LONDON, England (CNN) -- Scientists in the United States are developing a "synthetic tree" capable of collecting carbon around 1,000 times faster than the real thing.

A conceptual design of how the "synthetic tree" might look should they ever reach the stage of production.

As the wind blows though plastic "leaves," the carbon is trapped in a chamber, compressed and stored as liquid carbon dioxide.

The technology is similar to that used to capture carbon from flue stacks at coal-fired power plants, but the difference is that the "synthetic tree" can catch carbon anytime, anywhere.

"Half of your emissions come from small, distributed sources where collection at the site is either impossible or impractical," said Professor Klaus Lackner, Ewing-Worzel Professor of Geophysics in the Department of Earth and Environmental Engineering at Columbia University.

"We aim for applications like gasoline in cars or jet fuel in airplanes. We are going after CO2 that otherwise is nearly impossible to collect," he told CNN.

While the idea of carbon-catchers may sound far-fetched, an early model has been built and Lackner is in the process of writing a proposal for consideration by the U.S. Department of Energy.

He personally explained the concept in a 45-minute meeting with U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu last month at a three-day symposium on climate change in London.

"He was there and I was there and he showed interest," Lackner told CNN. "That's exciting, but I don't particularly want to discuss this in a public forum because I think this gives me a little bit of an opportunity to tailor my proposals to the Department of Energy in a way that makes them more palatable."

http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/science/06/22/synthetic.tree.climate.change.ccs/index.html 

 

White House report warns of climate change effects

(CNN) -- Man-made climate change threatens to stress water resources, challenge crops and livestock, raise sea levels and adversely affect human health, according to a report released by the Obama administration on Tuesday.

Farmers and workers in central California are suffering through the third year of a worsening drought.

The nearly 200-page document on global climate change -- released by the White House science adviser and mandated by Congress -- does not include new research, but encompasses several recent studies on the effects of global warming over the last half century.

Among the report's key findings are an "unequivocal and primarily human-induced" rise in the Earth's temperature of 2 degrees Fahrenheit over the last 50 years, and a projection of more rapidly changing temperatures over the next several decades.

"It's not just a problem for the future," said Jane Lubchenco, administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. "We're beginning to see the impact on our daily lives."

The continuing temperature rise is likely to spur a series of negative consequences for the Earth's energy supply, water, transportation, ecosystems and health, the study said.

"[The report] tells us why remedial action is needed sooner rather than later, as well as showing why that action must include both global emissions reductions to reduce the extent of climate change and local adaptation measures to reduce the damage from the changes that are no longer avoidable," said John P. Holdren, the White House science adviser.

Among the study's specific predictions: Longer and more intense heat waves; increased heavy downpours likely to cause widespread complications such as flooding and waterborne diseases; reduced summer runoff, creating greater competition for water, especially in the West; rising ocean water temperatures that will threaten coral reefs; an increase in wildfires and insect infestations; and more frequent coastal flooding caused by rising seas.