Oil, gas, and water separation vessels at a carbon dioxide enhanced oil recovery operation, Horseshoe Atoll, Upper Pennsylvanian Wolfcampian play in the Permian Basin Province in Texas.
Greenhouse Gases and Carbon Storage
Nature-Based Solutions
The USGS is partnering with NASA to measure coastal wetlands' ability to combat climate change through carbon sequestration.
Where are USGS Greenhouse Gas Emissions Coming From?
A USGS report found that 1/4 of the United States’ emissions come from coal, oil, and gas extracted from public lands. Learn more in this interactive map!
Leader in Geologic Carbon Sequestration Research
The Department of the Interior recognizes cutting-edge research from the USGS on geologic carbon storage.
Greenhouse gases in the atmosphere retain heat from the Sun, allowing plants and animals to flourish. As the amount of these gases change, so does the atmosphere’s effectiveness at trapping heat. The USGS tracks greenhouse gas emissions and uptake across the nation and explores mechanisms for storing carbon and reducing emissions to help lessen the effects of climate change.
What are greenhouse gases?
“Greenhouse” gases occur naturally in the Earth’s atmosphere. They help regulate the planet’s temperature, like how the glass in a greenhouse retains heat or a blanket reflects your body heat to keep you warm. Adding more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, like we do when burning fossil fuels, acts like putting a thicker blanket on the planet. The thicker the blanket of greenhouse gases, the less heat escapes into space. This causes the planet to get warmer. Common greenhouse gases include carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), fluorinated gases such as hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons, sulfur hexafluoride, and nitrogen trifluoride, and water vapor (H2O).
What is causing increased greenhouse gas concentrations?
Most greenhouse gases released in the United States contain carbon. Carbon naturally cycles throughout the planet and the air. There is carbon moving around “in circulation,” such as the CO2 we breath and carbon contained in plant and animal tissue. And there is carbon locked in “long-term storage”, called carbon sinks. Carbon in underground oil reserves or in trees that live hundreds of years are examples are carbon sinks. Many human activities take carbon out of carbon sinks and put it back into the atmosphere. Oil reserves that took millions of years to form are used up in decades. Forests that have stood for centuries are harvested or burned in a matter of weeks. Through these activities, we add more carbon dioxide to the atmosphere than can naturally be reabsorbed.
Efforts to slow or stop climate change revolve around righting the carbon imbalance in the atmosphere. This can be done by decreasing greenhouse gas emissions, for example by reducing fossil fuel use. Or it can involve increasing the amount of carbon being captured and stored in carbon sinks, a process called carbon sequestration.
Important sources of greenhouse gas emissions include:
-
Burning fossil fuels, including oil, coal, and natural gas
-
Producing and using industrial products
-
Agriculture, including cows and some crops
-
Destroying or disrupting ecosystems that act as carbon sinks
There are also natural sources of greenhouse gases, including volcanic eruptions, geologic seeps (such as hot springs and geothermal vents), thawing permafrost, and forest fires. Climate change and human activities can accelerate natural emissions. Warmer temperatures defrost permafrost and heat up oceans, releasing the carbon long stored in these systems. Wetlands drained for agriculture can rapidly switch from being carbon sinks to being carbon sources. And human ignitions and climate-driven dryness mean long, intense fire seasons, releasing billions of metric tons of carbon dioxide around the world each year.
Greenhouse Gas Emissions on Public Lands
The USGS conducts research on greenhouse gas emissions and carbon sequestration in public lands. Public lands maintained by the U.S. Department of the Interior make up about one-fifth of the Nation’s land area. They include national parks, seashores, and monuments managed by the National Park Service; national wildlife refuges managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; and working lands and offshore mineral rights managed by the Bureau of Land Management.
In 2018, the USGS estimated the amount of carbon released by and sequestered in U.S. federal lands. (USGS Scientific Investigations Report 2018-5131). We found that about one-quarter of the United States’ emissions come from combustion of coal, oil, and gas extracted from public lands.
The USGS also investigates methods of land management aimed at decreasing emissions from federal lands. We provide decision-makers, local communities, and land managers with tools to analyze tradeoffs associated with changing energy practices. We also develop natural carbon dioxide removal technologies to remove carbon from the atmosphere through carbon sequestration and to decrease natural methane emissions.
Carbon Sequestration as a Potential Climate Solution
Carbon sequestration helps slow or possibly reverse the effects of climate change. The USGS is exploring two major approaches to carbon dioxide removal and storage.
