Carbon dioxide removal

+ ARR – Afforestation, Reforestation, Revegetation
Forestation, including reforestation and afforestation, is the process of growing trees to establish forests or woodlands. Agroforestry integrates trees within agriculture production systems. Given the large amount of degraded land globally, forestation and agroforestry offer substantial opportunities to remove carbon from the atmosphere while simultaneously providing essential co-benefits to communities and nature.

+ Coastal Blue Carbon includes restoration and/or establishment of mangroves, salt marshes, and seagrass meadows to promote carbon storage in coastal environments.

+ IFM – Improved Forest Management techniques increase carbon storage in forests and in wood products, such as extending harvest rotations or protecting against pest and disease infestation.

+ Soil Carbon removal involves adoption of new conservation and/or regenerative agricultural management practices that increase the amount of organic carbon stored in soil. These practice changes can stem the substantial global loss of soil carbon and associated GHG emissions resulting from the inception of human agriculture. Agriculture both contributes to GHG emissions and is especially vulnerable to the impacts of climate change.

+ BECCS – Bioenergy with Carbon Capture and Storage utilizes biomass to produce electricity, heat, fuels, or other bioenergy products while simultaneously capturing and storing any attendant CO2 emissions. For a broader definition, see BiCRS.

+ BiCRS – Biomass Conversion with Carbon Removal and Storage involves harvesting biomass for the primary purpose of removing CO2 from the atmosphere and geologically storing or incorporating it into long-lived products. For a more specific type of BiCRS, see BECCS.

+ Biochar is sustainably sourced biomass that is pyrolyzed (heated in the absence of oxygen) to produce a carbonaceous material that is recalcitrant to the natural decomposition process and is commonly used as a soil amendment.

+Bio-oil is sustainably sourced biomass that is pyrolyzed (heated in the absence of oxygen) to produce an oil that can be geologically injected for long-term storage.

+Carbon Dioxide Mineralization (surficial) is a carbon removal pathway that accelerates the natural reaction between atmospheric CO₂ and reactive minerals, converting CO₂ into stable carbonate minerals. This process enables highly durable carbon storage and represents one of the most permanent forms of carbon removal.

+ DAC – Direct Air Capture is an engineered process where CO2 is captured from ambient air and results in a concentrated stream of CO2 that can be stored geologically, incorporated into products, or mineralized.

+ ERW – Enhanced Rock Weathering in croplands involves spreading crushed alkaline materials onto agricultural fields. As these materials dissolve, they catalyze the conversion of CO2 into bicarbonate. This dissolved inorganic carbon drains through waterways to the ocean (a carbon sink).