From Greenpeace's point of view, the underground storage of carbon dioxide is only a "sham solution" that should not obscure the need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. "Emissions in industrialized countries like Germany must be reduced quickly by accelerating the energy transition to LNG speed and consistently saving energy," said Karsten Smid, climate expert at the environmental organization, with a view to Federal Minister of Economics Robert Habeck (Greens) traveling to Norway German press agency.
Habeck traveled to the Scandinavian country on Wednesday evening for talks on energy and economic issues. The underground storage of carbon dioxide and future imports of climate-friendly hydrogen from Norway are among the topics of the trip.
Norway has been storing CO2 underground for a number of years. Federal Research Minister Bettina Stark-Watzinger (FDP) recently spoke out in favor of rapid approval of underground CO2 storage in Germany and a corresponding change in the law. In a report on the status of implementation and experience with the technology that was approved by the cabinet in December, it is stated that the legal situation in Germany is currently opposed to carbon dioxide storage.
There is resistance to the technologies known as CCU (Carbon Capture and Utilization) and CCS (Carbon Capture and Storage). We are talking about environmental hazards in the event of an uncontrolled escape of CO2 from such storage facilities.
Smid said the risks of possible leaks from underground storage facilities are serious and that liability issues in the event of CO2 escaping remain unresolved. Nature-based solutions for CO2 storage such as protecting moors and forests are more efficient solutions.
The federal government's report states that the legal framework should be changed in the short term so that initially only the planning of CO2 pipelines is possible. Their recommendations are "subject to an in-depth examination".
Greenpeace expert Smid said so-called negative emissions techniques are a sham solution that will not help a large part of the economy on the way to climate neutrality. Carbon neutrality means that all greenhouse gases must be avoided or stored.
