In a policy brief published as part of a series by the World Resources Institute, Serena Li, Willy Carlsen, Hannah Harasaki and Caroline Ribeiro have categorized the CDR policies adopted by the US states into three groups that have distinct features presenting different areas for improvement:
i) States with the potential to meet and exceed their net-zero goals: These states have well-defined objectives to achieve net-zero that are supported by strong environmental regulations. In addition, they take steps geared towards incorporating climate justice concerns into their policies and are often members of groups taking ambitious climate actions and setting prices for carbon. That said, to reach their goals, they should adopt regulations to ensure that the deployment of CDR does not bring about safety concerns, set diverse goals for mitigation action and carbon and establish rules to ensure that CDR technologies are deployed in an equitable manner once local communities are consulted regarding potential impacts.
ii) States constructing infrastructure for carbon management purposes: These states who enjoy suitable geological conditions and favorable business policies for CDR deployment, have developed carbon management infrastructures to achieve their climate objectives. Possible areas of improvement pertain to the development of net zero plans that include explicit CDR goals, replacement of incentives for enhanced oil recovery with mechanisms that price carbon at the state and regional levels, engagement in joint actions with other states regarding the implementation of the projects that are linked to the removal, transfer and capture of carbon dioxide and facilitation of the use of nature-based CDR solutions.
iii) States that lack full-fledged CDR policies: These states have fairly ambitious climate goals but are yet to prepare a roadmap that can help them transition to a hub for CDR deployment and introduce CDR regulations to ensure that businesses that rely on fossil fuels do not continue operating within their borders in the long term.
Even though this categorization has been made in view of the specific characteristics of the states that have been analyzed, lessons learned from the practice of these states can be relevant for all states that seek to guide the deployment of CDR within their territories.
Read the full post here: How US States Can Lead on Carbon Removal Policy