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Air pollution impacts from carbon capture and storage (CCS)
EEA Technical report No 14/2011

Released: 2011/11/17: See the report

Abstract:
Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) consists of the capture of carbon dioxide (CO2) from power plants and/or CO2-intensive industries such as refineries, cement, iron and steel, its subsequent transport to a storage site, and finally its injection into a suitable underground geological formation for the purposes of permanent storage. It is considered to be one of the medium term 'bridging technologies' in the portfolio of available mitigation actions for stabilising concentrations of atmospheric CO2, the main greenhouse gas (GHG).

This report comprises two separate complementary parts that address the links between CCS implementation and its subsequent impacts on GHG and air pollutant emissions on a life-cycle basis:
- Part A discusses and presents key findings from the latest literature, focusing upon the potential air pollution impacts across the CCS life-cycle arising from the implementation of the main foreseen technologies. Both negative and positive impacts on air quality are presently suggested in the literature — the basis of scientific knowledge on these issues is rapidly advancing.
- Part B comprises a case study that quantifies and highlights the range of GHG and air pollutant life‑cycle emissions that could occur by 2050 under a low-carbon pathway should CCS be implemented in power plants across the European Union under various hypothetical scenarios. A particular focus of the study was to quantify the main life-cycle emissions of the air pollutants taking into account the latest knowledge on air pollutant emission factors and life-cycle aspects of the CCS life-cycle.

Contributors from the (former) ETC/ACC: Toon van Harmelen,Arjan van Horssen, Magdalena Jozwicka and Tinus Pulles (TNO, NL) and Naser Odeh (AEA Technology, UK). Hans Eerens (PBL, NL) a.o. for providing energy projections for 2050.

EEA Project manager: Martin Adams

Publish date: 2011/11/17

Published by: © EEA (European Environment Agency), Copenhagen, 2011