The UK’s GGR Review: A Brilliant Blueprint – If We Actually Deliver It

The UK’s Independent Review of Greenhouse Gas Removals is the most thoughtful and comprehensive articulation to date of how the country can integrate removals into a credible net-zero pathway. It deserves praise and follow-through. Too often, excellent government reviews end up gathering dust. If this one is implemented in full, it could mark the moment the UK re-establishes climate leadership, not through rhetoric, but through a pragmatic, portfolio-based plan.

A Portfolio Approach, Not a Single Bet

The Review is clear. There is no single silver bullet. A portfolio of GGR solutions is unavoidable, and the UK should lean into its strengths to build a world-class removals ecosystem. For years, policy and funding have leaned heavily toward a few significant industrial clusters, which is understandable given our world-class offshore storage resource. Those geological assets should absolutely be used; they are a gift to the global carbon budget, but they must not become a bottleneck that crowds out land-based and distributed solutions.

Enhanced rock weathering, ocean alkalinity enhancement, biochar, engineered options such as DACCS, nature-based sinks, and hybrid models all play a role. The future lies in diversity. The government’s job is to set clear standards, align incentives, and remove friction so each method can scale where it is best suited.

WECCS: Necessary or a Dangerous Detour?

The review gives significant attention to Waste-to-Energy with CCS. As a relatively pure CO₂ source, it can be cost-effective to capture and store, and geological storage avoids reversal risk. Those are real advantages. But there is a legitimate risk here. If policy turns carbon-rich waste into a long-term asset, what happens to the circular economy goal of reduction and reuse?

We need to ask, are we building tomorrow’s stranded assets under the banner of net zero? The better path is to pair any WECCS support with systemic waste reduction and packaging reform. Do not double down on combustion where cleaner options exist. Make the incentive structure point the whole system toward less waste, more reuse, better materials, and credible, permanent removals for what remains.

The Machinery of Government Must Catch Up

Anyone developing GGR projects in the UK knows the pain of fragmented governance. DESNZ, Defra, DfT, and the Environment Agency each control different pieces of the same puzzle. Projects fall between the gaps. The recommendation to create an Office for Greenhouse Gas Removals is spot on. A single point of accountability with authority to coordinate across departments would save months on every credible project.

This is not theoretical. A farmer applying crushed silicate rock can find themselves navigating Defra’s land use rules, the Environment Agency’s permitting, DESNZ funding or revenue support, and Department for Transport interactions in the same project. Align these frameworks, streamline the evidence required, and good projects will move faster.

Biomass: From Imports to Innovation

The Review’s recommendation to minimise imported biomass is particularly welcome. We have leaned too heavily on overseas feedstocks, a model that is neither scalable nor easy to defend. The UK has underused domestic resources such as felled stumps, sawmill residues, and forestry offcuts. Processing them is expensive today, but so were offshore wind and solar once. With focused innovation and the right incentives, we can lead in advanced biomass processing and densification technologies, turning what is currently a cost into a competitive advantage.

This is not a rejection of biomass. It is a call to build smarter, more traceable supply chains at home, then deploy bio-based inputs where they make sense, with better integrity and lower risk.

Aviation: Evolve the Mandate

Aviation will carry residual emissions for decades. The review’s proposal to evolve the Sustainable Aviation Fuel Mandate into a Net Zero Aviation Mandate is a pragmatic step. The shift in framing matters. It would require airlines to procure a mix of SAF and permanent removals, so that residual emissions are matched by credible, durable storage. That aligns with the polluter pays principle, reduces pressure on taxpayers, and gives the market a technology-neutral way to find the most cost-effective route to climate-neutral flight.

The Science and Technology Race We Cannot Afford to Lose

Despite strong rhetoric, the UK is not yet a leader in GGR science or technology. Innovators here are competing on uneven ground with better-funded peers in the United States and Europe. We cannot afford to repeat the offshore wind story in reverse, inventing the playbook, then watching others build the industry. If we want to lead, we must act now with real funding, clear standards, and policy certainty.

What This Means for Enhanced Rock Weathering

Enhanced rock weathering is a good example of the review’s portfolio logic. ERW accelerates a natural process and stores carbon as stable bicarbonate ions over geological timescales. Core steps like mining and crushing are already mature. The remaining work is in field application at scale and in measurement that is proportionate, reliable, and cost-effective.

The challenges are the ones practitioners know well: logistics and MRV. Transport and processing networks must expand, land suitability varies, and measurement can be a large share of the cost in early programmes. That is why standardisation, consistent protocols, open datasets, and sensible evidence requirements matter. The prize is significant. ERW can support soil health and crop productivity when applied correctly, and it fits into working landscapes with minimal operational disruption. In a portfolio, those are valuable attributes.

From Good Analysis to Bankable Projects

Turning good analysis into real projects that attract private finance needs three things:

Policy certainty.
Publish a GGR Strategy that sets out the expected contribution of each class of solution to Carbon Budgets and to net zero. Investors and operators need a clear signal on direction so they can commit capital at scale.

One accountable home in government.
Create the Office for GGR, resource it properly, and give it the authority to coordinate across departments. Cut duplicated processes for planning, permitting, and evidence, and you shorten delivery timelines for everyone from farmers and local authorities to engineered plants.

Market mechanisms that unlock private finance.
Evolve mandates and obligations so sectors with residual emissions, starting with aviation, procure permanent removals. Couple this with robust business models and standards that give lenders confidence that delivery is measurable, verifiable, and durable. When offtake is visible and MRV is consistent, debt follows. Scale comes from repetition, not novelty.

Standards, Evidence, and Integrity

Rapid growth must not come at the expense of quality. Consistent standards and MRV frameworks are essential for all methods, from engineered plants to field-based approaches. That is how removals earn their place in compliance style markets, how buyers build long-term programmes, and how projects secure non-recourse finance.

For ERW and other land-applied methods, the near-term priorities are clear. Harmonise measurement protocols. Share data. Use proportionate testing that balances confidence with cost. The goal is not to gold plate every trial. It is to build evidence strong enough to support procurement decisions at scale, then keep strengthening it as deployments grow.

A Credible Plan That is Ready to Deliver

The review’s headline recommendations form a coherent plan. Develop a GGR Strategy. Create an Office for GGR. Minimise imported biomass. Turn the SAF Mandate into a Net Zero Aviation Mandate that includes permanent removals. Position the UK to lead globally by leveraging strengths in storage, science, and finance. Act on them.

If the UK implements this review in full, it will not just deliver climate credibility. It will create jobs, open export markets in services and storage, restore ecosystems, and give British innovators the confidence to build here. The authors deserve real credit. Now comes the hard part, doing what it says. Let us not add this to the shelf of great UK reviews that never left the page.

Read the UK Government’s GGR Review

The independent review led by Dr Alan Whitehead CBE sets out a practical portfolio plan for removals in the UK. See the full recommendations, including an Office for GGR, a Net Zero Aviation mandate that includes permanent removals, and a shift toward domestic biomass innovation.

Read the full report