United Kingdom-based UNDO is partnering with local company Canadian Wollastonite on a mission to remove one million tonnes of CO2 (carbon dioxide) from the atmosphere by 2025. Now, all they need are more Ontario farmers.
On Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2024, Kingstonist took an opportunity to learn about UNDO, Canadian Wollastonite, and the companies’ partnership, taking part in a tour of Canadian Wollastonite’s unique mining and technology company north of Kingston in Seeley’s Bay. The goal was to introduce the UNDO process, which actively removes CO2 (carbon dioxide) from the air using the naturally occurring mineral wollastonite to combat climate change. Kingstonist readers may recall Candian Wollastonite from past coverage of the local mining company’s mission to see the mineral become an active part of agriculture and the battle against global warming.
If you have driven through Seeley’s Bay on Highway 15, you will probably have noticed or even stopped to take a photo with the massive Inukshuk that marks the entrance to Canadian Wollastonite. Bob Vasily, President of Canadian Wollastonite, explained that erecting the 40-ton, 26-foot-tall human likeness was one of the first things he did when he opened the mine.
“When we used to travel, the kids and I would go camping and make these inukshuk to mark camping locations, and five years later, 10 years later, they were still there. So, my two boys said, ‘let’s build something significant here,’” he says.
A friend and excavator operator helped him bring the stone one night; the following morning, they returned to do the build: “We got here, and the fog was so thick you couldn’t see the road or anything. So we went to work. It only took about an hour and a bit to build.”
Vasily laughs, remembering that the fog parted just as they finished, and the mammoth figure seemed to have just appeared magically.
“One of the best things we’ve ever done in terms of just popularity and showing the community that, you know, we’re a mine site, but we are trying to contribute,” he says.
Driving into the mine down a long driveway, one can’t help but notice the beautiful and active wetlands with nesting boxes and wildlife crossing signs reminding drivers to slow down for animals. It’s not what one typically envisions when thinking of a mine.
In operation since 2013, Canadian Wollastonite is known for its excellent environmental reputation. Vasily explains they are the first new industrial minerals mine to receive all requisite federal and provincial environmental and operating approvals in Southern Ontario in 35 years. Trent University, the University of Guelph, and Yale University’s Center for Natural Carbon Capture all partner with Canadian Wollastonite. This puts them at the scientific forefront of researching wollastonite’s benefits as a carbon-capturing soil amendment.
“This is what we want to get across to people,” stresses Vasily. “Yes, we’re digging rocks up, but the rocks are going to good use. We’re doing it in the most sustainable way we possibly can. And working with the conservation authority.”
Once at the mine, Jim Mann, CEO of UNDO, explained UNDO’s CO2 removal process, known as “enhanced rock weathering.” This entirely natural, pioneering carbon removal technique accelerates natural weathering cycles.
Mann explains that UNDO has already been active with enhanced rock weathering (ERW) operations in other parts of the world, including the UK. He studied ecology and was passionate about the environment and climate, he says, and after a business career, he wants to use his knowledge to make a difference in the climate crisis. His company now has “one of the biggest science teams in the world studying the science of ERW,” Mann shares proudly.
Most of the mine property looks like this wetland, which was carefully built in consultation with the conservation authority, according to Canadian Wollastonite. On the company’s property, you would not know a mine existed in most places. Photo by Michelle Dorey Forestell/Kingstonist.
The science of ERW
Unlike other carbon removal techniques, says Mann, ERW uses existing processes that are quick to implement and scale. There is no building of giant machines to remove carbon from the air. Instead, farmers spread a fine dust of minerals over their crops, just as they might spread lime or other products that adjust the soil.
He gives a condensed version of the science behind ERW, for those who hadn’t taken chemistry since high school.
“What we’re trying to do is take the natural rock weathering cycle, and this is what has balanced the climate on our planet for millennia,” he says, explaining that water flows through the atmosphere as rain. Water and carbon dioxide in the atmosphere combine to form carbonic acid (H2CO3).
“Every time the rain falls, it hits rock faces, and in particular, we’re looking at silica [rocks],” Mann continues. The carbonic acid has an acid-base reaction with the rock (which is alkaline), and bicarbonates are released; he explains, “And those will wash down to the ocean, and that’s the CO2 being flushed out of our atmosphere and captured. And we’re talking about quite large volumes annually, just through that process.”
“That’s the good news: natural cycles are capturing that CO2 again,” he stated. “The bad news is we’re emitting about 40 billion tonnes or somewhere close to that. Even if we decarbonize everything we can with all known technology today, we’re going to have a deficit; the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) says somewhere between five and ten gigatons – billion tons – of CO2 per year that we’re still going to be emitting at 2050.”
Jim Mann describes the science behind his UNDO technology. Photo by Michelle Dorey Forestell/Kingstonist.
“So we will have to start removing massive amounts of CO2… we also have to reduce our emissions; we’re going to need both of these if we’re going to keep a livable and stable climate. We’re already seeing some of the worst effects of this… Tragic events, like [the] Jasper [wildfires] happening in Canada where the temperature is just higher and dryer, and we get the same happening all across the world or by bush fires, flash flooding,” Mann observes.
What UNDO’s ERW does is speed up that natural cycle, he says: “We increase the surface area of the reactive surface… [Canadian Wollastanite] is taking this rock out, crushing it to a fine powder and spreading it across fields.”
By increasing the surface area of rock, the time that the rock is in contact with CO2 and water is also increased.
