Carbon capture needs jump-start.

• Position: The Environment

Global funding for carbon capture and storage technology, a tool for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, remained unchanged at 23,500,000,000 in 2011 in comparison to the previous year, according to a report from Worldwatch Institute, Washington, D.C. Although there currently are 75 large-scale, fully integrated carbon capture and storage projects in 17 countries at various stages of development, only eight are operational--a figure that has not changed since 2009.

Carbon capture and storage, more commonly known as CCS, refers to the technology that attempts to capture carbon dioxide from a human-created source--often an industry and power generation system--and then store it in permanent geologic reservoirs so that it never enters the atmosphere. The U.S. is the leading funder of large-scale CCS projects, followed by the European Union and Canada.

"Although CCS technology has the potential to significantly reduce carbon dioxide emissions--particularly when used in greenhouse gas-intensive coal plants--developing the CCS sector to the point that it can make a serious contribution to emissions reduction will require large-scale investment," says Matthew Lucky, report author and Worldwatch Sustainable Energy fellow. "Capacity will have to be increased several times over before CCS can begin to make a dent in global emissions."

Currently, the storage capacity of all active and planned...