After long negotiations, Germany last week enabled the underground storage of captured carbon dioxide. Last Friday, Germany's upper house of parliament adopted the law of carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology on an experimental basis. The law, now awaiting the signature of President Joachim Gauck, will enable a capture of 1.3 million tons of carbon dioxide and its underground storage. The law contains a clause that allows the individual federal states to ban this technology.
In particular, opponents of the CCS technology mention the high costs, the resistance of citizens and technological complexity. CCS involves capturing of carbon dioxide produced by fossil-fuel power plants and its subsequent storage in underground geological formations such as depleted oil and gas reservoirs. If the carbon dioxide escapes from the reservoirs, it could poison water sources or suffocate people and animals on the surface. According to proponents of the CCS technology, is an important tool in the fight against climate change.
-tk-