Geologic Carbon Sequestration. Geologic carbon sequestration involves storing carbon dioxide in stable rock formations. Technology captures carbon dioxide from industrial processes, like factories and power plants, and compresses the gas into a liquid. This liquid is then injected deep underground. Another technology is called carbon mineralization, which is the process by which carbon dioxide becomes a solid mineral, such as a carbonate. It is a chemical reaction that happens when certain rocks are exposed to carbon dioxide. The USGS is an international leader in identifying rock formations with high potential for carbon storage and is exploring the mechanisms and potential consequences of this process.
Biologic Carbon Sequestration. Biologic carbon sequestration takes advantage of nature's ability to store carbon. Through photosynthesis, plants remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and use it as a building block to create new tissue. Some of the carbon remains preserved in soil, sediments, and wood. Ecosystems like forests and wetlands can absorb huge amounts of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and store it for long time periods, from decades to thousands of years. The USGS helps managers and conservation agencies identify ecosystems that are particularly good at storing carbon and supports restoration and conservation of these areas. Much of this work currently focuses on carbon stored in coastal regions, known as “blue carbon.”
Publications
Can coastal habitats rise to the challenge? Resilience of estuarine habitats, carbon accumulation, and economic value to sea-level rise in a Puget Sound estuary
N and P constrain C in ecosystems under climate change: Role of nutrient redistribution, accumulation, and stoichiometry
Changes in organic carbon source and storage with sea level rise-induced transgression in a Chesapeake Bay marsh
Recent carbon storage and burial exceed historic rates in the San Juan Bay estuary peri-urban mangrove forests (Puerto Rico, United States)
Half of global methane emissions come from highly variable aquatic ecosystem sources
Science
Volcanoes Can Affect Climate
Wetland Methane Emissions: Functional-type Modeling and Data-driven Parameterization
Wetland Carbon Working Group: Improving Methodologies and Estimates of Carbon and Greenhouse Gas Flux in Wetlands
Carbon and Energy Storage, Emissions and Economics (CESEE)
Economics of Energy Transitions
Multimedia
Oil, gas, and water separation vessels at a carbon dioxide enhanced oil recovery operation, Horseshoe Atoll, Upper Pennsylvanian Wolfcampian play in the Permian Basin Province in Texas.
A short video on how carbon can get into the atmosphere.
A short video on how carbon can get into the atmosphere.
Photograph of a carbon dioxide injection well operated by CO2CRC, at the Otway National Research Facility in the state of Victoria, Australia
Photograph of a carbon dioxide injection well operated by CO2CRC, at the Otway National Research Facility in the state of Victoria, Australia
Technicians measuring greenhouse gas flux from floating chambers and water chemistry in a prairie pothole wetland at Cottonwood Lake Study Area, North Dakota.
Technicians measuring greenhouse gas flux from floating chambers and water chemistry in a prairie pothole wetland at Cottonwood Lake Study Area, North Dakota.
USGS collaborators from Marine Biological Laboratory preparing to measure greenhouse gas flux from a salt marsh study site (Cape Cod, MA).
USGS collaborators from Marine Biological Laboratory preparing to measure greenhouse gas flux from a salt marsh study site (Cape Cod, MA).
The use of carbon dioxide (CO2) injection for enhanced oil recovery (EOR) can prolong the productivity of many oil reservoirs and increase the U.S. hydrocarbon recoverable resource volume.
The use of carbon dioxide (CO2) injection for enhanced oil recovery (EOR) can prolong the productivity of many oil reservoirs and increase the U.S. hydrocarbon recoverable resource volume.
Sulfur dioxide gas emissions from the crater of Pu‘u ‘Ō ‘ō on Kīlauea’s east rift zone and the vent within Halema‘uma‘u Crater at Kīlauea’s summit create volcanic pollution that affects the air quality of downwind communities. Here, a USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory gas geochemist measures Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō gas emissions using an instrument that detects ga
Sulfur dioxide gas emissions from the crater of Pu‘u ‘Ō ‘ō on Kīlauea’s east rift zone and the vent within Halema‘uma‘u Crater at Kīlauea’s summit create volcanic pollution that affects the air quality of downwind communities. Here, a USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory gas geochemist measures Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō gas emissions using an instrument that detects ga
A map of the regions in the United States evaluated for surface and underground carbon mineralization.
A map of the regions in the United States evaluated for surface and underground carbon mineralization.
