Earthly graves for environmental futures: Techno-burial practices

In this paper we explore contemporary investments in the underground. We argue that alongside excavation processes the subsurface the underground is increasingly being presented as site for the burial of toxic and radioactive waste and carbon dioxide. We explore two particular burial practices; the long-term disposal of industrial and toxic waste in deep geological repositories and the sequestration of carbon and greenhouse gases in soil. Across these practices, we argue that subsurface appears as a repository for both the sacred and profane remains of environmental pasts and the hopes for an ecological modernity.