Carbon capture and storage won't save the world from global warming, but it can play a significant role in curtailing global emissions of carbon dioxide. At the American Association for the Advancement of Science convention that wrapped up Monday in Vancouver, experts on carbon capture and storage indicated that the technology can work on a global scale to cut CO2 emissions back by 25 per cent over the next century. Speakers representing carbon capture (CCS) projects in Germany, Illinois and Western Australia all reported favourable results in projects that pull CO2 out of smokestacks and pump it deep underground for permanent storage. The point of the technology in all cases is to help head off a scenario where the planet's climate and weather systems are negatively impacted by a buildup of CO2 in the atmosphere due to burning of fossil fuel - oil, coal and natural gas. Coal accounts for half of annual CO2 emissions globally and it's the least expensive option for developing nations to extend electricity supply to all citizens as well as support industrial growth.