Halifax scientists have a plan to capture carbon from the atmosphere using mining materials
Halifax scientists have a plan to capture carbon from the atmosphere using mining materials
Halifax scientists have a plan to capture carbon from the atmosphere using mining materials
A Dalhousie University team of scientists — in a joint venture with a company called Planetary Technologies — is now in the next phase of their research to use the power of the ocean to one day reduce the world’s carbon levels.
Ruth Musgrave, assistant professor in the department of oceanography, and her team are measuring the characteristics of the water in the Halifax harbour.
She told CTV National News it is “laying the ground work” in order to test their innovative research on a larger scale.
The team has been researching what would happen if they add large amounts of purified and non-toxic mine tailings into the water in the hopes of accelerating the ocean’s natural process of pulling carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
The ocean absorbs between one quarter and one third of all carbon dioxide already, but as humans actively spew more and more emissions into the atmosphere, that natural balance is working overtime.
“It’s a race against time that we’re already losing,” Musgrave said. “We’re already seeing dramatic changes to the climate, and that’s only going to accelerate in time.”
Dr. William Burt, chief ocean scientist with Planetary Technologies, says the ocean’s work to clear up our atmosphere means that its current state is not what it used to be.
“The oceans are at very harmful acidic state right now, thanks to [200 to 300 years of] industrial emissions coming into our oceans and making them upwards to 40 per cent more acidic than they were prior to the industrial revolution,” he told CTV News.
But surely, putting waste material from mining into the water is a bad thing, right? Not once the mine tailings have been purified and put to work through the Accelerated Carbon Transition (ACT) Platform, according to scientists.
Their research suggests that not only could the purified mine tailings help the ocean pull carbon dioxide, it could act as an antacid when mixed with sea water, neutralizing the acidity and providing a use for mining waste at the same time.
“And when you do that, that alkalinity will transform carbon dioxide, and by doing that, you decrease the amount of carbon dioxide in that water,” he said.
Future pilot sites are being considered here in Halifax and in the U.K.
And in April, the project got a boost when it caught the attention of the Elon Musk Foundation.
Planetary Technologies are one of fifteen companies chosen to be awarded $1 million through Musk’s competition looking for new ideas to reduce the world’s current carbon levels.
“Winning the Xprize was about validation of our science, validation of our business,” Burt said.
The money will now be used to demonstrate their research on a much larger scale, which would put them in line to potentially win a future $50 million dollar prize. The winner will be announced in 2025, and if Planetary Technologies can demonstrate that their strategy works well enough to remove at least 1,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere per year, they could be well on their way to not only the grand prize, but a better world.
Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino is defending the RCMP’s yearslong and undisclosed use of spyware capable of accessing cell phone and computer microphones, cameras and other data as part of dozens of major investigations. Testifying before a parliamentary committee on Monday, Mendicino said the national police force's use of these tools has only be permitted in 'the most serious offences.'
Saskatoon police say a woman who had been reported missing is facing charges in the United States related to unauthorized use of identification and in Canada related to parental abduction and public mischief.
Sources close to the government's proposed $5.3 billion dental care program say the Liberals are planning a temporary solution that involves giving money directly to patients in order to keep their promise to the NDP while they work on a more permanent answer.
One day after Montreal Pride abruptly cancelled the parade just hours before it was set to begin, organizers didn't have much to say about how poorly they managed the festival's marquee event. And now there are concerns about how the embarrassing mistake could hurt the city's reputation.
A suspect already in handcuffs has allegedly managed to overpower a Toronto police officer and steal their SUV, sending police on a wild early morning chase.
Saskatoon police say a woman who had been reported missing is facing charges in the United States related to unauthorized use of identification and in Canada related to parental abduction and public mischief.
One day after Montreal Pride abruptly cancelled the parade just hours before it was set to begin, organizers didn't have much to say about how poorly they managed the festival's marquee event. And now there are concerns about how the embarrassing mistake could hurt the city's reputation.
A suspect already in handcuffs has allegedly managed to overpower a Toronto police officer and steal their SUV, sending police on a wild early morning chase.
The deputy mayor of a southern Newfoundland town says his community is running out of food as it remains cut off from the rest of the island due to the worst forest fires the province has seen in more than 60 years.
With a ceasefire between Israel and Palestinian militants holding after nearly three days of violence, Gaza's sole power plant resumed operations Monday and Israel began reopening crossings into the territory.
The white father and son convicted of murder in Ahmaud Arbery's fatal shooting after they chased the 25-year-old Black man through a Georgia neighbourhood were sentenced Monday to life in prison for committing a federal hate crime.
Authorities on Monday identified the fourth victim in a series of killings of Muslim men in New Mexico's largest city as the deaths sent ripples of fear through the Islamic community nationwide.
Close to one-third of the Palestinians who died in the latest outbreak of violence between Israel and Gaza militants may have been killed by errant rockets fired by the Palestinian side, according to an Israeli military assessment that appears consistent with independent reporting by The Associated Press.
In the wake of then-U.S. President Donald Trump's infamous photo-op at the height of the George Floyd protests, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley penned a lengthy and vociferous critique of Trump in a resignation letter he ultimately never sent, The New Yorker reported on Monday.
Bolivia's decision to open an alternate route to its historic 'Death Road' - a serpentine dirt path across the towering Andes hills known for its deadly cliffs - has led to a resurgence of wildlife in the area, according to an environmental group.
Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino is defending the RCMP’s yearslong and undisclosed use of spyware capable of accessing cell phone and computer microphones, cameras and other data as part of dozens of major investigations. Testifying before a parliamentary committee on Monday, Mendicino said the national police force's use of these tools has only be permitted in 'the most serious offences.'
Sources close to the government's proposed $5.3 billion dental care program say the Liberals are planning a temporary solution that involves giving money directly to patients in order to keep their promise to the NDP while they work on a more permanent answer.
The Public Health Agency of Canada is tracking the publicly reported cases of monkeypox across the country, updating the number of confirmed infections in each province and territory on a weekly basis.
A new study has found children who suffer from headache disorders have been experiencing more frequent pain and worse anxiety during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Talks to revive Tehran's tattered nuclear accord with world powers in Vienna ended Monday as the parties closed a final text and the Iranian negotiator prepared to return to his capital, diplomats said.
A trunk with its lid left open. A wooden dishware closet, its shelves caved in. Three-legged accent tables topped by decorative bowls. These latest discoveries by archaeologists are enriching knowledge about middle-class lives in Pompeii before Mount Vesuvius' furious eruption buried the ancient Roman city in volcanic debris.
While the peak of the Perseids meteor shower, one of the brightest of the year, may be next week, now may be the best time to see the astronomical event, according to The Weather Network.
Russia and Ukraine traded accusations Monday that each side is shelling Europe's biggest nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine. Russia claimed that Ukrainian shelling caused a power surge and fire and forced staff to lower output from two reactors, while Ukraine has blamed Russian troops for storing weapons there.
A Metro Vancouver shelter held what it called a 'pity party' for a dog who's been waiting to be adopted for more than a year - the first dog at the facility to wait that long in about even years.
The recent resignation of Hockey Canada's board chair could be a sign of further departures to come, says Simona Jellinek, a sexual abuse and assault lawyer.
The lone American team in a junior B hockey league based in British Columbia is pulling out of the upcoming season because it can't find enough players vaccinated against COVID-19 to fill its roster.
The new plan to encourage Americans to buy more electric vehicles built in North America, instead of just the United States, has cleared its tallest hurdle, and for the Canadian auto industry, the stakes are enormous.
