Topic Thirty Nine
Concerns about geoengineering
Alan Robock is a climate scientist at Rutgers and one of the leaders of the Geoengineering Model Intercomparison Project, or GeoMIP. Robock maintains a list of concerns about geoengineering; the latest version has more than two dozen entries. Number 1 is the possibility that it could disrupt rainfall patterns, causing “drought in Africa and Asia.” Number 9 is “less solar electricity generation,” and number 17 is “whiter skies.” Number 24 is “conflicts between countries.” Number 28 is “do humans have the right to do this?”
Kolbert, Elizabeth. Under a White Sky (p. 181). Crown. Kindle Edition.
In human judgment some geoengineering activities may be more desirable than others. How can comparisons and distinctions be made? What would be the criteria to make these judgments? Are human beings wise enough to consider all the consequences, positive and negative of employing various activities and technologies? Which geoengineering activities seem best to you? Worst?
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