CSIRO pledges to halve emissions of “hardest to abate” sectors by 2035

Australia’s premier science agency, CSIRO, has pledged to help the nation’s “hardest-to-abate” industrial sectors to slash their emissions, via a large-scale scientific and collaborative research initiative.

CSIRO said on Tuesday it would kick off its new “Towards Net Zero Mission” with a $90 million investment, and work with industry, government and communities to halve the emissions in sectors like steel and agriculture by 2035.

Announcing the Mission, CSIRO chief Larry Marshall said the decarbonisation of Australia’s industrial sectors was not just about solving a problem, but turning that problem into new economic growth.

An enormous transition

“The transformation of these hard to abate industries and regions is critical to our nation’s future prosperity, and Australian science will ensure no one gets left behind in this enormous transition,” Marshall said.

“Our Mission must be co-developed not just with those in the hard to abate industries, but also in partnership with their communities to understand the impacts and opportunities arising from new science-enabled technologies and ways of doing business.”

Carbon capture included

CSIRO says the Towards Net Zero Mission aims to respond to a number of decarbonisation challenges across various sectors, including sustainable agriculture, low emissions steel and iron ore processes, sustainable aviation fuel, and the development of “negative emission technologies” like carbon sequestration.

Speaking at a business summit on Tuesday in Sydney, Marshall said that despite controversy surrounding its effectiveness – and concerns it encourages polluters continue with business-as-usual – carbon capture and storage is “a necessary bet on the future.”

“There is no silver bullet for this massive two-thirds of our emissions challenge, so we’re looking at everything,” Marshall said.

More than just low emissions technology

Marshall also reportedly told the summit thatCSIRO is “convinced” hydrogen is part of Australia’s renewable energy future, whether used to create ammonia fuel or other derivatives.

The Towards Net Zero Mission will be headed up by Dr Michael Battaglia who, according to his CSIRO bio, has been an advisor to federal government on soil carbon, as well as to multiple national programs on carbon accounting and mitigation of emissions from agriculture.

“We know that the transition to net zero involves more than just low emissions technology,” Battaglia said on Tuesday.

“If these technologies are to be widely adopted, we need to create pathways for them that support prosperity and generate other benefits to the environment and society.”