Reps. Peters, Curtis Introduce Bill to Ensure a Cleaner and Healthier Atmosphere for the Future

Press Release

Today, Rep. Scott Peters (CA-52) and Rep. John Curtis (UT-03) introduced the Carbon Removal and Emissions Storage Technologies Act of 2022 (CREST Act). Carbon dioxide removal (CDR) is the removal of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere through natural or engineered processes to clean our air and ensure we stop increasing global warming. This legislation would expand research, testing, and public-private partnerships to advance carbon removal technologies to the point that they can be deployed to meet our goal of curbing climate change.

The CREST Act expands the Department of Energy's (DOE) carbon removal research and development programs to focus on solutions like biomass carbon removal/storage, carbon utilization, ocean carbon removal and carbon mineralization. The bill also creates a Carbon Removal First Movers Pilot Program to accelerate the deployment of proven carbon removal solutions. The CREST Act was introduced in the Senate by Senators Susan Collins (R-ME) and Maria Cantwell (D-WA).

"Advanced technologies that help our climate usually begin as expensive and complex endeavors," said Rep. Peters. "Removing carbon pollution from our air requires coordination among many actors in the coming decades to grow to the necessary scale. The bipartisan CREST Act builds on successful legislation like the Energy Act of 2020 and Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act to further support early-stage carbon removal innovation and help kickstart this industry in the United States."

Earlier this year, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) found that carbon removal solutions will be essential to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions, especially to counterbalance sectors with emissions that are difficult to mitigate, such as steel production and long-haul aviation.

Key provisions of the Carbon Removal and Emissions Storage Technologies Act of 2022:

Expands federal carbon removal research and development programs.
Expands research on algal biomass with carbon capture, aquatic biomass carbon removal, and carbon dioxide conversion including techniques such as enhanced photosynthesis and root growth.
Establishes a new initiative focused on developing new products from carbon dioxide.
Provides funding to conduct carbon mineralization pilot projects and field experiments to examine the use of mine tailings and industrial wastes for carbon mineralization.
Provides funding to research, develop, and demonstrate manufacturing techniques for direct air capture technologies.
Requires a comprehensive assessment of pathways, methods, and technologies able to directly remove carbon dioxide from the oceans.
Creates a five-year Carbon Removal First Movers Pilot Program to accelerate the deployment and market commercialization of proven carbon removal technologies.
Establishes a competitive purchasing program to support innovative companies that are cost-effectively removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
70% of the funding is dedicated to companies removing carbon dioxide for more than 1,000 years. 30% is for companies removing carbon dioxide between 100 and 1,000 years.

Source