Digital Commons Network^™

Neutralizing The Atmosphere, Shelley Welton

All Faculty Scholarship

“Net zero” has rapidly become the new organizing paradigm of climate change law. In the past few years, thousands of countries, companies, states, and cities have developed pledges that promise by a set date—typically around 2050—that any carbon they emit will be counterbalanced by capturing an equal amount of carbon out of the atmosphere. Collectively, these pledges now cover more than 91% of the global economy. This widespread adoption of scientifically aligned climate policy appears on its surface like a cause for celebration. However, concerns are mounting. To date, critiques of net zero have centered on what this Feature terms …

Making Net Zero Matter, Albert C. Lin

Washington and Lee Law Review

In recent months, dozens of countries and thousands of businesses have pledged to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions. However, net zero often means different things to different entities, and it is often uncertain how net zero pledges—which set targets years or decades from the present—will be met. This Article considers the motivations behind net zero pledges, highlights the underappreciated role of carbon removal in net zero efforts, and identifies mechanisms for encouraging the accomplishment of net zero goals. Two key strategies are essential to making net zero targets matter. First, society should develop and implement accountability and enforcement mechanisms …

Turning Carbon Into Gold: Incentivizing The New Alchemy, Anthony E. Chavez

Duke Environmental Law & Policy Forum

One approach to help address climate change is carbon capture and utilization (CCU). CCU involves capturing atmospheric carbon dioxide and using it to generate marketable products. CCU, however, needs significant additional research and development to reach its potential. Development of CCU could yield benefits far in excess of its actual ability to sequester carbon. Research and development of CCU could stimulate improvements in carbon capture technologies, incentivize the capture and sequestration of carbon, and generate products that can benefit society generally. Nevertheless, most CCU uses remain only theoretical, or significant barriers prevent their current implementation.

A number of policy tools …

Avoiding Moonraker: Averting Unilateral Geoengineering Efforts, Antonia Eliason

University of Pennsylvania Journal of International Law

No abstract provided.

Ways To Grow: New Directions For Agricultural Technology Policy

Tech Policy Lab

This whitepaper, which grows out of interdisciplinary research at the University of Washington Tech Policy Lab, argues for a widening of the aperture with respect to contemporary technology policy in agriculture. Emerging technology could, as advertised, reduce costs and increase food production. But the industrial model of agriculture that technology currently supports—focused on faster, more, and cheaper— has its tradeoffs. Precision agriculture remakes the land to serve technology, introduces new sources of instability into agriculture, and contributes to the destabilization and vulnerability of the American food system. Greater resources should be allocated to “civic” agricultural approaches that transition away from …