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R48159 — Selected Potential Considerations with Respect to Marine Carbon Dioxide Removal: In Brief

Reports · published 2025-03-10 · v4 · Active · crsreports.congress.gov ↗

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Authors
Caitlin Keating-Bitonti · Laura Gatz · Claire M. Jordan · Anthony R. Marshak
Report id
R48159
Summary

Congressional and external stakeholders have shown increased interest in carbon dioxide removal (CDR) approaches to mitigate rising atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations. Marine CDR (mCDR, also referred to as ocean or ocean-based CDR) is a subset of CDR approaches that relies on the ocean’s ability to absorb atmospheric CO2 and durably store carbon for prolonged periods of time (10s to more than 10,000s of years) in coastal and ocean environments. mCDR approaches include artificial upwelling/downwelling, direct ocean removal, macroalgal (seaweed) cultivation, ocean alkalinity enhancement, and ocean fertilization. While some stakeholders have proposed mCDR to help reduce rising atmospheric CO2 concentrations, research is still outstanding regarding the efficacy, cost, potential co-benefits, and potential unintended negative impacts of the full-scale deployment of mCDR approaches. For example, experts have proposed several potential negative impacts, including altered food web interactions, decreased light availability, eutrophication, loss of dissolved oxygen, and introduction of toxins, among other impacts to the marine ecosystem. Conversely, some experts have proposed that mCDR approaches may provide co-benefits to the marine environment, such as countering ocean acidification. Small-scale proof-of-concept field testing may be necessary to quantify CDR potential as well as the potential co-benefits and negative impacts associated with different mCDR approaches. Stakeholders contend that scaling and accelerating mCDR research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) is unlikely to happen without a regulatory framework that facilitates controlled field experiments. Congress may consider which U.S. laws are applicable to the various mCDR approaches and the potential challenges, if any, researchers may encounter in requesting permits to conduct field experiments or full-scale deployment of mCDR in the U.S coastal and ocean waters. Congress also may explore different policy options to centralize federal mCDR activities to address outstanding questions associated mCDR, including the following: What is the effectiveness of mCDR? What is the cost of mCDR? What are the potential co-benefits and negative impacts of mCDR? *Summary is to be suppressed.*

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