**GAO-08-1080**                      Published: Sep 30, 2008. Publicly Released: Sep 30, 2008.                  

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## Highlights

Key scientific assessments have underscored the urgency of reducing emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) to address climate change. Many have cited carbon capture and storage (CCS) as an essential technology because it has the potential to greatly reduce CO2 emissions from power plants while allowing for projected increases in electricity demand. CCS involves capturing CO2 from a power plant's emissions, transporting it to an underground storage location, and then injecting it into a geologic formation for long-term storage. As requested, GAO examined (1) key economic, legal, regulatory, and technological barriers impeding commercial-scale deployment of CCS technology and (2) actions the Department of Energy (DOE), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and other agencies are taking to overcome barriers to commercial-scale deployment of CCS technology. Among other things, GAO examined key studies and contacted officials from pertinent agencies, companies, and environmental groups, as well as research and other organizations.

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## Topics

Natural Resources and Environment

Air pollution controlCarbon dioxideClimate changeElectric powerplantsEmissions tradingEnergy researchEnvironmental lawEnvironmental monitoringEnvironmental protectionEnvironmental researchFederal regulationsIndustrial facilitiesInternal controlsPollution controlPowerplantsRegulatory agenciesResearch and developmentStrategic planningTechnologyTechnology researchInteragency relations