Toby
Obviously CO2 sucks big time.
There's lots of fantastic ways to reduce emissions but if we really want to get anywhere we're going to have to start capturing CO2. This is because we've already emitted so much, and because some things just aren't getting to carbon neutral any time soon. Some great methods for carbon capture and storage exist but they are typically expensive and difficult to scale due to their use of complex technologies and energy intensity. Algae has been capturing CO2 for aeons so I wondered how it could be used in this case. Some basic calculations show it has potential but there are so many unknowns it's hard to say with any confidence. I started this project to try and capture a whole whopping kilogram of CO2 using some algae in my garden.
What is a kilogram of CO2? It's about 7 miles in an efficient European car (ignoring the footprint of making the thing or producing the fuel), half a pint of milk, or about a third of a burger. I'm under no illusion working at this scale will offset much damage - it may not even cover the CO2 cost of materials - but hopefully it will provide some interesting data, a productive distraction from the current pandemic, and some new challenges to solve.
I also felt that I had to do something impactful, beyond the reasonably low emission lifestyle I already lead. Pat the Bunny said "I do what I got to, to be able to breathe!", and that feels pretty relevant right now.
Darrell Johnson
Joseph Demers
Chali Baicunn
justin