Coastal Enhanced Weathering Field Trial

Data analysis is underway.

In July 2022, Vesta placed 650 tonnes of olivine sand along ~1,000 ft of Peconic Bay, NY intertidal shoreline as part of a larger beach nourishment project conducted by the Town of Southampton. Olivine is a naturally-occurring mineral that dissolves gradually in seawater, and as it does, converts carbon dioxide (CO2) entrained in seawater into a form of dissolved carbon called alkalinity. This process allows the ocean to uptake more CO2 from our atmosphere, mitigating climate change, while simultaneously reducing ocean acidification via the production of alkalinity. The addition of olivine minerals to the ocean for the purposes of carbon dioxide removal can be categorized as an “Ocean Alkalinity Enhancement” strategy, or equally a marine “Enhanced Rock Weathering” strategy. Vesta’s NY project was the world’s first marine Enhanced Rock Weathering field trial.

Until November 2023, the Vesta team and their collaborators collected samples and data to characterize the field trials’ water chemistry, sediments, and ecology. Now, Hourglass is leading a team, including scientific collaborators from the Cornell Cooperative Extension of Suffolk County, Stony Brook University, Dartmouth College, Hamilton College, and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute to assess the outcomes of the field trial for both its efficacy as a carbon removal solution and environmental impacts. The team is publishing a series of papers documenting their findings.

Read the findings here:

→ Jankowska et al. (2026) “Impact on oysters in first-of-its-kind field trial of marine Enhanced Rock Weathering (mERW) with olivine as carbon dioxide removal (CDR) strategy”, Frontiers in Climate.

→ Jankowska et al. “Olivine-based marine carbon dioxide removal field trial shows no adverse effects on benthic community” (pre-print)