New Zealand Joins International Carbon Storage Group

San Francisco, CA – The Carbon Sequestration Leadership Forum (CSLF) today announced that New Zealand has become the newest member of the international carbon storage body. CSLF members approved New Zealand’s bid for membership during a meeting of the Forum’s Policy Group held here.

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With today’s action, New Zealand becomes the 23rd member of CSLF. The other members of the Forum include: Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Colombia, Denmark, European Commission, France, Germany, Greece, India, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea, United Kingdom, and the United States.

The CSLF is a voluntary climate initiative of developed and developing nations that account for: 76 percent of world manmade carbon dioxide emissions; 58 percent of world population; 70 percent of world energy production; 75 percent of world energy consumption; 78 percent of world GDP.

The CSLF was established in 2003 and focuses on development of carbon capture and storage technologies as a means to accomplishing long-term stabilization of greenhouse gas levels in the atmosphere. The goal is to improve carbon capture and storage technologies through coordinated research and development with international partners and private industry. This could include promoting the appropriate technical, political, and regulatory environments for the development of such technology.

Members engage in cooperative technology development aimed at enabling the early reduction and steady elimination of carbon dioxide which constitutes more than 60 percent of such emissions - the product of electric generation and other heavy industrial activity. 

The CSLF and the technologies it seeks to develop were identified by international bodies as pivotal in dealing with greenhouse gases and their ultimate stabilization.  The G8 (Group of Eight)Summit endorsed the CSLF in its Gleneagles Plan of Action on Climate Change, Clean Energy and Sustainable Development, and identified it as a medium of cooperation and collaboration with key developing countries in dealing with greenhouse gases.

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For more information, contact: John Grasser, FE Office of Communications, 202-586-6803