(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2022-11-05)
Simmons, Richard A.; Murphy, Sharon
Achieving net zero carbon emissions will require a combination of renewable energy technologies and carbon capture. Indeed, a great deal of investment has been devoted to the source side of the ledger, such as replacing fossil fuels with renewables, making combustion processes more efficient, and leveraging nuclear energy. Considerably less funding has flowed toward solving the problem of accumulating emissions in the atmosphere, for instance by capturing carbon at the point of electricity generation, or extracting carbon prior to combustion. Nonetheless, a variety of studies have shown that the lowest societal cost means of achieving net zero emissions, as well as ensuring a resilient grid, must include carbon capture. This whitepaper discusses the role of the southeast in this broader nation carbon capture landscape, particularly focusing on the question “What will be the role of Southeast region in this broader national carbon capture effort in the United States?”