EGU 2012: going green on (and under) the ground

The thousands of delegates congregating in Vienna this year will find the EGU making further efforts to “green” the meeting - badge lanyards are made from bamboo fibre rather than PET and the conference schedule is smaller to save paper. It seems only appropriate, since many of the sessions at the conference will focus on the cryosphere (shrinking), climate (warming), natural resources (under pressure) and energy. But are such measures just a drop in the ocean, especially as environmental issues appear to have fallen down the priority list for many governments? Indeed, governments received a call for action within the first half hour of the conference opening, with Millie Basava-Reddi of the International Energy Agency Greenhouse Gas R&D programme (IEAGHG) stressing the need for investment in carbon storage, in her talk presented by session chair Michael Kühn due to a delayed flight.

While the G8 nations would like to see 20 carbon capture and storage projects up and running by 2020, the IEA target is 100 by 2020 and 3,400 by 2050. The agency’s latest assessment, however, indicates that while 20 projects are feasible for 2020 its own roadmap isn’t, with just 50 projects likely by 2025. Worldwide there are currently 14 large-scale integrated projects in operation or execution; 2011 saw 74 large-scale projects in at least the planning stage. Basava-Reddi called on governments to allow for long project lead times - up to fifteen years - and to help to provide up-front investment.