McKinsey research shows that carbon dioxide removal, or CDR, could play a vital role in combating hard-to-abate emissions. These emissions are considered hard to abate because they come from activities that are crucial to our daily lives, such as heating, lighting, and the materials we use. But is it enough? In a new episode of The McKinsey Podcast, experts talk about the economic potential of CDR and the role it could play in reaching net-zero targets by 2050.
Estimates from the Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment’s The state of carbon dioxide removal report, for example, show that six to ten gigatons of CO2 in annual CDR capacity would likely be needed by 2050 for most Paris-aligned net-zero pathways.2 This capacity could not be delivered quickly, however, so efforts would need to begin as soon as possible to ensure 2050 scenarios are achievable.3
More here: Everything you wanted to know about carbon removals but were afraid to ask.
Also: Carbon Removals: How to scale a new gigaton industry.
