CO2 Storage in the Big Apple
Cleanbeta
New York State’s most promising rockformations for purposes of CO2 storage are saline formations, which aredeep, porous rocks containing very salty water (often six times saltierthan seawater) and far too salty to drink.
It is difficult to estimate the amount of CO2 that a formation couldhold. It requires extensive geological research and modeling. Theserocks are deep enough and are the right type for CO2 storage, but muchmore detailed geological research is needed. Gas and Oil Fields CO2could also be stored in mature natural gas and oil fields that arereaching or have reached the end of their productive life. InjectingCO2 into these reservoirs could push out more gas or oil that wouldotherwise remain underground. This process is called enhanced oil (orgas) recovery (EOR/EGR). In addition to storing CO2, EOR and EGR resultin an economic gain. The southwestern portion of New York Statecontains numerous gas fields where EGR could be practical. (The few oilfields that exist in New York are too few and too shallow for EOR to bepractical for large-scale storage.)
Shale Sequestration Sometimes natural gas is produced from a certaintype of rock called organic shale. Injecting CO2 into these shales mayenhance any existing gas production (another form of EGR), while alsostoring CO2. This process is still in the early stages of research, butif proven to work, a large area of New York State could be opened up toCO2 storage in shales.
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