Our goal is to help slow and, eventually, begin to reverse climate change. We are committed to careful, robust research to understand the fundamental risks and impacts of Marine Enhanced Rock Weathering (mERW). Every phase in our incremental approach only progresses forward if our data indicates a reasonable and safe path. We are developing a systematic approach to responsible project development in new jurisdictions, progressing through the following stages.
Working in partnership with large coastal engineering and infrastructure companies as well as eager and interested communities, we will identify suitable project sites that maximize carbon removal potential with minimal environmental risk.
Through the use of Advanced Sediment Mesocosms, we can combine olivine with native sand from potential sites, thoroughly assessing anticipated performance in controlled laboratory settings. Combined with an extensive environmental assessment, we will create a reasonable estimate for the project's benefits and risks.
In addition to the standard regulatory review and permitting processes required for operating along coasts and in the ocean, we are developing an independent oversight process that will ensure we act with the highest degree of integrity, thereby building trust in our solution.
Only after receiving approval from regulatory bodies and the independent oversight process will we move to deployment. We will report data back to the world, including through peer-reviewed scientific studies where applicable.
Assuming our first pilot in a new location confirms our pre-deployment assessments, we will move to the following scale for that given site. If findings from the deployment conflict with our pre-deployment assessment, we will modify our assessment accordingly.
Environmental conditions: Olivine's carbon removal benefits are generally greatest in warmer waters and in environments with finer sediments. Avoiding or minimizing impacts on sensitive species is also essential. There is more than enough coastline worldwide to meet our carbon removal targets within these constraints.
Deployment partners: Coastal construction companies around the world are already moving high volumes of sand as part of coastal infrastructure projects, providing an existing supply chain and industry that can drive carbon removal. We plan to work with partners that prioritize our commitment to the responsible development of our technology.
Communities: We must work alongside the communities in which our projects are planned to ensure communities are well-informed and able to provide feedback in the design process.
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Our Advanced Sediment Mesocosms (ASMs) are the backbone of our pre-deployment process. By combining olivine with sand from a potential project site in different concentrations, we can estimate carbon removal efficiency and minimize environmental risk.
The data from ASMs will also inform a traditional environmental assessment that regulated projects must undertake in any jurisdiction where we operate.
We take any intervention into the ocean seriously. To bring our solution to the scale of climate impact, we must deploy projects at larger scales in the coming years. But we can only move at the speed of trust.
In addition to traditional regulatory processes that permit the placement of sand and sediments along coasts, we are developing an independent oversight process to ensure our projects align with our goal of responsibly developing mERW.
After the placement of olivine sand, we will monitor the project as long as it is reasonably necessary. As we have done for our pilot projects, this will include measurements of water quality and chemistry, species abundance and diversity, tissue sampling, and other indicators of ecosystem well-being.
The results of these monitoring programs will be shared publicly as appropriate, including through regulatory reports, peer-reviewed publications, and directly with stakeholders in the community and beyond.
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While we can extrapolate safety and efficiency data from our existing pilot projects, it is essential to initiate new projects in unfamiliar locations with utmost caution. The goal of a pilot project is to understand if our robust pre-deployment assessments are accurate. If the field data aligns with predictions, it is an indicator that we can move to the next project size. We expect even subsequent projects at the same site to undergo extensive review and independent oversight process.
