We are ignoring potentially valuable climate-change technologies

  • 📰 globeandmail
  • ⏱ Reading Time:
  • 86 sec. here
  • 13 min. at publisher
  • 📊 Quality Score:
  • News: 73%
  • Publisher: 92%

Temperature News

Climate,Time,Thing

The taboo on geoengineering lingers to this day, and it has left us with no ready defence against rapid warming

A crew works in March on collector containers, where air is collected, at the Climeworks carbon-capture plant in Hellisheidi, Iceland.Three years ago, I set out on a journey to tap into the knowledge of scientists and. I interviewed almost 100 climate scientists together with assorted engineers and entrepreneurs, and I learned about many new technologies in the early stages of development that will, when implemented at scale, help to mitigate climate change.

The bad news comes in two parts. One is that emerging techniques like these normally take 10 to 15 years to scale up, which is not much use in holding the warming down now. The other is that more than four-fifths of the world’s energy – 82 per cent – still comes from fossil fuels. People talk a lot about cutting emissions, but it isn’t actually happening. “We’re not getting rid of fossil fuels,” U.S. President Joe Biden said in 2020.

Back in 2015, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change made staying below 1.5 C at least into the 2030s its “aspirational goal,” but we have just had our first full year at that temperature. We are already in the danger zone and we will probably remain there, exposed to surprise upward surges in temperature at any time, so it would be very useful to have some techniques available for holding the temperature down.

To suggest that other measures might also be needed came to be seen as defeatist, almost treasonous. Some prominent climate scientists were militantly opposed to research on geoengineering even as an emergency measure, and most others just kept their heads down.It’s true that mitigation really is the only way to stop the warming permanently, as every advocate of geoengineering research acknowledges. However, if the average global temperature goes too high , then things start to fall apart.

The techniques for holding the temperature down are known in theory, and are neither dangerous nor very expensive. The two most promising ones are stratospheric aerosol injection and marine cloud brightening. Can we stop Canada’s thawing permafrost from releasing huge volumes of greenhouse gases? The solution could be wild

 

Thank you for your comment. Your comment will be published after being reviewed.
Please try again later.
We have summarized this news so that you can read it quickly. If you are interested in the news, you can read the full text here. Read more:

 /  🏆 5. in MY

Malaysia Malaysia Latest News, Malaysia Malaysia Headlines

Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.

Applications now open for federal climate change youth councilEnvironment and Climate Change Canada is looking for young people between the ages of 18 and 29 to become a member of the next Environment and Climate Change Youth Council
Source: sudburydotcom - 🏆 6. / 89 Read more »

Why climate change on the farm means a big bill for Canadian taxpayersSome experts say Canadians can expect to see more of as climate change pressures agricultural production.
Source: BNNBloomberg - 🏆 83. / 50 Read more »

Cocoa prices spike, farmers struggle, Easter treat expected for Big ChocolateClimate change wreaking havoc on producers but that’s not expected to hurt chocolate marketplace
Source: TerraceStandard - 🏆 24. / 68 Read more »

Spring hasn't sprung yet. Wintery conditions hit Calgary and surrounding areasA snowfall warning has been issued for Calgary by Environment and Climate Change Canada.
Source: CBCCalgary - 🏆 78. / 51 Read more »

Special weather statement issued for Calgary, 15 to 25 cm of snow expectedEnvironment and Climate Change Canada has issued a wide-spread special weather statement that includes Calgary.
Source: CTVCalgary - 🏆 26. / 68 Read more »

Canada to upgrade military in order to hold on to its arctic sovereignty‘Climate change is rapidly reshaping Canada and reshaping our North’
Source: TerraceStandard - 🏆 24. / 68 Read more »