Fifteen years ago, the idea of sucking carbon dioxide out of the air and storing it underground was an anathema to many in the climate movement, an excuse to avoid the hard work of cutting fossil fuel use. Now, it’s an imperative.

"What the science and the [Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change] tells us is that carbon removal is crucial to keep global temperature rise within 1.5 degrees [Celsius]," said Elizabeth Willmott, carbon program manager at Microsoft, during a breakout session at VERGE Net Zero. What’s more, "we need all removal types. Nature-based solutions, direct air capture [and] other engineering solutions simply aren't enough on their own."

For Willmott, who joined Microsoft five years ago, focusing on carbon removal is a big change from her previous roles. "Joining from the climate activist community, I was a real skeptic about carbon offsets overall … and I was even more so about carbon removal," she said. Now Willmott aligns with others in calling for a moonshot for carbon removal — or rather, an "earth shot," as Julio Friedmann, senior research scholar with the Center for Global Energy Policy, Columbia University, aptly puts it.

Corporate demand for carbon removal projects is not only rising, it’s outstripping supply, according to both Friedmann and Willmott. "We're now facing a really tight seller's market and … bluntly, we're concerned about whether or not we're going to make the volume," Wilmott said, referring to the carbon tons targeted by the company’s second request for carbon removal proposals.

Although it’s heating up, the market is still nascent and largely voluntary. It needs standards, regulations, transparency, investment and even human capital — project managers are in short supply — to reach the annual multi-gigaton capacity that’s necessary — and it needs to that fast.

Here are some key takeaways from the breakout sessions about carbon removal markets at VERGE Net Zero:

  1. Wanted: A common definition for 'quality' carbon removal
  2. Nature-based solutions offer strong potential, but durability is a concern
  3. Do your homework on soil carbon credits
  4. Engineered solutions are niche and expensive
  5. Not all tons are created equal — diversify your portfolio
  6. Compliance markets need to include carbon removal
  7. Carbon removal is an environmental justice concern

Read the full article about carbon removal by Meg Wilcox at GreenBiz.