CO2 background - A technological race

Emissions of the green house gas CO2 in the atmosphere are about to change the global climate, and a technological race is on the way in order to minimise the effects from that proccess.

The so called "moon landing" project, deals with storing the CO2 in the underground and all indications show for the time being that this possible. But to do that we have first to develop a series of methods and techniques.

The amount of greenhouse gas CO2 in the atmosphere has increased from about 290 to about  380 ppm the last 100 years and in the same period the the global average temperature has increased from 13.6 degrees C to 14.4 degrees C. It is very likely that  human activities generating CO2, are the cause for both the excess ammount of CO2 in the atmosphere, the global temperature increase and other climate changes.

Depositing of CO2 in excausted oil reservoirs in the underground, or in  underground water reservoirs, have been launched as a part of the solution for reversing the climate changes. NGI is involved in several projects, feasibility studies for the time being for the so called "Moon landing prosject" by the prime minister Jens Stoltenberg in his new year speach in january 2004.

NGI's project leaders Elin Skurtveit and Eyvind Aker say that all laboratory results so far confirm that CO2 storage in the the underground is possible.

Depositing of CO2 in the underground cannot start by tommorow.  A series of new methods and techniques have first to be developed. CO2 must be trapped and cleaned from exhaust gasses effectively and economically; suitable deposit sites must be located/discovered and characterised; safe techniques must be developed for the injection of the CO2 in the deposit sites; monitoring methods of the sites before and after depositing the CO2.

NGI is involved in research projects in the three last areas.