Burial Of Crop Residues At Sea To Sequester Carbon Dioxide

摘要

Making bales with 30% of global crop residues, such as corn stalks left after harvesting, and then sinking the bales into the deep ocean could reduce the buildup of global carbon dioxide in the atmosphere by up to 15% a year, according to published calculations from a researcher at the University of Washington.rnAccording to Stuart Strand, the process could be accomplished with existing technology and it could be done year after year thus sequestering, or locking up, the carbon in seafloor sediments and deep ocean waters. 30% of the world's crop residue represents 600 megatons of carbon that, if sequestered in the deep ocean with 92% efficiency, the efficiency calculated by Strand, would mean the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere would be reduced from 4000 megatons of carbon to 3400 megatons annually. The ocean waters below 1500 metres do not mix significantly with the upper waters and the deep ocean is cold, oxygen is limited and there are few marine organisms that can break down crop residue. That would mean that the residues would stay for thousands of years.