“Our soils have a lot more CO2 than our atmosphere, about 10 times as much CO2 in the soils in the atmosphere,” Mann explains. “So we apply that rock dust to the soil, which holds up the moisture but also has a lot more CO2. That increases the rate of reaction. That, in turn, increases the weight of the action between 50 and 100 000 times… This is a massive, massive increase in the rate of that reaction, and it is significant quantities [of carbon captured].”
“You’ve got 30 million tonnes or somewhere close to that of wollastonite here, which has a net removal potential of somewhere in the region 12 or 15 million tons of carbon removed from the atmosphere. That’s in one: One quarry, one deposit. And when we look across the world, the potential is huge,” he shares.
Asked about the presence of the mineral around the world, Mann confirms his company is now aware of wollastonite deposits on every continent.
He indicated that Canada is a perfect location for this kind of capture because of its large agricultural and mining sectors.
“You have very good mineral mineralogy for this… So, the potential in Canada to remove millions or even hundreds of millions of tons of CO2 from the atmosphere is very significant.”
Why wollastonite?
Wollastonite is less abundant than basalt, the volcanic rock that UNDO has exclusively used for ERW in the UK and Australia up to this point. However, Mann explains that UNDO is excited about wollastonite’s ERW application for multiple reasons. It absorbs CO2 from the atmosphere ten times faster than comparable silicate minerals and has a greater carbon capture capacity.
Bob Vasily, President of Canadian Wollastonite, shows the area currently being mined. Here you can see the massive pile of crushed wollastonite, the quarry, and the surrounding habitat. Everything underfoot is wollastonite. Photo by Michelle Dorey Forestell/Kingstonist.
Wollastonite may be the best mineral to demonstrate at scale how ERW can be used as a geo-engineering tool to capture and permanently store atmospheric CO2, Mann explains.
“It can also prove that CO2 removal can be done at much lower costs per tonne than other alternative methods, while simultaneously improving crops,” he says.
While this silicate rock will not fix global warming on its own, it will help prove the science of ERW, the UNDO CEO details.
“By weathering quickly, UNDO gets more data in a shorter time period,” he says. “We will incorporate this data into our geochemical models and then be able to set up more effective frameworks for more abundant minerals to be better modelled and deployed.”
The process
Ontario Farmers already use science to treat the soil they farm to achieve maximum yield and quality crops. Mann and Vasily stress the agronomic advantages of spreading crushed wollastonite on farmland, including improved soil pH, crop health, and pest resistance.
Canadian Wollastonite Project Manager, Harris Ivens, explains that wollastonite has a wealth of co-benefits for farmers and their land. When the rock weathers, it releases calcium, magnesium, silicon, and other major and minor nutrients into the soil. This results in higher crop yields, increased pest resistance, and improved soil pH. The crushed rock can be spread on any type of cropland and reduces the need for CO2-emitting lime to be spread.
So aside from carbon capture, “farmers are looking at it from a pH correction perspective… maintaining their pH is important, that balance of acidity and alkalinity in the soil. They’re also looking at it in terms of some of the silicon benefits… in horticultural circles, they’ve been paying a lot of attention to silicon for a long time and increasingly the cash crop grain sector is looking at it more, as well,” he says.
“Silicon plays a role in natural pest and disease protection. It’s the cheapest way for the plant to build a more substantial cell wall that insects have a harder time damaging… And then, in addition, there’s a lot of studies that show it improves drought stress tolerance.”
In fact, wollastonite is already a popular product in specialty gardening shops because of the benefits it has proven to provide, Ivens adds. Home Hardware and other larger chains have also taken notice and are in the process of working with Vasily to provide it to their customers.
Partnering with farmers to promote climate change for the better
UNDO is partnering with Canadian Wollastonite to make the mineral available at no charge for Ontario farms, and they will even cover the cost of spreading. Farms cover the cost of trucking.
“The partnership will enable the generation of high-quality, permanent carbon credits and further the science of ERW, improve farmer’s soils (and bottom lines), and bring jobs to Canadian communities. Canadian Wollastonite has access to 17 million tonnes of wollastonite and has set an initial goal to remove 1 million tonnes of carbon dioxide in the coming years,” the companies said in a joint release.
A natural carbon removal partnership
Both CEOs emphasize that Canadian Wollastonite and UNDO’s partnership is a logical fit, having aligned values and the desire to deploy nature’s resources to pioneer radical climate action. Vasily’s mining company is one of the most environmentally considerate in North America, he says, noting that more than 15,000 trees have been planted on the property where the mine operates, and several extensive wetlands have been built with a marked increase in purple martin, duck, and bat populations. Less than 15 per cent of the property’s 220 hectares of land will be disturbed by mining activities, allowing plenty of space for future environmentally beneficial projects. Canadian Wollastonite also plans to increase the renewable energy mix it utilizes to power its operations through solar panel installation.
The companies characterize the partnership as a win-win scenario: a win for local farmers and businesses engaged in making this process happen, and an environmental win as the world continues the battle to stabilize and reduce the amount of carbon dioxide in Earth’s atmosphere.
Bryan Paterson, Mayor of Kingston, has welcomed UNDO’s innovative technology to Canada and the Kingston area, commenting: “ I am excited to welcome UNDO to the Kingston business community. As a company working to improve the lives of rural farming communities and combat climate change, UNDO’s vision aligns with our City’s goal to accommodate innovative, sustainability-oriented businesses.”
More information about Canadian Wollastonite can be found on the Seeley’s Bay-based company’s website. More information on UNDO can be found on the UK-based company’s website.
