The UK Royal Society has released its long awaited comprehensive report on the risks associated with geoengineering the climate.
The 12-member working group spent a year assessing the impact of two major different methods that could counter global warming: blocking sunlight from reaching the Earth by injecting dust into the stratosphere, and secondly different technological ways to pull carbon dioxide out of the air.
Geoengineering is "no magic bullet," said John Shepherd of the University of Southampton, who chaired the RS report. "It is an unpalatable truth that unless we can succeed in greatly reducing CO2 emissions we are headed for a very uncomfortable and challenging climate future," said Shepherd. "and geoengineering will be the only option left to limit further temperature increases."
The report cautions that there could be serious unintended and detrimental side effects on ecosystems and human population. It recommends further research to discover whether the potential risks outweigh the benefits. Not one single technological method can be used to cool the planet says the report, and none of the techniques are ready to be deployed on a large scale.
"Geoengineering and its consequences are the price we may have to pay for failure to act on climate change," said Shepherd. "However, used irresponsibly or without regard for possible side effects, geoengineering could have catastrophic consequences similar to those of climate change itself. We must ensure that a [international] governance framework is in place to prevent this."
Paul Guinnessy
Related Link
Geoengineering the Climate
Related Physics Today articles
Geoengineering: What, how, and for whom? February 2009
Will desperate climates call for desperate geoengineering measures? August 2008
