As reported by The Times, over the next few months a company wants to dump tonnes of minerals used to make laxatives in the sea as a way to fight climate change. Planetary Technologies believes the minerals dump in the ocean could increase its alkalinity which in turn will remove CO2 from the atmosphere.

The company is looking to drop up to 300 tonnes of magnesium hydroxide in its mineral form, brucite, in St Ives Bay. Magnesium hydroxide is probably better known as the compound Milk of Magnesia, which is used as a laxative.

Sue Sayer, director of the Cornwall Seal Research Trust, said she welcomed companies exploring such approaches but felt further research ought to be carried out first. She told The Times: “My main thoughts are that we need to make sure there are no unintended effects. It’s not me trying to do the nimby thing, St Ives Bay is a really vital bay for the Cornish economy and the environment.”

Ruth Williams, marine conservation manager at the Cornwall Wildlife Trust, told the newspaper that while the company’s approach was innovative and she welcomed its engagement with locals, the charity also feels that more research needs to be done to ensure the process does not negatively impact on the environment.

Planetary Technologies, based in Nova Scotia in Canada, said their approach is called ocean alkalinity enhancement, and uses an alkaline mineral to shift the pH value of the sea. Making the water more alkaline speeds up the natural way oceans lock CO2 away by neutralising dissolved CO2 and turning it into a salt.

The method also is understood to help reversing ocean acidification which is a threat to marine wildlife around the world such as coral reefs and other habitats. The company said it intends to add 0.007% of antacid to the existing the wastewater flow in Hayle throughout the period of 90 days. This should result in roughly 100 tonnes of net CO2 removal from the atmosphere.

The full story in Cornwall Live can be read here.