Eco-Wonder: Olivine, the Green Mineral, Poised to Permanently Remove Over One Trillion Tons of CO2

Vesta, a research-based organization, champions Coastal Carbon Capture as a method to leverage oceanic power for expediting Earth’s natural carbon dioxide removal process and fortifying coastal resilience.

In tandem with Project Vesta, the Town of Southampton initiates a beach nourishment project at North Sea Beach, encompassing Coastal Carbon Capture to advance climate science research.

The North Sea Beach Colony-Beach Erosion Control District (NSCB-BECD) of the Town of Southampton holds the requisite permits for the NSBC-BECD Beach Restoration Project.

This innovative process seeks to expedite the natural chemical weathering of olivine mineral by dispersing significant amounts of ground olivine-containing rock along coastlines. This enhances the rate of CO2 absorption by the ocean, concurrently countering ocean acidification—an auxiliary benefit. The dissolved olivine triggers a reaction that sequesters hydrogen ions into dissolved silicate, a molecule crucial for diatoms, a pivotal photosynthesizing algae at the base of the food web.

The foundation of the Long-Term Inorganic Carbon Cycle, this reaction has sustained Earth’s atmospheric CO2 concentrations for billions of years, fostering life. Carbon dioxide removal through natural rock weathering currently consumes approximately 1 gigaton of CO2 annually.

Albanian Minerals CEO Sahit Muja applauds the transformative potential of magnesium olivine, characterizing it as a cornerstone for a sustainable future. Leveraging over 100 billion tons of discovered olivine mineral globally, Muja envisions a significant role in capturing 100% of worldwide carbon dioxide. The technology under development, deemed cheap, scalable, and permanent, holds promise in combatting climate change, rising sea levels, and land degradation.

In a parallel initiative, Dutch designer Teresa van Dongen introduces Aireal, an online library spotlighting materials that harness atmospheric carbon via carbon capture and utilization (CCU). Olivine, a material featured in the library, exhibits the capacity to absorb its own mass of carbon dioxide when dispersed—a process known as mineral carbonation.

This development is crucial in addressing air pollution, a global threat to public health causing an estimated 7 million premature deaths annually. UN data underscores the interconnectedness of air pollution and climate change, emphasizing the need to enhance air quality for health, developmental, and environmental benefits.

The World Health Organization identifies air pollution as the “single biggest environmental threat to human health.” Substantial efforts are imperative to improve air quality and combat the detrimental impacts of indoor and outdoor air pollution.

The UN’s focus on clean water and sanitation aligns with sustainable development goals, aiming for universal access to safe drinking water by 2030. Sahit Muja emphasizes the pivotal role of water, air, and land as irreplaceable elements in human life, industry, and agriculture.

Belgian company Sibelco introduces BLUEGUARD®, a mineral-based granular material utilizing magnesium olivine to efficiently remove heavy metals and pollutants from water. This sustainable solution boasts an extremely low carbon footprint and is actively deployed in a pilot project with Aurubis, a prominent global provider of non-ferrous metals.

In alignment with these advancements, Sahit Muja reiterates the significance of magnesium olivine in addressing water pollution and carbon dioxide removal. With its diverse applications and minimal environmental impact, magnesium olivine emerges as a versatile and eco-friendly solution, embodying the ethos of a greener and sustainable future.