On Thursday, U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Ranking Member of the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee, joined U.S. Senators Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) to introduce bipartisan legislation to support the development of innovative technologies that ensure cleaner, healthier, and safer air and environment.
The bipartisan Carbon Removal, Efficient Agencies, Technology Expertise (CREATE) Act boosts research and development of carbon removal technologies that advance global sustainability by removing harmful greenhouse gas emissions from the air.
“In order to advance carbon capture, utilization, and storage technologies, we need an informed effort from the federal level, and that’s exactly what the CREATE Act seeks to accomplish. Our local economies, workers in energy-producing states, and the protection of our environment all stand to benefit from this bipartisan legislation, which lays the foundation for commonsense carbon capture policy in the future,” Ranking Member Capito said.
“Our bipartisan bill boosts innovative technologies to keep our air clean, protect Arizonans’ health, and grow our economy – ensuring our state remains a safe place to call home for generations to come,” Senator Sinema said.
“Carbon removal technologies have great promise to help reduce net emissions and their concentration in our atmosphere,” Senator Murkowski said. “I’m proud to reintroduce the CREATE Act to help ensure greater coordination across federal agencies, allowing us to better pursue a wide range of innovative technologies that benefit our economy and the environment at the same time.”
“This CREATE Act will provide a useful supplement to my many efforts to support industrial carbon reduction, in this case by encouraging collaborative efforts to advance carbon management technologies,” Senator Whitehouse said. “I’m pleased to be again working with colleagues from both sides of the aisle on evidence-based legislation to lead the planet to safety in the race against climate change.”
Research shows that Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR) can play a significant role addressing excess carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Since CDR is early in its development, robust use of CDR calls for a new comprehensive federal research, development, and demonstration program.
The bipartisan CREATE Act would develop a comprehensive federal initiative for CDR by:
- Creating within the National Science and Technology Council, a new interagency group on Large-Scale Carbon Management that will be co-chaired by the Office of Science and Technology Policy and officials from the Department of Energy, Department of Agriculture, Department of Defense, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
- Establishing four working groups within the Large-Scale Carbon Management interagency group to pursue a technological and detailed CDR research and demonstration initiative across several federal agencies. The working groups will coordinate with the Office of Management and Budget to enhance existing research programs as well as establish new ones to deliver commercial-ready CDR innovations within a decade.
- Require that the working groups focus on carbon removal in the oceans, atmosphere, and land using both natural and technological approaches.
