Founded in Switzerland in 2009 by two mechanical engineers, the company Climeworks has set itself the goal of responding urgently and effectively to the problem of climate change. I have chosen to offer my support by donating a part of my sales to the start-up every month.

"Our mission is clear: to protect our planet and ensure a livable future for generations to come, the IPCC says that global warming must be limited to 1.5°C. To maximize our chances of achieving this, the world must reach net zero emissions by 2050," explain the two founders of Climeworks, Christoph Gebald and Jan Wurzbacher.

An absolute and urgent necessity

However, the more time passes, the more urgent it becomes. In its latest report published in March 2023, the IPCC confirms the absolute and pressing need to maintain the 1.5°C objective to avoid new humanitarian disasters.

Currently, 3.3 to 3.6 billion people in the world are particularly threatened by climate change, being fifteen times more likely to die during storms, floods or droughts, according to Guéladio Cissé, PhD in environmental epidemiology.

The solution? To achieve "carbon neutrality" or "net zero", in other words a balance between carbon emissions by humans and its absorption into the atmosphere by carbon sinks.

That's where Climeworks comes in.

Innovative technology

In support of natural sinks (forests, oceans...), the Swiss start-up has designed an innovative technology to capture excess CO2 retained in the atmosphere through a principle of absorption and deep storage. This is the DAC + S (Direct Air Capture + Storage) technology.

The principle is as follows: A DAC plant absorbs air with a powerful fan located inside a collector.

The air drawn in then passes through a filter placed in the same collector, which traps the carbon dioxide particles. Once the filter is filled, the temperature inside the collector rises to 100°C, causing the filter to release the CO2.

This is then collected and stored deep in the rock for thousands of years.

One CO2 collection container does the same absorption work as 2000 trees.

A promising initiative

A DAC plant is not fixed, as the air has the same concentration of CO2 everywhere in the world. However, since its operation depends on renewable energies, it must be able to benefit from a nearby energy source and be located in a place where the CO2 can be stored in depth.

A DAC+S plant named "Orca", the largest of its kind today, is already in operation in Iceland, near Reykjavík.

Another one, named "Mammoth" and located not far from the first one, should soon be in operation.

This one should allow to remove 36 000 tons of CO2 from the atmosphere each year, while the first one collects "only" 4 000 tons for the moment.

Together, these plants will absorb the equivalent of the emissions of 8,600 cars per year or the energy consumption of 5,000 American homes.

Companies or individuals, we are all concerned and can encourage this technological initiative! ACT NOW WITH CLIMEWORKS

Climeworks, in the fight against global warming

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