Climate Wire | Drastic climate interventions, such as blocking the sun’s rays, can alter global weather patterns, benefiting some parts of the world and harming others.
That possibility, according to climate scientists, means that any research on such methods needs to consider those risks and involve the countries already most affected by global warming. means
Andrea Hinwood, chief scientist at the United Nations Environment Program in Nairobi, Kenya, said: “If you’re talking about actively deploying technologies that actually change the climate, get us all on board. “And that means those most vulnerable to these impacts need to have a say.”
A push for comprehensive research comes with both growing interest in and debate over solar radiation management. This is a poorly understood way of avoiding catastrophic climate change by injecting sun-blocking particles into the stratosphere or by changing cloud densities.
Climate scientists are generally wary of such interventions. Limiting the amount of sunlight reaching the planet could cool the planet rapidly, but such efforts would cause ocean acidification and other problems associated with burning fossil fuels, a major cause of global warming. They say we can’t deal with the harm of
It is also unclear how solar radiation management (SRM) will affect global weather patterns, such as monsoon rains that are significant in some regions of the global South. SRM has the potential to mitigate climate impacts in one part of the world, but can reduce crop yields and threaten water supplies in others.
Hinwood, from Australia, helped coordinate a report released last week calling for regulation to manage the potential risks of SRM (climate wire, February 28). This report, written by independent experts and published by the United Nations Environment Programme, does not endorse SRM research. However, it does offer guidance on how SRM research should be conducted, with a focus on ensuring that the process is fair and equitable.
“It’s about recognizing that research is ongoing. So if it continues, let’s be very cautious, at least in the way we think.
Its purpose is to advocate that “research does indeed address the risks and uncertainties, and the potential environmental, social, economic, and other risks that may arise from the deployment of these technologies.” be.
The debate around the need for further research on SRM is growing as the world moves beyond temperature limits that could lead to a cascade of climate change.
Some advocates of climate action argue that SRM undermines the need to reduce global warming pollution. Last year, a group of researchers called for a ban on what they called “solar geoengineering” over concerns it could be used as an excuse to delay emissions reductions.
But efforts to curb global demand for fossil fuels and other climate-damaging resources have not progressed fast enough.
Scientists and others who advocate more independent research do not view SRM as a climate change response and do not support the deployment of SRM given how little is currently known about its impact. says. They argue that more research is needed to understand if or how it can be done safely.
“When you think about geoengineering the sun, it’s global in nature, but the regional impacts would look very different,” says Shuchi Talati, a researcher at American University’s Climate Engineering Assessment Forum. says.
“Thus, researchers around the world are contributing to it to be able to develop better scenarios, better inputs to those scenarios, and better questions about what to model. We need to be able to build a better understanding of impact.” said Talati, who founded a nonprofit focused on SRM governance and judicial issues.
power balance tilt
The Global North is home to most of the experts and institutions doing research on climate change and is also funded to deploy new climate technologies.
This leaves the wealthy countries that have contributed most of the emissions contributing to global warming and the consequent impacts forced to endure in the form of more extreme storms, heat, drought and rising sea levels. It threatens to exacerbate widening inequalities between poorer countries where
“If the global South is not included, geoengineering activities could tip the balance of power towards already powerful nations,” said Govindasamy Bala, professor at the Indian Institute of Science and author of the UNEP report. I’m here. email.
Last month he signed a letter urging more research into the feasibility of an SRM approach to bring in researchers from the global South (climate wireFebruary 27).
SRM grabbed headlines late last year when a climate-tech startup called Make Sunsets began the unauthorized release of sulfate-filled weather balloons in Mexico. When the Mexican government banned such efforts, Make Sunsets relocated to Nevada and resumed launches there.
Wealthy philanthropists have also voiced their support for SRM. This is among professionals, and without international regulation governing the practice, it could be deployed unilaterally by anyone with sufficient funding, with potentially serious consequences. is raising concerns.
If a government or single entity deploys SRM without global consent, geopolitical tensions are likely to escalate, especially where relations are already tense. Washington Post reported last month that US national security officials are trying to better understand the challenges and how to manage them.
A country’s use of SRM could also undermine its climate commitments. It can also complicate the debate about how countries compensate for the harm of global warming, as it becomes difficult to determine whether so-called losses and damages are due to climate change or geoengineering. There is a possibility
“I saw SRM as a response to loss and damage, and I saw SRM as a cause of loss and damage. I think both need to be considered and people are aware of both. It’s not an either/or,” said Neil Crake, a professor of public international law at the University of Waterloo in Canada.
more people from more places
Experts say it’s too early to consider these effects. And it may never reach that point.
The UNEP report recommends models and observation-based scientific review processes that could guide potential research and future governance. If such an assessment determines that the implementation of SRM would lead to negative consequences, “the consideration of implementation may be dismissed,” the report concludes.
But even before that happens, experts say more funding is needed to support research in the global South.
The challenges are myriad. Researchers in the Southern Hemisphere often suffer from a lack of reliable power and internet access, often undertaking multiple projects and paying close attention. Training can also be lacking.
But it really comes down to money, and most research in the Global South relies on philanthropic funding.
Christopher Leonard, an environmental scientist in the Climate Systems Analysis Group at the University of Cape Town in South Africa, said the money was “like a drop in the ocean” compared to what Europe, the US and other wealthy countries donate. ‘ said.
Lennard leads a team of researchers funded by the nonprofit Degrees Initiative, which helps scientists in developing countries use SRM modeling to understand potential local climate impacts.
The degree initiative was initiated by former UK SRM researcher Andy Parker in response to the Royal Society’s 2009 report “Geoengineering the Climate”. He is currently receiving research grants for projects modeling the impact of his SRMs on such things as drought in southern Africa and monsoon rainfall in India. So far, the nonprofit has awarded $1.8 million in grants through funding provided by Open Philanthropy, the European Climate Foundation, and others.
The result, says Lennard, is a community of scientists who can not only study the impact of SRM, but also inform policy, ethics, and governance as SRM rollouts occur.
“It is very important for us to build that community and that voice now for discussions that may only take place ten years from now. He said.
He and his research team are working to build an impact modeling community to understand how SRM impacts hydrology, agriculture, energy and health.
Impact research is an area that Talati, an academic working on SRM governance issues, believes will become increasingly important.
“But to do that kind of local and regional research, we’re going to need more researchers from more places,” she said.
Contributed by reporter Corbin Hiar.
Reprinted from E&E News with permission of POLITICO, LLC. Copyright 2023. E&E News provides essential news for energy and environmental professionals.