A section of the Upper Green River Valley in western Wyoming, just south of Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks, showing different ecosystems (such as forests, wetlands, and aquatic habitats) whose capacities for carbon storage and reduction of greenhouse gas emissions will be assessed by the USGS.
A section of the Upper Green River Valley in western Wyoming, just south of Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks, showing different ecosystems (such as forests, wetlands, and aquatic habitats) whose capacities for carbon storage and reduction of greenhouse gas emissions will be assessed by the USGS.
News
U.S. Departments of Energy and Interior Partner to Explore Potential for Geologic Carbon Storage
Carbon storage in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem under future warming scenarios
Wetland Word: Blue Carbon
The USGS has hundreds of publications on greenhouse gases and carbon sequestration. Here are some of our favorites.
Federal lands greenhouse emissions and sequestration in the United States—Estimates for 2005–14
In January 2016, the Secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior tasked the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) with producing a publicly available and annually updated database of estimated greenhouse gas emissions associated with the extraction and use (predominantly some form of combustion) of fossil fuels from Federal lands. In response, the USGS has produced estimates of the greenhouse gas emi
Restoring tides to reduce methane emissions in impounded wetlands: A new and potent Blue Carbon climate change intervention
Baseline and projected future carbon storage and carbon fluxes in ecosystems of Hawai‘i
Risk, liability, and economic issues with long-term CO2 storage—A review
Methane emissions from oceans, coasts, and freshwater habitats: New perspectives and feedbacks on climate
Interactions among vegetation, climate, and herbivory control greenhouse gas fluxes in a subarctic coastal wetland
Temperature response of soil respiration largely unaltered with experimental warming
Consequences of changes in vegetation and snow cover for climate feedbacks in Alaska and northwest Canada
Baseline and projected future carbon storage and greenhouse-gas fluxes in ecosystems of Alaska
Carbon dioxide storage in unconventional reservoirs workshop: summary of recommendations
Quantifying climate change mitigation potential in Great Plains wetlands for three greenhouse gas emission scenarios
Baseline and projected future carbon storage and greenhouse-gas fluxes in ecosystems of the eastern United States
National assessment of geologic carbon dioxide storage resources: data
Explore USGS some of the many research projects on greenhouse gas emissions and carbon sequestration.
Methodology Development and Assessment of National Carbon Dioxide Enhanced Oil Recovery and Associated Carbon Dioxide Storage Potential
Environmental Geochemistry
Coastal Wetland Blue Carbon
Gas Hydrates- Climate and Hydrate Interactions
Hawai‘i Carbon Storage and Greenhouse Gas Flux Assessment
Arctic Boreal Vulnerability Experiment (ABoVE)
Uncovering the Ecosystem Service Value of Carbon Sequestration in National Parks
Ecology of Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Coastal Wetlands
Check out some of the amazing USGS photos, infographics, and videos on greenhouse gases and carbon sequestration.
Find the answers to frequently asked questions about greenhouse gases and carbon sequestration.
- Overview
What are greenhouse gases?
“Greenhouse” gases occur naturally in the Earth’s atmosphere. They help regulate the planet’s temperature, like how the glass in a greenhouse retains heat or a blanket reflects your body heat to keep you warm. Adding more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, like we do when burning fossil fuels, acts like putting a thicker blanket on the planet. The thicker the blanket of greenhouse gases, the less heat escapes into space. This causes the planet to get warmer. Common greenhouse gases include carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), fluorinated gases such as hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons, sulfur hexafluoride, and nitrogen trifluoride, and water vapor (H2O).
What is causing increased greenhouse gas concentrations?
Most greenhouse gases released in the United States contain carbon. Carbon naturally cycles throughout the planet and the air. There is carbon moving around “in circulation,” such as the CO2 we breath and carbon contained in plant and animal tissue. And there is carbon locked in “long-term storage”, called carbon sinks. Carbon in underground oil reserves or in trees that live hundreds of years are examples are carbon sinks. Many human activities take carbon out of carbon sinks and put it back into the atmosphere. Oil reserves that took millions of years to form are used up in decades. Forests that have stood for centuries are harvested or burned in a matter of weeks. Through these activities, we add more carbon dioxide to the atmosphere than can naturally be reabsorbed.
Efforts to slow or stop climate change revolve around righting the carbon imbalance in the atmosphere. This can be done by decreasing greenhouse gas emissions, for example by reducing fossil fuel use. Or it can involve increasing the amount of carbon being captured and stored in carbon sinks, a process called carbon sequestration.
