Climate Cheat Code?
The distribution of information about the current climate disaster to rein in global warming by social activists or green campaigns organized by nonprofits don’t seem to have much of an impact on tackling this issue at its anticipated rate. After all, we do have about 6 years till something irreparable occurs. This has prompted scientists around the world to think of new, radical, more efficient ways to quicken the process of global renewal. Scientists have thought long and hard and have brainstormed the concept of Geoengineering.
Geoengineering- Interventions on a massive scale with the aim of reversing centuries of damage induced on Earth to counteract climate change. This concept is broadly divided into two: carbon dioxide removal (CDR) and solar radiation management (SRM), as recognized as the main contributors of this climate crisis.
Carbon Dioxide Removal, as implied, seeks to depose excess carbon dioxide from the atmosphere by restoring it in plants and animals, thereby directly countering the increased greenhouse effect and ocean acidification.
A promising approach devised is Biochar production, a type of charcoal made from animal wastes and plant residues that can withdraw carbon by evading the normal decomposition process or by duplicating a fertilizer to enhance the sequestration rate of growing biomass. Under normal circumstances, as organic material degrades, the microbes break it down using oxygen and release CO2. However, if the material were “cooked” in an atmosphere devoid of oxygen, it would quickly degrade through pyrolysis where minimal amounts of CO2 would be released. Further, The bulk of the organic material would harden into a kind of porous charcoal, thus concealing the carbon as a solid.
Solar radiation management is a large category of diverse climate engineering approaches that mitigates or reverses global warming by reflecting solar radiation into space before it is absorbed by the environment and converted into heat.
A well-sought-out technique is Stratospheric Aerosol Injection. This technique uses microscopic reflective particles/aerosols to reflect the sunlight of the planet thereby cooling it. Sulfate aerosol particles are sprayed into the stratosphere by airplanes, tethered balloons, blimps, or even artilleries.
But here comes the bad news:
This technique s rumored to have the power to either undo centuries of human behavior or make everything substantially worse. This approach can also introduce unanticipated climate dangers which might have ten times more of a perilous effect on our planet. Moreover, the knowledge alone of being able to cool the planet with aerosols could lead to some being more complacent and ignorant towards this dire issue at hand.
