The three-year partnership between NOAA and Carbon to Sea will establish guidelines to ensure consistency and comparability across marine carbon dioxide removal projects, enhancing the impact of research findings in this critical field.
Marine carbon dioxide removal (mCDR) refers to activities that increase the amount of atmospheric carbon dioxide absorbed and held by the ocean. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change considers carbon dioxide removal, along with rapid and deep emissions reductions over the next 10–20 years, critical to avoid the worst impacts of climate change. All climate scenarios that keep global temperatures below 1.5°C or 2°C above the pre-industrial time period require both immediate and deep reductions of all greenhouse gas emissions, as well as removing previously emitted carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. The mCDR research sector is growing rapidly worldwide, and it is supported by strong interest from industry and investors.
“As we confront the growing challenges of climate change, it’s crucial that we have robust and consistent methods for managing and sharing data in emerging fields like marine carbon dioxide removal,” said Steve Thur, Ph.D., NOAA Assistant Administrator for Oceanic and Atmospheric Research. “NOAA has long been known as an honest broker of sound science. This partnership will help us build a strong data management foundation for mCDR research, enabling more efficient collaboration and accelerating our understanding of these important technologies.”
The CRADA will focus on the development of best practices for consistent metadata, data, and terms. It will emphasize the need to assess the efficacy, scalability, impacts, measurement, reporting, and verification efforts of mCDR technologies. These guidelines will be applied across research efforts funded and supported by programs within NOAA and Carbon to Sea and will provide mCDR data management guidelines for researchers worldwide.
NOAA will contribute its subject matter expertise and technical data management capabilities to the partnership. Carbon to Sea, drawing on its network of ocean science data experts, will lead the development of community-led data management best practices through user requirements, literature reviews, stakeholder input, public comment periods, and training workshops.
This new partnership will build on the National Academies’ research strategy (2022), NOAA’s Carbon Dioxide Removal Research Strategy (2023), and efforts by the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy Marine Carbon Dioxide Removal Fast Track Action Committee, which delivered the new National Marine Carbon Dioxide Removal Research Strategy (2024).
“Given the urgency of the climate challenge we face, this partnership with NOAA is an important step towards responsibly assessing the viability of mCDR,” said Antonius Gagern, Executive Director of the Carbon to Sea Initiative. “We look forward to working with NOAA to establish strong and aligned data guidelines to help scientists share knowledge, improve their research, and ensure we can gain a clear picture of what we are learning from the field. We hope this CRADA can serve as a catalyst for the development and adoption of broader mCDR standards.”
