Title: The State of the Art on Mineral-based Ocean Alkalinity Enhancement: Efficacy, Safety, MRV and Public Perceptions
Mineral-based ocean alkalinity enhancement (OAE) encompasses a suite of strategies in which silicate (e.g., olivine) and hydroxide (e.g., brucite) minerals are added to the ocean to dissolve, generate alkalinity, and ultimately drive carbon dioxide removal (CDR) from the atmosphere. Models have consistently predicted that mineral-based OAE could achieve gigatonne-scale CDR potential and is therefore worthy of serious consideration as a climate mitigation tool. In the past three years alone, multiple field trials of mineral-based OAE have been conducted around the world, and critical learnings have begun to emerge regarding efficacy, safety, MRV strengths and limitations, as well as community responses to deployment. However, because publication timelines are slow, these findings remain primarily known within the community of academics and practitioners directly involved in the field. Here, we provide an overview of the state of the art for this important class of CDR strategies, with real-world examples from an olivine-based OAE trial in North Carolina.
Grace Andrews is the Founder and Executive Director of Hourglass Climate, a nonprofit focused on mineral-based ocean alkalinity enhancement (OAE).