Important sources of greenhouse gas emissions include:
-
Burning fossil fuels, including oil, coal, and natural gas
-
Producing and using industrial products
-
Agriculture, including cows and some crops
-
Destroying or disrupting ecosystems that act as carbon sinks
There are also natural sources of greenhouse gases, including volcanic eruptions, geologic seeps (such as hot springs and geothermal vents), thawing permafrost, and forest fires. Climate change and human activities can accelerate natural emissions. Warmer temperatures defrost permafrost and heat up oceans, releasing the carbon long stored in these systems. Wetlands drained for agriculture can rapidly switch from being carbon sinks to being carbon sources. And human ignitions and climate-driven dryness mean long, intense fire seasons, releasing billions of metric tons of carbon dioxide around the world each year.
Greenhouse Gas Emissions on Public Lands
The USGS conducts research on greenhouse gas emissions and carbon sequestration in public lands. Public lands maintained by the U.S. Department of the Interior make up about one-fifth of the Nation’s land area. They include national parks, seashores, and monuments managed by the National Park Service; national wildlife refuges managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; and working lands and offshore mineral rights managed by the Bureau of Land Management.
In 2018, the USGS estimated the amount of carbon released by and sequestered in U.S. federal lands. (USGS Scientific Investigations Report 2018-5131). We found that about one-quarter of the United States’ emissions come from combustion of coal, oil, and gas extracted from public lands.
The USGS also investigates methods of land management aimed at decreasing emissions from federal lands. We provide decision-makers, local communities, and land managers with tools to analyze tradeoffs associated with changing energy practices. We also develop natural carbon dioxide removal technologies to remove carbon from the atmosphere through carbon sequestration and to decrease natural methane emissions.
Carbon Sequestration as a Potential Climate Solution
Carbon sequestration helps slow or possibly reverse the effects of climate change. The USGS is exploring two major approaches to carbon dioxide removal and storage.
Geologic Carbon Sequestration. Geologic carbon sequestration involves storing carbon dioxide in stable rock formations. Technology captures carbon dioxide from industrial processes, like factories and power plants, and compresses the gas into a liquid. This liquid is then injected deep underground. Another technology is called carbon mineralization, which is the process by which carbon dioxide becomes a solid mineral, such as a carbonate. It is a chemical reaction that happens when certain rocks are exposed to carbon dioxide. The USGS is an international leader in identifying rock formations with high potential for carbon storage and is exploring the mechanisms and potential consequences of this process.
Biologic Carbon Sequestration. Biologic carbon sequestration takes advantage of nature's ability to store carbon. Through photosynthesis, plants remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and use it as a building block to create new tissue. Some of the carbon remains preserved in soil, sediments, and wood. Ecosystems like forests and wetlands can absorb huge amounts of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and store it for long time periods, from decades to thousands of years. The USGS helps managers and conservation agencies identify ecosystems that are particularly good at storing carbon and supports restoration and conservation of these areas. Much of this work currently focuses on carbon stored in coastal regions, known as “blue carbon.”
Publications
Can coastal habitats rise to the challenge? Resilience of estuarine habitats, carbon accumulation, and economic value to sea-level rise in a Puget Sound estuary
Sea-level rise (SLR) and obstructions to sediment delivery pose challenges to the persistence of estuarine habitats and the ecosystem services they provide. Restoration actions and sediment management strategies may help mitigate such challenges by encouraging the vertical accretion of sediment in and horizontal migration of tidal forests and marshes. We used a process-based soil accretion model (AuthorsMonica Mei Jeen Moritsch, Kristin B. Byrd, Melanie J. Davis, Anthony J. Good, Judith Z. Drexler, James T. Morris, Isa Woo, Lisamarie Windham-Myers, Eric E. Grossman, Glynnis Nakai, Katrina L. Poppe, John M. RybczykN and P constrain C in ecosystems under climate change: Role of nutrient redistribution, accumulation, and stoichiometry
