AI Overview
Geoengineering, also known as climate engineering, refers to the deliberate large-scale manipulation of Earth's systems to counteract the effects of climate change
. It is typically discussed as a potential technological solution to address the symptoms of climate change, although it doesn't tackle the root causes, such as greenhouse gas emissions.
Two main categories of geoengineering:
- Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR): These techniques aim to remove carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere and store it in long-term reservoirs.
- Examples include afforestation and reforestation, which utilize trees to absorb CO2, and direct air capture (DAC) technologies that mechanically remove CO2.
- Solar Radiation Management (SRM): Also known as solar geoengineering, these methods seek to reflect sunlight away from Earth, thus reducing the amount of solar energy absorbed by the planet and counteracting the warming effects of greenhouse gases.
- Examples include stratospheric aerosol injection (SAI), which involves introducing reflective particles into the upper atmosphere, and marine cloud brightening (MCB), which aims to increase the reflectivity of low-lying clouds over the oceans.
Benefits of Geoengineering:
- Potential for rapid cooling: SRM techniques, such as SAI, could potentially lower global temperatures relatively quickly compared to emission reduction strategies.
- May offset some climate change impacts: Geoengineering could potentially reduce the severity of certain climate change impacts, like extreme heat and sea-level rise.
- Possible economic benefits: Research and development in geoengineering could create jobs in the green technology sector.
Risks and Concerns:
- Unintended consequences: Large-scale interventions in Earth's systems could have unforeseen and potentially harmful environmental and social impacts.
- Termination shock: A sudden halt to SRM deployment could lead to a rapid and potentially catastrophic rise in global temperatures.
- Governance and ethical challenges: Geoengineering raises significant ethical questions about who decides when and how to deploy these technologies, and how to address potential conflicts between different countries' interests.
- Does not address root causes: SRM techniques do not address the underlying problem of greenhouse gas emissions and could create a "moral hazard" by reducing the urgency to cut emissions.
Important Note: Geoengineering is not considered a replacement for reducing greenhouse gas emissions or adapting to the impacts of climate change. It is a controversial and potentially risky approach that should only be considered as a supplement to other climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies.
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Unintended consequences: Large-scale interventions in Earth's systems could have unforeseen and potentially harmful environmental and social impacts.