End-to-End System Emissions

End-to-End System Emissions can be quantified as:

$CO_2eEmissions=Energy_{CO_2e}+OpMat_{CO_2e}+CapMat_{CO_2e}$

Where:

$Energy_{CO_2e}$= The emissions associated with energy use in the process of CO₂ sequestration.

• Based on an assessment of life cycle emissions of the specific electricity or energy sources consumed on-site and via transport across all three carbon removal pathways.

$OpMat_{CO_2e}$= The associated emissions (including transport) of any materials consumed during project operations, processing, and manufacturing.

$CapMat_{CO_2e}$= The associated emissions of equipment, facility construction, and other capital expenditures related to project operations.

While there are inherent complexities associated with the deployment and quantification of a multi-pathway carbon removal system, its interconnectedness offers numerous quantification advantages, such as logistical (transport, delivery) and verification efficiencies. For example, wave sensors enable cumulative damage analyses of carbon buoys, allowing for validation of remotely sensed wave data, but also of expected macroalgae accumulation and carbonate dissolution rates. Similarly, compressed photos from ocean observation platforms provide visual information about both macroalgae growth rates and terrestrial biomass float times.

It is expected that this quantification approach will continue to mature as the research conducted advances our collective understanding of the ocean’s complex and interconnected systems.