The EU apparently wants to examine whether the deflection of the sun’s rays is an option in the fight against climate change – and investigate possible risks.
Brussels – According to climate researchers, the 1.5 degree target set in the Paris climate protection agreement can hardly be reached. The European Union (EU) now wants to examine whether deflecting the sun’s rays or changing the weather are viable options to reduce global warming. A corresponding document is available Bloomberg before, as the news portal reported on Sunday (June 26). These geoengineering measures are sometimes controversial among scientists.
European Union wants to examine risks of geoengineering
The idea of artificially cooling the earth by deflecting the sun’s rays is not new. As early as 2021, the renowned scientific body National Academies in the USA spoke out in favor of further research in the field of so-called geoengineering and its risks. Aerosols artificially introduced into the earth’s atmosphere partially reflect the sunlight back into space and thus limit global warming. “These technologies pose new risks for people and ecosystems, but could also increase power imbalances between nations, trigger conflicts and raise a variety of ethical, legal, political and governance issues,” says the EU’s first draft of the planned investigation of the potential dangers of a transformation of the earth’s atmosphere.
Next Wednesday (July 5, 2023) the EU wants to be loud Bloomberg provide a framework for the study. The association of states also wants to take a closer look at the security consequences of rapid global warming, such as water and food shortages that can lead to migration and conflicts. Geoengineering measures were already mentioned in the European Union’s “Green Deal” presented in 2019, which aims to achieve climate neutrality in the EU by 2050.
Which is why geoengineering measures are now coming to the fore
In the Paris Climate Agreement the 195 signatory countries agreed in 2015 to reduce global emissions of climate-damaging greenhouse gases and to limit global warming to a maximum of 1.5 degrees Celsius compared to the pre-industrial age. Even if all countries were to comply with the agreement – which is currently not the case – this would not be sufficient to avoid exceeding the 1.5 degree limit. This is the conclusion he comes to Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in a report. According to scientists, if the temperature continues to rise, irreversible chain reactions can occur. In view of the impending crossing of these so-called “tipping points”, geoengineering measures are increasingly coming to the fore. In addition to the idea of reducing solar radiation, there are also approaches remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
Climate geoengineering “Sci-fi diversionary tactics”? Effects unclear
The EU will support “international efforts towards a comprehensive assessment of the risks and uncertainties of climate interventions, including changes in solar radiation,” the draft said. It is unclear whether climate geoengineering is a suitable way to curb global warming or a “science fiction red herring” with dangerous consequences, say critics. The geoengineering measures could also divert the focus from tackling CO₂ emissions – the greenhouse gas is undisputedly the main trigger of global warming.
“Solar geoengineering is not a substitute for decarbonization,” warned Chris Field of Stanford University, one of the scientists from the National Academies who advocated further research into geoengineering measures in the USA in 2021. There is a scientific concern that the impact on the earth’s atmosphere and the weather could change rain patterns, which would have incalculable effects on the climate – for example the monsoon in South Asia. in one In an open letter, 60 leading climate scientists called for an international agreement in early 2022 against the use of geoengineering.
#Fighting #climate #change #science #fiction #investigates #measures #deflect #suns #rays