New attempt of the implementation of CCS technology in Poland

After 2013 when the PGE Bełchatów demo CCS project was canceled and the EU CCS directive implemented into Polish law (in a way generally obstructing the development of CCS projects in Poland), no significant effects in that field have occurred till 2021. In 2021 the draft of a new law on change of Polish geological and mining law and some other laws (Polish CCS law) was prepared and is being proceeded – it is expected to be accepted soon by the Council of Ministers and then submitted to the Parliament. Generally, the law is to facilitate the development of CCUS technologies in Poland (commercial projects, both onshore and offshore storage in saline aquifers and depleted/depleting hydrocarbon fields – including EHR, no exploration permits/concessions, just storage permits as required by the directive, transport modes). Concurrently, in August/September 2021 Polish Minister of Climate and Environment appointed an advisory board – the Team on Development of CCUS technologies, where representatives of government, industry and research organizations were invited to facilitate CCUS technologies implementation in Poland. One of the Team's tasks resulted in the development of several prefeasibility studies on the full CCS value chain of newly constructed power and CHP blocks (mainly gas fired) carried out by a consortium led by AGH. Similar studies are being developed or considered in the case of other industry sectors, especially cement and chemical plants. In the storage part of these studies, the national project “Assessment of formations and structures for CO2 geological storage including monitoring plans” (completed in 2012/2013 by a consortium led by PGI-NRI) and its update completed upon request of the Ministry in 2021 have been utilized. In the case of the complete CCS value chain, results of pre-feasibility studies carried out in 2009-2013, together with assumptions and results of the new AGH-important project CCUS.pl initiated in May 2021, have been utilized. Several other international projects (financed by Norway Funds) oriented on CCS/CCS have been started (e.g., Agastor, SltPreCO2 project) in Poland. These developments might contribute to creating Polish CCS cluster (or clusters) where various emission sources and transport and storage infrastructure will be integrated, possibly within a decade

Implementation of the EU CCS Directive in Europe: results and development in 2013

Directive 2009/31/EC of the European Parliament on the geological storage of carbon dioxide, entered into force on June 25th 2009. By the end 2013 the CCS Directive has been fully transposed into national law to the satisfaction of the EC in 20 out of 28 EU Member States, while six EU countries (Austria, Cyprus, Hungary, Ireland, Sweden and Slovenia) had to complete transposing measures. In July 2014 the European Commission closed infringement procedures against Cyprus, Hungary and Ireland, which have notified the EC that they have taken measures to incorporate the CCS Directive into national law. Among other three countries Sweden has updated its legislation and published a new law in their country in March 2014, permitting CO2 storage offshore. The evaluation of the national laws in Poland, which were accepted at national level in November 2013, and Croatia, which entered the EU on 7 July 2013 and simultaneously transposed the CCS directive, is still ongoing in 2014. The first storage permit under the Directive (for the ROAD Project in the offshore Netherlands) has been approved by the EC. While CO2 storage is permitted in a number of European countries, temporary restrictions were applied in Czech Republic, Denmark and Poland. CO2 storage is prohibited except for research and development in Estonia, Finland, Luxembourg, two regions in Belgium and Slovenia due to their geological conditions, but also forbidden in Austraia, Ireland and Latvia. The size of exploration areas for CO2 storage sites is limited in Bulgaria and Hungary. In Germany, only limited CO2 storage will be permitted until 2018 (up to 4 Mt CO2 annually)

Reference and control plots – a useful tool for forestry?

In the current age, the increased need for the restoration of forest ecosystems necessitates a better understanding of natural processes. Forest stands that are affected only by natural processes and disturbances can serve as references and controls for comparison with cut or otherwise managed forests. Such a comparison may help us determine, whether our sylvicultural practices actually pursue the goal of sustainable development. It is also important to use uniform terminology across the world to facilitate sharing of experiences and results. Creating reference and control stands in every ecoregion will provide a rich scientific basis for comparison with managed forests and allow us to design and apply restoration methods more effectively

Reference and control plots – a useful tool for forestry?

In the current age, the increased need for the restoration of forest ecosystems necessitates a better understanding of natural processes. Forest stands that are affected only by natural processes and disturbances can serve as references and controls for comparison with cut or otherwise managed forests. Such a comparison may help us determine, whether our sylvicultural practices actually pursue the goal of sustainable development. It is also important to use uniform terminology across the world to facilitate sharing of experiences and results. Creating reference and control stands in every ecoregion will provide a rich scientific basis for comparison with managed forests and allow us to design and apply restoration methods more effectively

Routing Deployment of CC(U)S in the Baltic Sea Region

Much potential exists in the Baltic Sea region (BSR) regarding CC(U)S and at least on the research side, there has been a steady stream of activities over the years. Potential storage sites are localized in the Baltic Basin within several countries such as Sweden, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Russia. However, the BSR is still lagging behind in deploying a large-scale CC(U)S due to the national policy and regulatory frameworks which create unfavorable conditions for the technology, as well as the low public awareness and acceptability in most of the countries in the region. Consequently, CO2 injection is forbidden in Lithuania, CO2 storage on an industrial scale is banned in Estonia, Latvia and Finland and some federal states of Germany, while in Denmark, Poland and Sweden is permitted with limitations. However, it should also be noted that some positive developments and attitudes towards CC(U)S have also taken place recently in some of the BSR countries. This paper provides an overview of the current CC(U)S status and development in the BSRpublishedVersio

The estimation of CO2 storage potential of a gas-bearing shale succession at the early stage of reservoir characterization : a case study from the Baltic Basin (Poland)

