‘Idyllic’ St Ives Bay could be ‘easily spoilt’ by project that will release chemicals into sea, skipper warns

“Idyllic” St Ives Bay could “easily be spoilt” by a proposed carbon capture scheme that would pour chemicals into the sea, a local skipper has warned.

Canadian company, Planetary Technologies, hopes to pour between 200 and 300 tonnes of magnesium hydroxide into the wastewater pipe at Hayle, Cornwall, that stretches out to sea to counter the acidity of the ocean and reduce the amount of carbon dioxide going into the atmosphere.

The team of scientists said the chemical could reduce the acidity of the ocean and remove CO2 from the water, thereby drawing harmful CO2 out of the atmosphere to replace it. The team told NationalWorld that it wants to “heal ocean water damaged by centuries of carbon dioxide pollution” and said Cornwall is the perfect location to prove its theory as its oceans are “becoming more acidic” and "have heartburn”.

Mike Kelland, CEO of Planetary Technologies, said: "What we’re planning to do is give the ocean an antacid, like we’re giving the ocean a Rennie in a controlled way. Once it gets into the ocean it’s going to neutralise some of that acidic CO2.

"St Ives and the region around it are really interesting to us because they’re very shallow in terms of ocean depth and they allow some very turbulent mixing as well.”

Three sites are being used by Planetary with two in Canada and one in Cornwall, although full approval for the project is yet to be granted.

Cornish skipper, Kieren Faisey, who owns and runs a Newlyn based charter boat named Unleashed, told NationalWorld St Ives Bay has a “vast and diverse marine system” that could “easily be spoilt” by the release of chemicals into the sea.

He said he “would be interested in the data behind inputting such large quantities of a substance in a marine ecosystem that functions without it” and is worried it could be “detrimental” to it. He added: “The age old saying, every action has a reaction - this is especially true in an ecosystem”.

Planetary Technology has insisted that the scheme has “been studied by many biologists, oceanographers and environmentalists” and “there has been a range of evidence that increasing ocean alkalinity can be helpful for restoring fish and other marine life.”

It said magnesium hydroxide is “already among the most abundant ions in seawater” and “marine ecosystems are well adapted to this alkalinity”.

Planetary’s first small-scale trial in Cornwall went ahead in September last year  in tandem with South West Water (SWW), without widespread public knowledge.

Independent analysis released concluded the trial had “reduced CO2 at the wastewater plant” but crucially the study did not assess impacts on local biology.

Another trial is proposed for this summer, using 2.5kg of magnesium hydroxide for every 18 tonnes of water with the aim to permanently remove 200 net tonnes of CO2 from the atmosphere.

Eventually, Planetary hopes to remove one billion net tonnes of CO2 a year from the atmosphere.

A South West Water spokesperson told NationalWorld that it is “working with the Planetary team ahead of their proposal to conduct an ocean alkalinity project.”

The spokesperson added: “We care passionately about the environment, and although we can see some exciting opportunities within this project, we won’t take any risks.”

Before considering South West Water’s application, the Environment Agency (EA) has asked the company and Planetary Technologies to:

• Design an Environmental Impact Assessment and an effective monitoring programme in the marine environment.
• Produce a detailed assessment on the overall lifecycle ‘carbon footprint’ of the project and compare the amount of CO2 associated with sourcing the magnesium hydroxide with the amount sequestrated
• Review the dosing risks - for example chemical reactions within the final effluent as a result of introducing magnesium hydroxide and its impact on Ultra Violet radiation treatment.
• Increase public engagement and liaison with local interest groups, environmental charities, local authorities and others.

The EA said it will “ensure that any adverse impact on the receiving environment and marine life is carefully monitored.”