Ancient Volcanic Rocks Could Store Billions of Tonnes of CO₂

New research from the University of Edinburgh has uncovered ancient underground volcanic formations across the UK, including on the Isle of Skye, that have the potential to safely store over 3,000 million tonnes of industrial CO₂.

This is achieved through a process called carbon mineralisation, where CO₂ dissolved in water is injected into reactive rock, binding with calcium and magnesium to turn into solid minerals.

Scientists estimate that this storage capacity equates to around 45 years of UK industrial emissions. The study suggests this could be a permanent way to store carbon on a large scale.