Estimation of the CO2 storage potential of gas-bearing shales in the Lower Paleozoic Baltic Basin is at an early stage of reservoir exploration and production, based on data from one vertical exploration borehole, supplemented with some information from adjacent boreholes. The borehole section examined is 120 m long and comprises three intervals enriched with organic matter separated by organic-poor intervals. In our approach, the storage capacity is represented by: (1) sorption potential of organic matter, (2) open pore space and (3) potential fracture space. The potential for adsorbed CO2 was determined from Langmuir isotherm parameters taken from laboratory measurements and recalculated from CH4 adsorption curves. The pore space capacity was estimated in two ways: by utilizing results of laboratory measurements of dynamic capacity for pores >100 nm and using results of helium porosimetry, the first of these being considered as the most relevant. Due to the low permeability of the shale matrix we have adopted the standard assumption that the CO2 is able to reach effectively only 10% of the theoretical total sorption and pore volume. For hydraulic fracture space, the theoretical maximum opening of vertical fractures in the direction of minimum horizontal stress was considered, decreased by the expected portion of fracturing fluid flowback and by partial fracture closure by burial compaction. The effectiveness of three CO2 storage categories for the individual organic-rich and organic-poor shale units shows an obvious positive correlation of TOC content with the storage efficiency by sorption and within pore space, and a negative correlation with the storage efficiency in hydraulic fractures. It was estimated that sorption, over the maximum storage interval (120 m thick), is responsible for ~76% of total storage capacity, pore space accounts for 13% (for the most relevant porosity model) while the contribution of fractures is about 11%. In the minimum storage interval (35 m thick, including the best quality shales) the estimated proportions of sorption, pore space and fractures in the total storage capacity are 84, 10 and 6% respectively. Finally, the result for the best quality storage interval (35 m thick) was compared with the Marcellus Shale of similar thickness (average ~38 m) and with other options of CO2 storage in Poland. The most organic-rich units in the area studied have a CO2 storage capacity efficiency (i.e. storage capacity per volume unit of shale) only slightly less than average for the Marcellus Shale, because sorption capacity – the dominant component – is comparable in both cases. However, the open pore space capacity in the Marcellus Shale appears to be far higher, even if the potential fracture space calculated for the borehole studied is taken into consideration, probably because the free gas content in the Marcellus Shale is far higher than in the Baltic Basin. CO2 storage in depleted shale gas wells is not a competitive solution compared to storage in saline aquifer structures or in larger hydrocarbon fields

CO2 storage capacity of deep aquifers and hydrocarbon fields in Poland–EU GeoCapacity Project results

AbstractIt was showed results of CO2 storage capacity estimation in aquifers and hydrocarbon deposits in Poland, which were achieved within realization of 6 FP project EU GeoCapacity. CO2 storage capacity was calculated in Mesozoic aquifers at regional scale (Lower Cretaceous–7,647 Mt, Lower Jurassic–43,826 Mt, Lower Triassic–26,494 Mt) and for selected 18 geological structures (3,522 Mt). Storage capacity calculated for Polish hydrocarbon fields, using an assumption of 1:1 volumetric replacement of hydrocarbons with supercritical CO2, is 764.32 Mt and storage capacities of particular fields are diverse

Effects of forest roads on oak trees via cervid habitat use and browsing

Roads can affect animals in several ways, by affecting movement, space use, foraging behavior and mortality. As roads often have a negative effect on populations of birds and mammals, their effects are important for wildlife management. However, the effect of roads differ between different types of roads, and most studies of road ecology have focused on major roads with high traffic intensity, whilst effects of smaller unpaved forest roads in northern ecosystems are less known. We investigated the effects of forest roads in a mixed conifer forest in central Europe on cervid habitat use and browsing impact on forest regeneration during the winter season. We found that hunted cervid species avoided forest roads, and that browsing pressure was higher within the core of forest areas rather than close to roads. This led to an increased density of undamaged trees (by browsing) close to forest roads, whilst browsing damages were relatively high in the interior. Hunters often use these forest roads in the hunting season. We suggest that human disturbance creates corridors of fear along forest roads, and that cervids alter their habitat and browse use to avoid humans. This in turn has implications for forest and cervid management. This is the first study to document that gravel roads can affect oak trees through modifying cervid behavior. Future studies should use experiments to explore this question further and separate different effects of forest roads to understand the mechanisms; edge effects on vegetation, traffic, effects on natural predators and human disturbance

Effects of forest roads on oak trees via cervid habitat use and browsing

Roads can affect animals in several ways, by affecting movement, space use, foraging behavior and mortality. As roads often have a negative effect on populations of birds and mammals, their effects are important for wildlife management. However, the effect of roads differ between different types of roads, and most studies of road ecology have focused on major roads with high traffic intensity, whilst effects of smaller unpaved forest roads in northern ecosystems are less known. We investigated the effects of forest roads in a mixed conifer forest in central Europe on cervid habitat use and browsing impact on forest regeneration during the winter season. We found that hunted cervid species avoided forest roads, and that browsing pressure was higher within the core of forest areas rather than close to roads. This led to an increased density of undamaged trees (by browsing) close to forest roads, whilst browsing damages were relatively high in the interior. Hunters often use these forest roads in the hunting season. We suggest that human disturbance creates corridors of fear along forest roads, and that cervids alter their habitat and browse use to avoid humans. This in turn has implications for forest and cervid management. This is the first study to document that gravel roads can affect oak trees through modifying cervid behavior. Future studies should use experiments to explore this question further and separate different effects of forest roads to understand the mechanisms; edge effects on vegetation, traffic, effects on natural predators and human disturbance.Effects of forest roads on oak trees via cervid habitat use and browsingacceptedVersio