Railla Puno delivered a presentation based on working paper “Rights-based Approaches for Carbon Dioxide Removal: Asia in Focus” at the 7^th edition of the Gonzaga in Florence Human Rights Conference with this year’s theme of Climate Change and Human Rights. The Conference was held in Florence, Italy from 24-25 May 2023 and was hosted by the University of Gonzaga School of Law.

ABSTRACT: 

Rights-based Approaches for Carbon Dioxide Removal: Asia in Focus

Climate change is affecting people all around the globe and have wide-ranging and severe consequences on the environment and on humanity.^[1] In 2015, the world rejoiced as the Paris Agreement was agreed upon in which countries set the goal of keeping average global warming to 2℃ and pursue efforts towards a cap of 1.5℃ above pre-industrial levels. However, as of November 2022, current national polices still put us at a projected warming of 2.7℃ above pre-industrial levels.^[2]

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, in its Special Report on Global Warming at 1.5℃, provided pathways on how to achieve this ambitious goal. The report shows that carbon dioxide removal (CDR) of 100-1000 GtCO2 will be required over the 21st Century, but notes that this accelerated level of removal is unprecedented and unproven, and that further work needs to be done on its feasibility and sustainability.^[3] In the Synthesis Report for the 6^th Assessment Report, the IPCC goes as far to say that CDR is necessary to achieve net-negative CO2 emissions.^[4]

 CDR is defined as the process of removing CO2 from the atmosphere through two main types. The first is by enhancing existing natural processes that remove carbon from the atmosphere and the second is by using chemical processes to capture CO2 from the atmosphere and storing it elsewhere.^[5] As of April 2023, ETC has identified 37 completed and 422 ongoing projects on carbon dioxide removal globally. These projects include artificial upwelling, bio-energy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS), biochar, carbon capture and storage (CCS), carbon capture use and storage (CCUS), direct air capture, enhanced weathering, and ocean fertilization. Of the ongoing projects, 383 are land-based while 28 are ocean-based. There are also 236 planned projects, 184 of which are land-based and 27 are ocean-based.^[6]

Asia, and Southeast Asia in particular, is set to play a big role in CDR deployment. In fact, according to the Singapore Energy Center, the region can hold and store 300 billion tons of carbon dioxide. ExxonMobil has already announced its plans to build a network of CCS facilities across the region, with Singapore serving as a collection hub for this endeavor.^[7] This is despite the lack of carbon pricing policies, guidelines, and safeguards on CDR in most countries within the region.

Many environmentalists and human rights advocates are wary of the implications of the widespread use of CDR. The various types of CDR are at different levels of development, research, and deployment. The IPCC in the Synthesis Report for AR6 also warns of maladaptation and adverse side effects from CDR.^[8] These risks include lack of permanence, reversal and leakage, double counting, and disruption of biodiversity. This could compound climate-related risks to biodiversity, food and water security, and livelihoods.^[9]

In addition, implementing CDR in a socially equitable manner that respects both substantive and procedural human rights will be a major challenge given the uneven distribution of available technology, capacity, and finance. It is vital that social and environmental protections are in place to ensure that the guiding principles of the Agreement—including the promotion of human rights, ecosystems integrity, and climate justice—are respected when taking action to address climate change. To this end best practices on environmental and social safeguards are necessary.

^[1] United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, Climate Change: Impacts, Vulnerabilities, and Adaptation in Developing Countries UNFCCC Secretariat, 2007.
^[2] Addressing Global Warming, Climate Tracker, https://climateactiontracker.org/global/temperatures/.
^[3] Eds. V. Masson-Delmotte et al., Global warming of 1.5°C. An IPCC Special Report, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), 2018.
^[4] Lee, H., et al, Synthesis Report of the IPCC Sixth Assessment Report (AR6): Summary for Policymakers (IPCC), 2023.
^[5] FAQ Chapter 4, IPCC, https://www.ipcc.ch/sr15/faq/faq-chapter-4/.
^[6] Geoengineering Map, Geoenineering Monitor, https://map.geoengineeringmonitor.org.
^[7] Mayuko Tani, ExxonMobil Plans Carbon Capture Network in Southeast Asia, Nikkei Asia, 2021.
^[8] IPCC 2023
^[9] IPCC 2023