Elon Musk, a billionaire entrepreneur, has given $129 million in prize money to inventors who create methods for combating global warming by eliminating carbon dioxide from the atmosphere or ocean.
“Right now, we only have one planet,” Musk, CEO of electric car maker Tesla, said.
“Even if there is a 0.1 percent probability of catastrophe, why take that chance? That is insane!
Elon Musk, a billionaire entrepreneur, has given $129 million in prize money to inventors who create methods for combating global warming by eliminating carbon dioxide from the atmosphere or ocean.
“Right now, we only have one planet,” Musk, CEO of electric car maker Tesla, said.
“Even if there is a 0.1 percent probability of catastrophe, why take that chance? That is insane!
Musk revealed in January that he would give $129 million in prizes and would unveil the contest rules on Thursday, Earth Day.
The reward award will be valid until Earth Day 2025.
“I do not believe we are lost at the moment,” Musk said.
“If we continue on our current path, complacently, there is a chance of non-linear climate change.”
Carbon capture programs have also received support from Silicon Valley start-ups seeking a technical solution to climate change, government officials concerned about the slow pace of pollution reductions, and emitters such as oil companies seeking to mitigate their climate impacts.
Commercialization of the technology is not yet feasible.
Carbon removal costs more than $300 per metric tonne in an environment that releases greenhouse gases equal to about 50 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide per year.
Musk’s $100 million XPRIZE Carbon Removal is aimed at developing a practical method for removing 1000 tonnes of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere annually, with the potential to significantly scale up.
Musk has established a reputation as an industrialist committed to environmental stewardship, growing Tesla into the world’s most valuable vehicle company and expanding into solar energy to allow customers to charge their cars carbon-free.
