Time has run out to avoid dangerous climate change by reducing emissions alone. In scenarios analysed by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), limiting warming to 1.5°C is only possible with both rapid reductions in global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and the removal of emissions from the atmosphere.

Strong and urgent emissions reductions, together with sequestration, are critical not only to achieve global net zero emissions by mid-century, but also to go beyond and reach net negative emissions to avoid the worst impacts of climate change.

Australia is endowed with carbon sequestration potential. The purpose of this paper is to help policy-makers, emitters and markets to better understand how it can be scaled, accelerated and used responsibly.

Global demand for sequestration and low emissions energy is expected to grow rapidly over the coming decades, presenting economic opportunities for Australia to drive global ambition, establish new industries, and reinvent existing ones.