Methane Removal Roadmapping Workshop

In April 2023, Spark Climate Solutions organized the first workshop dedicated to methane removal. We convened about 40 researchers from around the world to discuss the emerging field and roadmap the research needed to determine if any approaches to atmospheric methane removal could be viable, scalable, and safe.  

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Why did we organize this workshop?

In 2022, when Spark first began working on methane removal, the field was still in its infancy, with just a few publications and dedicated researchers. This workshop convened a community of researchers with work related to methane removal, building critical community connections and the beginnings of a roadmap towards understanding the potential of methane removal and critical scientific questions surrounding it.

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What did we learn?

At the workshop, participants heard from prominent scientists like Rob Jackson, Desiree Plata, and Mary Lidstrom in framing talks that surfaced the current state of the science and critical gaps in knowledge, as well as cross-cutting topics like atmospheric modeling, measurement, and social license and governance. In four breakout groups – Catalysts, Methanotrophs, Radicals, and Understanding Methane – the participants brainstormed together about the research needed to assess if there could be pathways to viable, scalable, and safe methane removal. 

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Among the ideas that surfaced was a collaborative project organized by Whendee Silver and Jeremy Semrau, proposing to investigate if copper additions to soil could increase methane uptake while keeping nitrous oxide emissions low. This work was funded by Spark in late 2023. 

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Inspired by this idea and other ideas surfaced in the workshop,we launched our first open call for proposals later in 2023, Exploratory Grants for Atmospheric Methane Research, which funded 12 projects over two rounds in 2024.

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How can I learn more about methane removal?

To learn more about ongoing research, explore Spark’s grantees. To stay up to date on future events, sign up for Spark’s methane removal newsletter.

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