The challenge
Achieving a low-emission economy for Australia
Global warming, largely caused by increases in greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, is a modern challenge. While various actions can be taken to reduce emissions, the size of the problem is so large that a mix of approaches is necessary.
Our response
Creating a world-class facility
The National Geosequestration Laboratory (NGL) provides critical research to develop innovative solutions that will minimise risk and uncertainty regarding the long-term underground storage of carbon dioxide.
The world-class, national facility is a collaboration between CSIRO, The University of Western Australia and Curtin University, and builds on the successes of the Western Australian Energy Research Alliance (WA:ERA) with the support of the WA department of Mines and Petroleum. The Department of Industry, Innovation, Science, Research and Tertiary Education (DIISR&T) provided $48.4m through the Government's Education Investment Fund to build the infrastructure and procure laboratory equipment to support Australia's first CCS Flagship, the South West Hub and other national and international CCS projects.
The results
Delivering innovative solutions
The NGL’s research and education infrastructure is being be used to:
- provide innovative scientific and technological solutions for issues of carbon transport, injectivity and storage that are currently inhibiting broad deployment of commercial-scale CCS
- design, test, and implement technologies for effective and efficient monitoring of carbon storage and verification of containment security to provide holistic risk management of CCS
- develop and test strategies for public outreach, communication, and risk analysis to build public support and provide university research and training programs to enhance Australia’s capacity in carbon storage science and engineering.
The establishment of the NGL is a significant drawcard for attracting international research talent and cooperation and will provide opportunities for large scale collaboration on a local, national and international scale between government, industry and the community.