We use the Multiple Element Limitation (MEL) model to examine responses of twelve ecosystems to elevated carbon dioxide (CO2), warming, and 20% decreases or increases in precipitation. Ecosystems respond synergistically to elevated CO2, warming, and decreased precipitation combined because higher water-use efficiency with elevated CO2 and higher fertility with warming compensate for responses to dAuthorsEd Rastetter, Bonnie Kwiatkowski, David Kicklighter, Audrey Barker Plotkin, Helene Genet, Jesse Nippert, Kimberly O’Keefe, Steven Perakis, Stephen Porder, Sarah Roley, Roger W. Ruess, Jonathan R. Thompson, William Wieder, Kevin WIlcox, Ruth YanaiChanges in organic carbon source and storage with sea level rise-induced transgression in a Chesapeake Bay marsh
Organic matter (OM) accumulation in marsh soils affects marsh survival under rapid sea-level rise (SLR). This work describes the changing organic geochemistry of a salt marsh located in the Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge on the eastern shore of Chesapeake Bay that has transgressed inland with SLR over the past 35–75 years. Marsh soils and vegetation were sampled along an elevation gradient frAuthorsRachel Van Allen, Kathryn M. Schreiner, Glenn R. Guntenspergen, Joseph A. CarlinRecent carbon storage and burial exceed historic rates in the San Juan Bay estuary peri-urban mangrove forests (Puerto Rico, United States)
Mangroves sequester significant quantities of organic carbon (C) because of high rates of burial in the soil and storage in biomass. We estimated mangrove forest C storage and accumulation rates in aboveground and belowground components among five sites along an urbanization gradient in the San Juan Bay Estuary, Puerto Rico. Sites included the highly urbanized and clogged Caño Martin Peña in the wAuthorsCathleen Wigand, Meagan J. Eagle, Benjamin Branoff, Stephen Balogh, Kenneth Miller, Rose M. Martin, Alana Hanson, Autumn Oczkowski, Evelyn Huertas, Joseph Loffredo, Elizabeth WatsonHalf of global methane emissions come from highly variable aquatic ecosystem sources
Atmospheric methane is a potent greenhouse gas that plays a major role in controlling the Earth’s climate. The causes of the renewed increase of methane concentration since 2007 are uncertain given the multiple sources and complex biogeochemistry. Here, we present a metadata analysis of methane fluxes from all major natural, impacted and human-made aquatic ecosystems. Our revised bottom-up globalAuthorsJudith A. Rosentreter, Alberto V. Borges, Bridget Deemer, Meredith A. Holgerson, Shaoda Liu, Chunlin Song, John M. Melack, Peter A. Raymond, Carlos M. Duarte, George H. Allen, David Olefeldt, Benjamin Poulter, Tom I. Batin, Bradley D. EyreScience
Volcanoes Can Affect Climate
Volcanoes can impact climate change. During major explosive eruptions huge amounts of volcanic gas, aerosol droplets, and ash are injected into the stratosphere. Injected ash falls rapidly from the stratosphere -- most of it is removed within several days to weeks -- and has little impact on climate change. But volcanic gases like sulfur dioxide can cause global cooling, while volcanic carbon...Wetland Methane Emissions: Functional-type Modeling and Data-driven Parameterization
To better understand the environmental drivers of methane emissions in tidal saltmarsh, tidal freshwater swamp forest, tidal freshwater marsh, and non-tidal freshwater marsh habitats, researchers are collecting observations of CH4 emissions and porewater concentrations at research sites representative of each of these habitats.Wetland Carbon Working Group: Improving Methodologies and Estimates of Carbon and Greenhouse Gas Flux in Wetlands
WARC researchers are working to quantify the impacts of future climate and land use/land cover change on greenhouse gas emissions and reductions.Carbon and Energy Storage, Emissions and Economics (CESEE)
Carbon Dioxide (CO2) is utilized by industry to enhance oil recovery. Subsurface CO2 storage could significantly impact reduction of CO2 emissions to the atmosphere, but the economics and potential risks associated with the practice must be understood before implementing extensive programs or regulations. Utilization of other energy-related gases such as helium (He), if separated and concentrated...Economics of Energy Transitions
This task conducts research to characterize or evaluate the economics of developing technologies or markets in geologic resources. Such research can analyze the relative risks, costs, and benefits from the utilization and not just the extraction of underground resource. Economic analysis builds upon the geologic resource assessment work by other tasks in the Utilization of Carbon and other Energy...Multimedia
Oil, gas, and water separation vesselsOil, gas, and water separation vessels at a carbon dioxide enhanced oil recovery operation, Horseshoe Atoll, Upper Pennsylvanian Wolfcampian play in the Permian Basin Province in Texas.
Oil, gas, and water separation vessels at a carbon dioxide enhanced oil recovery operation, Horseshoe Atoll, Upper Pennsylvanian Wolfcampian play in the Permian Basin Province in Texas.
How Does Carbon Get Into the Atmosphere?A short video on how carbon can get into the atmosphere.
A short video on how carbon can get into the atmosphere.
