Summary:

 House Joint Memorial 4 (HJM 4) requests the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology to study the benefits and costs of direct air capture technology and report recommendations for statutory and rule changes to facilitate the development of the direct air capture industry in the state 
 

Legislation Overview:

 House Joint Memorial 4 (HJM 4) requests the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology (NMIMT) to study the benefits and costs of direct air capture technology and report recommendations for statutory and rule changes to facilitate the development of the direct air capture industry in the state 

HJM 4 finds:
•	The increase in greenhouse gases is associated with environmental, human and economic losses;
•	The removal of carbon dioxide directly from the air is an important part of the effort to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions and eventually transition to net-negative greenhouse gas emissions;
•	The US Department of Energy has initiated the Regional Direct Air Capture Hubs Program to develop four direct air capture hubs that will demonstrate direct air capture technology at a commercial scale and have the potential to capture at least one million metric tons of carbon dioxide annually from the atmosphere and permanently store the carbon dioxide in a geologic formation or convert it into new products;
•	Oklahoma is the largest of these facilities and captures five thousand metric tons of carbon dioxide per year;
•	A facility under construction in Texas would have the capability of extracting one million metric tons of carbon dioxide;
•	New Mexico has favorable conditions for the development of direct air capture technology, including geologic suitability for carbon storage, low-carbon sources of heat and electricity, and optimal climate and atmospheric conditions for this type of operation; and
•	Direct air capture operations and technology could provide economic benefits to the state by creating jobs in construction, manufacturing and other sectors, and increasing tax revenue and investment in emerging technology

HJM 4 requests that: 
•	NMIMT study the benefits and costs of sequestering carbon dioxide emissions through direct air capture technology in the state and make recommendations for statutory and rule changes to facilitate the development of the direct air capture industry in the state, address the climate crisis and create jobs;
•	NMIMT report its findings and recommendations to the appropriate interim committee dealing with issues concerning natural resources; and
•	The president of NMIMT receive a copy of HJM 4.


 

Current Law:

 According to the US Department of Energy, direct air capture technology is a form of carbon dioxide (CO2) removal that takes CO2 from ambient, or still, air. The separated CO2 can then be permanently stored deep underground, or it can be converted into products.
Direct air capture has a critical role in helping the United States address legacy emissions and is a key approach needed to achieve a net-zero emissions future by 2050.
Scientists use two broad approaches for direct air capture: liquid solvents and solid sorbents. 
•	Solvent-based direct air capture systems pass air through chemicals that remove the CO2. Existing systems use a combination of heat and vacuum to remove the captured CO2 and return the chemicals to the direct air capture process. The system then returns the treated air—now with less CO2—to the atmosphere. 
•	Sorbent-based direct air capture systems use physical filters. These filters chemically bind with CO2 molecules. When the filters are heated and/or placed under a vacuum, they release the CO2, which is now in a concentrated stream. This concentrated CO2 stream is either stored in geologic formations or used. For example, researchers are working on approaches for converting CO2 into building materials, chemicals, and fuels. 
The downside to direct air capture is its current cost. Removing CO2 from the air takes lots of power because only a tiny percentage of the atmosphere is made up of CO2. The technology also involves costs to store or use the captured CO2. 
https://www.energy.gov/science/doe-explainsdirect-air-capture