The latest wild carbon capture idea: Whale poop

Saving the planet with whale poop: Environmentalists are weighing the idea of using whale feces as critical carbon sinks, although this would be no easy task, the Financial Times writes. Whale poop — which is described by FT as “environmental gold dust” — acts as a powerful fertilizer for the oceans’ phytoplankton, which has massive carbon capture potential. The microalgae produces more than half of the world’s oxygen and removes as much carbon dioxide as four Amazon rainforests.

There’s a catch: Placing a USD value on a great whale and its services means quantifying claims for its carbon impact beforehand, the FT writes. This could be costly, given that stakeholders behind the Whale Carbon Plus Project estimate the rough value of a great whale at USD 2.5 mn to USD 3 mn over a 60-year lifespan. The project would also mean allowing for assigning ownership of the marine mammals, which could be tricky given that they’re migratory creatures. Also, any resulting financial product would need to be verified and audited independently.

Still worth a try? If related stakeholders, including governments, economists, and environmentalists can get on the same page “there’s this new pie, this new asset class that didn’t exist before,” Whale Carbon Plus Project partner Connel Fullenkamp tells the FT.