CO2CRC carbon dioxide injection well, Victoria, AustraliaCO2CRC carbon dioxide injection well, Victoria, AustraliaPhotograph of a carbon dioxide injection well operated by CO2CRC, at the Otway National Research Facility in the state of Victoria, Australia
Photograph of a carbon dioxide injection well operated by CO2CRC, at the Otway National Research Facility in the state of Victoria, Australia
Technicians measuring greenhouse gas fluxTechnicians measuring greenhouse gas flux from floating chambers and water chemistry in a prairie pothole wetland at Cottonwood Lake Study Area, North Dakota.
Technicians measuring greenhouse gas flux from floating chambers and water chemistry in a prairie pothole wetland at Cottonwood Lake Study Area, North Dakota.
Measuring Greenhouse Gas FluxUSGS collaborators from Marine Biological Laboratory preparing to measure greenhouse gas flux from a salt marsh study site (Cape Cod, MA).
USGS collaborators from Marine Biological Laboratory preparing to measure greenhouse gas flux from a salt marsh study site (Cape Cod, MA).
The Concept of Geologic Carbon SequestrationThe use of carbon dioxide (CO2) injection for enhanced oil recovery (EOR) can prolong the productivity of many oil reservoirs and increase the U.S. hydrocarbon recoverable resource volume.
The use of carbon dioxide (CO2) injection for enhanced oil recovery (EOR) can prolong the productivity of many oil reservoirs and increase the U.S. hydrocarbon recoverable resource volume.
Monitoring Gas Emissions from Kilauea VolcanoSulfur dioxide gas emissions from the crater of Pu‘u ‘Ō ‘ō on Kīlauea’s east rift zone and the vent within Halema‘uma‘u Crater at Kīlauea’s summit create volcanic pollution that affects the air quality of downwind communities. Here, a USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory gas geochemist measures Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō gas emissions using an instrument that detects ga
Sulfur dioxide gas emissions from the crater of Pu‘u ‘Ō ‘ō on Kīlauea’s east rift zone and the vent within Halema‘uma‘u Crater at Kīlauea’s summit create volcanic pollution that affects the air quality of downwind communities. Here, a USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory gas geochemist measures Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō gas emissions using an instrument that detects ga
Geologic Carbon Storage Potential in the United StatesGeologic Carbon Storage Potential in the United StatesA map of the regions in the United States evaluated for surface and underground carbon mineralization.
A map of the regions in the United States evaluated for surface and underground carbon mineralization.
Ranch in the Green River Valley, WyomingA section of the Upper Green River Valley in western Wyoming, just south of Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks, showing different ecosystems (such as forests, wetlands, and aquatic habitats) whose capacities for carbon storage and reduction of greenhouse gas emissions will be assessed by the USGS.
A section of the Upper Green River Valley in western Wyoming, just south of Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks, showing different ecosystems (such as forests, wetlands, and aquatic habitats) whose capacities for carbon storage and reduction of greenhouse gas emissions will be assessed by the USGS.
News
U.S. Departments of Energy and Interior Partner to Explore Potential for Geologic Carbon StorageU.S. Departments of Energy and Interior Partner to Explore Potential for Geologic Carbon Storage
Carbon storage in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem under future warming scenariosCarbon storage in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem under future warming scenarios
Wetland Word: Blue CarbonWetland Word: Blue Carbon
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- Publications
The USGS has hundreds of publications on greenhouse gases and carbon sequestration. Here are some of our favorites.
