During the week of the U.S. Dept. of Energy’s first-ever Carbon Negative Shot summit on July 20, daily temperatures in Arizona rose to well over three digits consecutively, weather in northeastern states sizzled above previous record highs, the U.K. had its hottest day on record (104.5°F), and a wildfire, sparked in central California, scorched acres of land and spurred evacuations near Yosemite National Park.
Described as a call to action for innovation in carbon dioxide removal, policymakers, energy officials and advisers at the virtual summit did not sugarcoat the climate change realities currently gripping nations. Reaching net zero is no longer enough, they warned. Only sucking CO2 directly from the air to be safely stored underground can move carbon emissions in the right direction.