CDR Centre applauds Alberta government carbon dioxide removal support

CALGARY — JORDEN DYE, director of the Pembina Institute’s Carbon Dioxide Removal Centre (CDR Centre), made the following statement in response to the Government of Alberta’s announcement that it will provide funding to Deep Sky’s direct air capture project in Innisfail.

“We would like to congratulate the Alberta government on its initial investment in carbon dioxide removal (CDR). This is an important contribution to an innovative project that has strong community support. CDR is a critical component of climate action, and it’s great to see the Alberta government supporting new industries that remove emissions.

“We must stay focused on immediate, deep and sustained emissions reductions. But that alone won't be enough to avoid the worst impacts of climate change. Carbon dioxide removal can help address the emissions we've already released during the last 150 years that continue to have a warming impact on our climate.

“It’s encouraging to see that the Alberta government recognizes the CDR industry as the economic opportunity that it is. CDR is economic diversification, bringing with it thousands of jobs and another form of tax revenue to participating Alberta communities.

“Alberta has all the essential elements to become a global leader in the carbon removal space, including one of the best and abundant geological formations to safely store emissions, a skilled workforce that already knows how to handle carbon dioxide storage, and the abundant renewable energy needed to power direct air capture plants.

“The province won’t be able to fully seize this economic opportunity, though, without the continued viability and trust in the Technology Innovation and Emissions Reduction (TIER) system. TIER is crucial both in providing a market in the future for CDR credits but also for generating funds to direct to these types of innovative emission reduction and removal technologies that can benefit the whole economy.”

Jorden Dye, director of the CDR Centre, is available for comment.

Quick facts

In 2024, buyers announced commitments to purchase over 70,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide removal from Canadian projects.
The CDR industry is a potential economic powerhouse that could create 95,000 to 130,000 jobs per year if we removed the equivalent of just 15 per cent of Canada’s annual emissions, according to a recent Rhodium Group report.

Background

The Carbon Dioxide Removal Centre (CDR Centre) is an initiative of the Pembina Institute. The CDR Centre aims to build CDR awareness for decision-makers, spur CDR market activity in Canada and encourage public procurement of CDR.