Federal lands greenhouse emissions and sequestration in the United States—Estimates for 2005–14
In January 2016, the Secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior tasked the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) with producing a publicly available and annually updated database of estimated greenhouse gas emissions associated with the extraction and use (predominantly some form of combustion) of fossil fuels from Federal lands. In response, the USGS has produced estimates of the greenhouse gas emi
AuthorsMatthew D. Merrill, Benjamin M. Sleeter, Philip A. Freeman, Jinxun Liu, Peter D. Warwick, Bradley C. ReedFilter Total Items: 34Restoring tides to reduce methane emissions in impounded wetlands: A new and potent Blue Carbon climate change intervention
Coastal wetlands are sites of rapid carbon (C) sequestration and contain large soil C stocks. Thus, there is increasing interest in those ecosystems as sites for anthropogenic greenhouse gas emission offset projects (sometimes referred to as “Blue Carbon”), through preservation of existing C stocks or creation of new wetlands to increase future sequestration. Here we show that in the globally-wideAuthorsKevin D. Kroeger, Stephen Crooks, Serena Moseman-Valtierra, Jianwu TangBaseline and projected future carbon storage and carbon fluxes in ecosystems of Hawai‘i
This assessment was conducted to fulfill the requirements of section 712 of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 and to improve understanding of factors influencing carbon balance in ecosystems of Hawai‘i. Ecosystem carbon storage, carbon fluxes, and carbon balance were examined for major terrestrial ecosystems on the seven main Hawaiian islands in two time periods: baseline (from 2007Risk, liability, and economic issues with long-term CO2 storage—A review
Given a scarcity of commercial-scale carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects, there is a great deal of uncertainty in the risks, liability, and their cost implications for geologic storage of carbon dioxide (CO2). The probabilities of leakage and the risk of induced seismicity could be remote, but the volume of geologic CO2 storage (GCS) projected to be necessary to have a significant impact onAuthorsSteven T. AndersonMethane emissions from oceans, coasts, and freshwater habitats: New perspectives and feedbacks on climate
Methane is a powerful greenhouse gas, and atmospheric concentrations have risen 2.5 times since the beginning of the Industrial age. While much of this increase is attributed to anthropogenic sources, natural sources, which contribute between 35% and 50% of global methane emissions, are thought to have a role in the atmospheric methane increase, in part due to human influences. Methane emissions fAuthorsLeila J. Hamdan, Kimberly P. WicklandInteractions among vegetation, climate, and herbivory control greenhouse gas fluxes in a subarctic coastal wetland
High-latitude ecosystems are experiencing the most rapid climate changes globally, and in many areas these changes are concurrent with shifts in patterns of herbivory. Individually, climate and herbivory are known to influence biosphere-atmosphere greenhouse gas (GHG) exchange; however, the interactive effects of climate and herbivory in driving GHG fluxes have been poorly quantified, especially iAuthorsK.C. Kelsey, A.J. Leffler, K.H. Beard, Joel A. Schmutz, R.T. Choi, J.M. WelkerTemperature response of soil respiration largely unaltered with experimental warming
The respiratory release of carbon dioxide (CO2) from soil is a major yet poorly understood flux in the global carbon cycle. Climatic warming is hypothesized to increase rates of soil respiration, potentially fueling further increases in global temperatures. However, despite considerable scientific attention in recent decades, the overall response of soil respiration to anticipated climatic warmingAuthorsJoanna C. Carey, Jianwu Tang, Pamela H. Templer, Kevin D. Kroeger, Thomas W. Crowther, Andrew J. Burton, Jeffrey S. Dukes, Bridget Emmett, Serita D. Frey, Mary A. Heskel, Lifen Jiang, Megan B. Machmuller, Jacqueline Mohan, Anne Marie Panetta, Peter B. Reich, Sabine Reinsch, Xin Wang, Steven D. Allison, Chris Bamminger, Scott D. Bridgham, Scott L. Collins, Giovanbattista de Dato, William C. Eddy, Brian J. Enquist, Marc Estiarte, John Harte, Amanda Henderson, Bart R. Johnson, Klaus Steenberg Larsen, Yiqi Luo, Sven Marhan, Jerry M. Melillo, Josep Penuelas, Laurel Pfeifer-Meister, Christian Poll, Edward B. Rastetter, Andrew B. Reinmann, Lorien L. Reynolds, Inger K. Schmidt, Gaius R. Shaver, Aaron L. Strong, Vidya Suseela, Albert TietemaConsequences of changes in vegetation and snow cover for climate feedbacks in Alaska and northwest Canada
Changes in vegetation and snow cover may lead to feedbacks to climate through changes in surface albedo and energy fluxes between the land and atmosphere. In addition to these biogeophysical feedbacks, biogeochemical feedbacks associated with changes in carbon (C) storage in the vegetation and soils may also influence climate. Here, using a transient biogeographic model (ALFRESCO) and an ecosystemAuthorsEugénie S. Euskirchen, A. P. Bennett, Amy L. Breen, Helene Genet, Michael A. Lindgren, Tom Kurkowski, A. David McGuire, T. Scott RuppBaseline and projected future carbon storage and greenhouse-gas fluxes in ecosystems of Alaska
This assessment was conducted to fulfill the requirements of section 712 of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 and to contribute to knowledge of the storage, fluxes, and balance of carbon and methane gas in ecosystems of Alaska. The carbon and methane variables were examined for major terrestrial ecosystems (uplands and wetlands) and inland aquatic ecosystems in Alaska in two time peCarbon dioxide storage in unconventional reservoirs workshop: summary of recommendations
