Lithos Carbon, Pittsburgh

How the project works

Lithos Carbon applies crushed basalt - a common volcanic rock byproduct from quarrying operations - to agricultural fields across Pennsylvania and the broader US Midwest. When rain falls on the powdered basalt, it triggers enhanced weathering: CO₂ dissolves into rainwater to form carbonic acid, which reacts with the rock minerals to produce stable bicarbonate and silicate compounds that migrate into groundwater and rivers, eventually reaching the ocean where the carbon is durably stored.

What makes Lithos's approach particularly compelling is its integration with existing agriculture. Farmers receive the basalt application at no cost in exchange for the carbon credits it generates, giving them a clear economic benefit with minimal operational disruption. Lithos uses advanced soil sampling, geochemical modelling, and third-party verification to precisely quantify the carbon removed by each field - providing the scientific rigor needed for high-quality, trustworthy carbon credits.

Pennsylvania's rich basalt deposits, high-quality agricultural soils, and well-developed farming infrastructure make it an ideal early deployment region. As Lithos demonstrates permanence and measurability at scale, the approach can expand across the entire North American agricultural belt - one of the largest potential enhanced weathering surfaces on the planet, with the capacity to remove hundreds of millions of tonnes of CO₂ per year.