CO2 – What’s it good for?

A 5 minute read that will open your eyes to the new and innovative uses for CO2

We are constantly reminded about the damage CO2 is doing to our environment. People are driving less, we are finding alternative energy sources such as wind and solar power, and deforestation is becoming an issue which people are finally addressing. Yet we at Bags of Ethics came across this article which explores some of the ways in which the CO2 that is a causal factor of climate change is being transformed into beneficial products that are saleable and will help with the effort to solve climate change. Across the UK, several businesses are harnessing the technology that allows CO2 to be used in beneficial and carbon-neural ways, instead of harming the environment even further.

In Swindon, CO2 is being converted and used as fertiliser. Cow dung and maize are put into a bio-digester, where bacteria break them down into biogas to heat our homes. The left over waste is mixed with nutrient-rich waste from the fertiliser and food industries. CO2 is pumped in which helps to bind the two. This then creates a product of high grade fertiliser pellets that soak up more CO2 than they produce. So CO2 could be being used to grow the vegetables which you are buying in your local grocery store.

In Suffolk, horse manure and straw is taken from Newmarket races and put through a bio-digester. Biogas and CO2 is extracted from this. Using membranes, food grade CO2 is separated out and what is produced is a pure CO2 that is sold to local brewery’s to put the bubbles into their drinks.

In Leeds the ash from the incinerator of a water plant is mixed with water and CO2 where the CO2 is captured within the waste ash to create artificial limestone for building purposes. The process also has the benefit of using ash that would have otherwise been sent away to landfill. This creates building blocks that contain locked up CO2 which also reduces the need for cement – a big emitter of CO2 emissions.

CO2 is already being used to create fertiliser, fizzy drinks and building material, which begs the question, what potential is there for even more uses?

Each year, 37 gigatonnes of CO2 are emitted through cars, fossil fuel production etc. that could be used in new products. Despite this being a relatively small industry, each gigatonne converted is one less being omitted into the atmosphere.

At Bags of Ethics we are extremely passionate about trying to eliminate and reverse the damages caused by climate change. In our business, we try to make our production process as eco-friendly and sustainably minded as possible. We only use sustainable and natural fibers in our products, we try to reduce the amount of water and electricity that we use and waste, we ship our products via sea freight rather than air freight in order to reduce our carbon footprint, and use non-toxic inks that will not contribute to pollution and therefore will help the environment. We believe that everyone should be doing their bit to reduce their carbon footprint, and we support businesses like ours that are taking the initiative to either cut down on their CO2 emissions, or harness the power of the CO2 and use it in other ways.

The technology being advanced that allows us to harness CO2 emissions and use them in a positive and beneficial way which in turn will help to reduce the effects of climate change is an exciting prospect. More attention needs to be drawn to these issues, and we believe that by sharing them with our clients and readership alike, we can help to grow awareness around the damage that is being done to our planet, and therefore work together to reverse it. We believe that our planet is a beautiful and amazing place, and we want our work to support it in every way.

We are interested to hear your opinion on this new and innovative technology, and we look forward to bringing you more exciting stories like this in the future.

The team at Bags of Ethics.