Resilience and removals: the role of greenhouse gas removal in building climate resilience

illuminem is proud to partner with Greenhouse Gas Removal Future Leaders Network to amplify the voices of emerging climate innovators and thought leaders. This article reflects our shared commitment to empowering young leaders who are shaping solutions for a sustainable future.

Climate adaptation and resilience often take a backseat to mitigation in the climate conversation. While the launch of the Sharm El Sheik Adaptation Agenda and COP28 brought much-needed attention to these issues, they're still seen as secondary to reducing emissions. But as climate disasters become more frequent and severe, it's clear that building resilience and adapting to the changing climate is just as crucial as cutting emissions. 

Additionally, to reach Net-Zero the climate science is unwavering that greenhouse gas removal (GGR) is essential in tandem with emissions reductions. Removals are likely to play an increasingly important role to close the ‘carbon gap’ - the difference between the emissions reductions we need versus the amount we are able to feasibly reduce in time. The scale of GGR we will need (multiple billions of tons by 2050 and beyond) is vast. 

But GGR isn't just about removing greenhouse gases. It can also help build resilience, making our communities, ecosystems, and economies better able to withstand the impacts of climate change. By focusing on these GGR co-benefits,  we can encourage greater implementation of appropriate GGR solutions and develop holistic climate strategies that actively contribute to adaptation and resilience.

In this article, we'll explore how GGR can contribute to resilience at the local, regional, and global levels. From strengthening communities to countering Earth system feedback, GGR offers a promising tool for building a more sustainable and resilient future. By integrating GGR with wider climate action agendas, we increase our likelihood of closing the carbon gap whilst bolstering equally important climate adaptation and resilience.  

Climate resilience: building robust systems to withstand a changing climate

Resilience is the hallmark of any robust system. It's a system’s ability to recover from stress and adapt to new challenges. 

Climate resilience refers to the ability of a system - whether it is an individual, a community, an ecosystem, or a country - to withstand and recover from the impacts of climate change. It involves identifying and addressing vulnerabilities to climate hazards, such as extreme weather events, as well as adapting to changes in the climate that are already underway. Activities that support climate resilience can contribute to efforts to mitigate climate change by reducing greenhouse gas emissions and promoting sustainable practices. Measures can include actions that strengthen infrastructure, diversify livelihoods, and promote sustainable land and water management practices. Ultimately, building climate resilience is essential for ensuring that human and natural systems can continue to exist as we know them. 

Local resilience: strengthening communities through carbon removal solutions

At a local level, resilience is a key component of community stability, fostering adaptability and sustainable growth within a given area. Examples of local level resilience may be the ability of crops to withstand a drought or for a local village to survive a flooding event. A number of GGR solutions such as biochar can reduce the impact of these events. Biochar is produced through burning organic matter without oxygen, which creates a porous, stable form of carbon. Due to its honeycomb-like structure, when added to soil, it can increase water retention and provide habitat for beneficial soil bacteria and enzymes, reducing the need for chemical fertilisers as well as aiding drainage in flood stressed soil. This can improve crops’ resilience to drought and increase crop yields. Furthermore, given that biochar is simple to produce at the local level it can reduce farmers’ expenses by decreasing fertilizer purchases and provide new income streams through carbon credits or direct sales as a farming product. The production of biochar can also help reduce carbon emissions as it can be made from agricultural waste that otherwise would have decomposed or been burnt, emitting greenhouse gases. The quality and beneficial impact of biochar will depend on how it is produced and the type of biomass used in the process. Nevertheless, when produced in a sustainable and responsible manner, the direct and indirect impacts will increase local resilience in the ways described.   

Regional resilience: afforestation and ecosystem restoration to boost resilience and livelihoods

At a regional level, climate resilience contributes to the safeguarding of ecosystems, economies, and communities. One of the best-known forms of GGR, afforestation, provides clear contributions to regional resilience. Once a desert, the Saihanba forest located in China’s Hebei Province today spans across 93,000 hectares. In the 1950s, the area was barren due to frequent sandstorms and high winds but in 1962, hundreds of local entrepreneurs began planting saplings to end the degradation of the land – since then, Saihanba has become one of the largest man-made forests on Earth. In addition to removing 747,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide every year, the vegetation in the area also acts as a natural barrier contributing to the reduction of air pollution from dust. Tree roots have also reduced soil erosion and dust storms as well as stalling the further advancement of the Hunshandake Desert. Large scale afforestation has boosted economic growth through the creation of local jobs and the development of supporting industries such as rural tourism, agriculture and transportation.

Global resilience: countering Earth system feedbacks with GGR strategies 

At a global level, resilience is a critical determinant of the planet’s capacity to adapt and recover from complex and interrelated environmental challenges that transcends borders. One such set of challenges are earth system feedbacks and tipping points: processes that amplify or reduce the effects of climate drivers (e.g. greenhouse gases). For example, in the polar regions, billions of tonnes of methane are frozen in permafrost. Methane is a greenhouse gas and the second biggest contributor to climate change following carbon dioxide (CO2). On a 20-year timescale, it is 84 times more potent than CO2. As the Earth warms, the permafrost melts, releasing methane into the atmosphere. More methane means more warming, resulting in increased thawing permafrost, reinforcing the loop. 

To limit global average temperature rise to 1.5°C, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) - the United Nations body for assessing the science related to climate change - estimated that in 2020, we had 500 billion tonnes of our carbon budget left i.e. the amount of carbon dioxide we can emit to give us a 50% chance of staying within this ‘safe’ limit. If we overshoot this budget, we will increase the likelihood of worsening the effects of climate change and encountering dangerous Earth system feedback. This is why reducing our emissions and staying within the carbon budget is crucial. Like all climate science, there are a number of uncertainties surrounding this carbon budget which the IPCC AR6 estimates. In this way, by removing excess carbon dioxide from the atmosphere in addition to our concerted efforts to reduce emissions in line with the carbon budget, GGR is a means to increase our resilience to the uncertainty inherent in our estimates. 

Securing a resilient future 

Securing a resilient future for humanity demands a collective effort. As we strive to achieve the goals set forth in the Sharm El Sheikh Adaptation Agenda, governments, businesses, communities, and individuals alike can benefit from integrating GGR into building resilience. GGR is not a silver bullet, but an additional mitigation activity to contribute further to global climate action. As both state and non-state actors work to address climate change and implement sustainable practices, GGR serves as a crucial tool in our arsenal, providing a pathway towards a more climate-resilient world with potential economic and social resilience co-benefits. Driven by the principles of the Sharm El Sheikh Adaptation Agenda, we can build a robust future that safeguards both the planet and the well-being of humanity.