although those are meaningful offers, companies may still need to take on some added costs to move CCS and DAC projects ahead, said Benjamin Longstreth, worldwide director of carbon capture at the Clean Air Task Force.

　　Locations

　　Where captured carbon can be stored is limited by geology – the land and processes of land formation in an area. The best storage places for carbon are in parts of North America, East Africa, and the North Sea, the Global CCS Institute says.

　　That means getting captured carbon to storage areas could require large pipeline networks or even shipping fleets. Developing such networks can create new difficulties.

　　In October, for example, a $3 billion CCS pipeline project proposed by Navigator CO2 Ventures in the U.S. was canceled amid community concerns about possible leaks and damage during the building process.

　　Companies investing in carbon removal need to take seriously community concerns about new infrastructure projects, said Simone Stewart of the National Wildlife Federation.

　　"Not all technologies are going to be possible in all locations," Stewart said.

　　I'm John Russell.

　　Leah Douglas reported on this story for Reuters. John Russell adapted it for VOA Learning English.

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　　作者：约翰·罗素

　　日期：2023年11月29日

　　各国将在11月底在阿联酋聚集，参加第28届联合国气候变化大会。许多国家将特别关注碳捕获技术，以满足在本世纪中期实现脱碳的国际承诺。

　　以下是关于碳捕获行业的一些详细信息，以及该行业未来面临的一些问题。

　　不同类型的碳捕获

　　主要有两种类型的碳捕获技术：碳捕获和储存（CCS）以及碳捕获、利用和储存（CCUS）。

　　CCS是最常见的碳捕获技术形式，其过程包括从工业烟囱等源头捕获气体。然后，碳可以直接转移到地下储存。

　　CCUS涉及捕获气体并在储存前在其他工业活动中使用它。

　　目前全球有42个CCS和CCUS项目。全球CCS研究院表示，这些项目每年可以储存4900万公吨二氧化碳。这个数量大约占全球每年约370亿公吨能源和工业相关二氧化碳排放的0.13%。

　　另一种形式的碳捕获是直接空气捕获（DAC），在这种方式中，碳排放物会从空气中被捕获。

　　国际能源署（IEA）表示，全球正在计划建设大约130个DAC设施。

　　今年8月，美国宣布为德克萨斯州和路易斯安那州的两个DAC项目提供12亿美元的融资，这两个项目承诺每年捕获200万公吨的碳。然而，对这些项目的最终投资决定尚未做出。

　　高昂的成本

　　成本是碳捕获技术面临的一个问题。

　　CCS的成本可以从每吨捕获碳的15美元到120美元不等，具体取决于排放源。DAC项目的成本甚至更高，每吨在600美元到1000美元之间。

　　像挪威和加拿大这样的国家，一些CCS项目因财务原因而被暂停。

　　开发商表示，他们需要一个碳价格，无论是以碳税、交易系统还是税收优惠的形式，使得捕获和储存碳变得有利可图。没有这个，只有那些以其他方式增加收入的碳捕获项目（如通过增加石油产量）才会盈利。

　　包括美国在内的一些国家已经宣布为碳捕获项目提供公共补贴。2022年通过的《通胀减少法案》为CCUS提供每吨捕获碳的50美元税收抵免，对于CCS则是每吨85美元。该法还为通过DAC捕获的每吨碳提供180美元的抵免。

　　尽管这些都是有意义的提议，但是清洁空气任务组织的全球碳捕获主管本杰明·朗斯特雷斯表示，公司可能仍需要承担一些额外的成本，以推动CCS和DAC项目的进展。

　　地点

　　捕获的碳可以储存的地方受到地质限制 -一个地区的土地和土地形成过程。全球CCS研究院表示，储存碳的最佳地点在北美、东非和北海。

　　这意味着将捕获的碳送到储存区可能需要大型管道网络，甚至是船队。开发这样的网络可能会带来新的困难。

　　例如，今年10月，美国Navigator CO2 Ventures提出的一项30亿美元的CCS管道项目因社区对可能的泄漏和建设过程中的破坏的担忧而被取消。

　　全国野生动物联盟的西蒙娜·斯图尔特表示，投资碳移除的公司需要认真对待社区对新基础设施项目的担忧。

　　"并非所有的技术都能在所有地点实现，"斯图尔特说。

　　我是约翰·罗素。

　　这个故事是莉亚·道格拉斯为路透社报道的。约翰·罗素为美国之音学习英语进行了改编。

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　　这个故事中的词汇

　　smokestack – n. 工厂、船只等的高大烟囱，用于排放烟雾

　　carbon dioxide – n.燃烧某些燃料时产生的气体

　　emission – n.发出或释放的东西

　　subsidy – n.通常由政府支付的资金，用于保持产品或服务的价格低廉

　　fleet – n.一群一起移动或工作的船只或车辆

　　infrastructure -- n. 一个国家运行所需的基本设备（如道路和桥梁）