249
date back to the oil embargo and are no longer sustainable or necessary. Externalized
costs such as the restoration of strip- mined lands, the remediation of impaired
streams from acid mine drainage, and the proper plugging of abandoned wells
should be returned to the industry. If the industry refuses to cooperate, these costs
can be included in the carbon tax on their products, further de-incentivizing production. Funding from a carbon tax should be used to remove CO 2 from the atmosphere
with Direct Air Capture systems.
We Must Repair Our Atmosphere and Environment All GHG emissions from
fossil fuel combustion should be captured as immediately as possible. This includes
both stationary sources like power plants, and mobile sources like automobiles.
Technology for CCS from stationary sources is available, but improvements in efficiency are needed. Technology for mobile sources exists, but has yet to be implemented. Converting automobiles from gasoline to compressed natural gas will have
a cost-saving incentive under this policy because CNG emits less CO 2 , resulting in
a lower carbon tax on emissions or a longer life for whatever CCS system is in
place. Direct air capture should be implemented around the world as quickly as possible. It can include planting trees, fertilizing the oceans to encourage algal blooms,
and using mechanical systems that remove and sequester CO 2 in locations like deserts or tundra that are unfavorable for plant life. Storage of captured CO 2 in solid
form as calcium carbonate (the mineral calcite) avoids problems with the gas leaking out of a storage formation and re-entering the atmosphere. The goal must be to
reduce and maintain CO 2 levels in the atmosphere at 300 ppm or less. This is the
maximum concentration reached between Ice Ages and the level in the atmosphere
prior to the start of the Industrial Revolution (refer back to Fig. 9.3). Sadly, with the
climate changes already set in motion this will help to mitigate climate disruptions
but will not eliminate them.
We Must Become a Multi-planet Species If we learned anything at all from the
OPEC oil embargo, it is that having all of our eggs in one basket is not a good idea.
In addition to climate disruptions, human civilization is at risk from asteroid
impacts, solar flares and coronal mass ejections from the sun, supervolcano eruptions, pandemics, and that old standby, accidental or deliberate nuclear war. Getting
a significant portion of our population off this planet and onto the moon, Mars, or
orbiting space colonies gives us a better chance for long-term survival as a species.
Moving our industrial base off Earth and into space will relieve pressure on the
fragile ecosystems of our planet, allowing them an opportunity to recover. There are
no ecosystems in space to damage, so manufacturing can proceed apace with abundant free energy from continuous sunlight and abundant raw materials easily moved
around from one low gravity environment to another. Robust industries in space and
on the moon will provide millions of job opportunities and incentives for people to
migrate from Earth to a literal “new world” with the added bonus of not colonizing
some indigenous person’s home in the process.
12.3 Recommendations
date back to the oil embargo and are no longer sustainable or necessary. Externalized
costs such as the restoration of strip- mined lands, the remediation of impaired
streams from acid mine drainage, and the proper plugging of abandoned wells
should be returned to the industry. If the industry refuses to cooperate, these costs
can be included in the carbon tax on their products, further de-incentivizing production. Funding from a carbon tax should be used to remove CO 2 from the atmosphere
with Direct Air Capture systems.
We Must Repair Our Atmosphere and Environment All GHG emissions from
fossil fuel combustion should be captured as immediately as possible. This includes
both stationary sources like power plants, and mobile sources like automobiles.
Technology for CCS from stationary sources is available, but improvements in efficiency are needed. Technology for mobile sources exists, but has yet to be implemented. Converting automobiles from gasoline to compressed natural gas will have
a cost-saving incentive under this policy because CNG emits less CO 2 , resulting in
a lower carbon tax on emissions or a longer life for whatever CCS system is in
place. Direct air capture should be implemented around the world as quickly as possible. It can include planting trees, fertilizing the oceans to encourage algal blooms,
and using mechanical systems that remove and sequester CO 2 in locations like deserts or tundra that are unfavorable for plant life. Storage of captured CO 2 in solid
form as calcium carbonate (the mineral calcite) avoids problems with the gas leaking out of a storage formation and re-entering the atmosphere. The goal must be to
reduce and maintain CO 2 levels in the atmosphere at 300 ppm or less. This is the
maximum concentration reached between Ice Ages and the level in the atmosphere
prior to the start of the Industrial Revolution (refer back to Fig. 9.3). Sadly, with the
climate changes already set in motion this will help to mitigate climate disruptions
but will not eliminate them.
We Must Become a Multi-planet Species If we learned anything at all from the
OPEC oil embargo, it is that having all of our eggs in one basket is not a good idea.
In addition to climate disruptions, human civilization is at risk from asteroid
impacts, solar flares and coronal mass ejections from the sun, supervolcano eruptions, pandemics, and that old standby, accidental or deliberate nuclear war. Getting
a significant portion of our population off this planet and onto the moon, Mars, or
orbiting space colonies gives us a better chance for long-term survival as a species.
Moving our industrial base off Earth and into space will relieve pressure on the
fragile ecosystems of our planet, allowing them an opportunity to recover. There are
no ecosystems in space to damage, so manufacturing can proceed apace with abundant free energy from continuous sunlight and abundant raw materials easily moved
around from one low gravity environment to another. Robust industries in space and
on the moon will provide millions of job opportunities and incentives for people to
migrate from Earth to a literal “new world” with the added bonus of not colonizing
some indigenous person’s home in the process.
12.3 Recommendations