Direct air capture: assessing impacts to enable responsible scaling

This paper discusses the expected environmental impacts (local and distributed) of building and operating Direct Air Capture (DAC) plants in the United States. It provides considerations related to decision-making and DAC siting, including responsible scaling and equitable distribution of benefits, as well as policy and procedural recommendations. It examines the energy, land, water, chemical, construction and infrastructure requirements of DAC development and operation. DAC is expected to have similar onsite resource usage impacts as other types of industrial infrastructure, but produce zero or almost zero onsite emissions that could negatively impact human health or the environment, particularly if powered by renewable energy. Responsible project design and regulation under the existing U.S. environmental regulatory framework can reduce adverse environmental impacts onsite and in relevant supply chains.