“Unconventional reservoirs” for carbon dioxide (CO2) storage—that is, geologic reservoirs in which changes to the rock trap CO2 and therefore contribute to CO2 storage—including coal, shale, basalt, and ultramafic rocks, were the focus of a U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) workshop held March 28 and 29, 2012, at the National Conservation Training Center in Shepherdstown, West Virginia. The goals of tAuthorsKevin B. Jones, Madalyn S. BlondesQuantifying climate change mitigation potential in Great Plains wetlands for three greenhouse gas emission scenarios
We examined opportunities for avoided loss of wetland carbon stocks in the Great Plains of the United States in the context of future agricultural expansion through analysis of land-use land-cover (LULC) change scenarios, baseline carbon datasets and biogeochemical model outputs. A wetland map that classifies wetlands according to carbon pools was created to describe future patterns of carbon lossAuthorsKristin B. Byrd, Jamie L. Ratliff, Anne Wein, Norman B. Bliss, Benjamin M. Sleeter, Terry L. Sohl, Zhengpeng LiBaseline and projected future carbon storage and greenhouse-gas fluxes in ecosystems of the eastern United States
This assessment was conducted to fulfill the requirements of section 712 of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 and to conduct a comprehensive national assessment of storage and flux (flow) of carbon and the fluxes of other greenhouse gases in ecosystems of the Eastern United States. These carbon and greenhouse gas variables were examined for major terrestrial ecosystems (forests, graNational assessment of geologic carbon dioxide storage resources: data
In 2012, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) completed the national assessment of geologic carbon dioxide storage resources. Its data and results are reported in three publications: the assessment data publication (this report), the assessment results publication (U.S. Geological Survey Geologic Carbon Dioxide Storage Resources Assessment Team, 2013a, USGS Circular 1386), and the assessment summaryAuthors - Science
Explore USGS some of the many research projects on greenhouse gas emissions and carbon sequestration.
Filter Total Items: 20Methodology Development and Assessment of National Carbon Dioxide Enhanced Oil Recovery and Associated Carbon Dioxide Storage Potential
The objective of this research task is to conduct a national assessment of recoverable oil related to CO2 injection. The amount of CO2 stored (utilized) during the hydrocarbon recovery process will also be evaluated.Environmental Geochemistry
Coastal Environmental Geochemistry research at the Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center spans multiple ecosystems and topics, including coastal wetlands, aquifers, and estuaries, with the goal of providing data and guidance to federal, state, local, and private land owners and managers on these vital ecosystems.Coastal Wetland Blue Carbon
The Coastal Wetland Blue Carbon research described below is conducted and managed under the USGS Applied Landscape Ecology and Remote Sensing project and partners.Gas Hydrates- Climate and Hydrate Interactions
The USGS Gas Hydrates Project focuses on the study of natural gas hydrates in deepwater marine systems and permafrost areas. Breakdown of gas hydrates due to short- or long-term climate change may release methane to the ocean-atmosphere system. As a potent greenhouse gas, methane that reaches the atmosphere from degrading gas hydrate deposits could in turn exacerbate climate warming.Hawai‘i Carbon Storage and Greenhouse Gas Flux Assessment
In recent years, the U.S. Geological Survey has been conducting a national biologic carbon sequestration assessment in the conterminous U.S. The assessment is designed to meet the requirements of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, which calls for coverage of all 50 states and all ecosystems (including forests, grasslands, wetlands, agricultural lands, and rivers, lakes, and...Arctic Boreal Vulnerability Experiment (ABoVE)
ABoVE: Vulnerability of inland waters and the aquatic carbon cycle to changing permafrost and climate across boreal northwestern North America. Carbon released from thawing permafrost may fuel terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems or contribute to greenhouse gas emission, leading to a potential warming feedback and further thaw.Uncovering the Ecosystem Service Value of Carbon Sequestration in National Parks
The National Park Service (NPS) preserves and protects more than 84 million acres of important historic, cultural, and natural resources across 401 sites for the enjoyment of present and future generations. Protected resources and landscapes managed by the National Park Service contribute to the societal welfare of the American public, reflected by ecosystem service values derived from their use...Ecology of Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Coastal Wetlands
Wetlands have the potential to absorb large amounts of carbon dioxide via photosynthesis, and flooded soils have low oxygen levels which decrease rates of decomposition to promote the retention of soil carbon. However, the type of greenhouse gases emitted from wetlands varies by wetland type and soil condition. A suite of approaches are being used to assess fluxes of greenhouses gases, like... - Data and More
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