--- title: "UN Taking Carbon Removal Tech Very, Very Seriously in New Report" description: "A forthcoming UN report is finally set to lay out a roadmap for the various forms of carbon removal technology out there to its member nations." date: "2022-03-21" modified: "2022-03-21" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/un-carbon-removal" categories: - "Climate Change" - "Environment" - "Science & Energy" tags: - "carbon removal" - "climate change" - "ipcc" - "the digest" - "united nations" --- # UN Taking Carbon Removal Tech Very, Very Seriously in New Report ![]() *\Image: Carbon Engineering\* ## Suck It Up A forthcoming United Nations report is set to lay out a roadmap for implementing various forms of carbon removal technology. In addition to emissions reduction efforts, effective carbon removal technology could bring us back from the brink of a climate catastrophe. Professor Jim Skea, an Imperial College London fellow in climate science and co-chair of the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), [**told the *BBC*** ]()that the panel's latest report will focus on mitigation efforts as well as carbon removal. "The report was scoped out to cover the full spectrum of carbon dioxide removal approaches, which vary absolutely hugely, and the carbon dioxide that is removed can end up in very different stores and in very different places," Skea told the *BBC*. "So it was within the scope of the report to cover the whole lot, basically." According to Skea, the 3,000 page report will cover a range of approaches from planting trees and other agricultural efforts to remove carbon from the atmosphere to [advanced carbon capture machines]() that suck CO2 out of the air. ## Carbon Removal 2.0 The review, which is due to be released early next month, is going to focus for the first time on the social motivators of carbon removal and will hopefully aid adoption of carbon removal methods, Skea said. He added that — unlike [the IPCC's last report]() about the terrifying, apocalyptic consequences of unmitigated climate change — this latest report will not be "unremitting doom and gloom." What will ultimately come from the report will depend on the outcome of negotiations between government representatives from almost 200 countries, a delicate process that will likely take a considerable amount of time. But in the end, it's all about setting the tone going forward. "What I think we have to convey in our report is that the activities of humans have caused climate change, but human beings also have the agency to do something about it," Skea told the *BBC*. "And that I think is a really big part of the messaging for the report." **READ MORE:** [Climate change: IPCC scientists to examine carbon removal in key report]() \[*BBC*\] **More on carbon removal:** *[Elon Musk Says SpaceX Is Going To Start Sucking CO2 Out Of The Air and Turn It Into Rocket Fuel]()* ## Author At Futurism, I've often been drawn to unpacking the narratives that underlie technological, scientific and medical progress, with a special interest in areas of conflict and ambiguity that end up setting agendas and steering the fates of both elites and the hoi polloi. I'm a committed generalist, but I often find myself returning to work involving NASA and the private space sector, the effects of AI on media and society, and the mechanics of the pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on the spread of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Prior to Futurism, I worked for publications ranging from Media Matters and Truthdig to Raw Story and Bustle. I'm also the author of "Myspace Scene Queens," a 2024 title in Instar Books' acclaimed "Remember the Internet" series. My work at Futurism has been cited by outlets including the New Yorker, Slate, Nieman Lab, the Verge, the MIT Technology Review, the Sunday Times, and the Daily Beast. I grew up in North Carolina, attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and now live in Brooklyn, New York. In my free time, I'm an avid reader and music fan; you can probably find me at a local poetry reading, concert, underground rave, or DJ set. I'm the proud parent of an ineffable orange cat named Mee-Mow. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()