This blog may help people explore some of the 'hidden' issues involved in certain media treatments of environmental and scientific issues. Using personal digital images, it's also intended to emphasise seasonal (and other) changes in natural history of the Swansea (South Wales) area. The material should help participants in field-based modules and people generally interested in the natural world. The views are wholly those of the author.
Friday 15 September 2023
Keeping the Geoengineering Genie in the Bottle?
The Climate Overshoot Commission suggest that a global moritorium on efforts to geoengineer the climate is needed. The Commission notes that there are currently no rules on what a country or even a business can do. It's especially concerned about solar radiation management. Suggestions in this area include making clouds whiter and placing mirrors in space. Both, in theory, could reflect more solar energy back into space, reducing global heating (https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/sep/14/experts-call-for-global-moratorium-on-efforts-to-geoengineer-climate). The Climate Overshoot Commission points out, however, the inherent dangers in tinkering with the global climate in ways that are not fully understood. It also notes that such geoengineering could have unintended and transboundary (being to the detriment of neighbouring countries) consequences. Although there's a likely overshoot of global heating to a figure over the Paris agreement, it would be best to stick to adaptations humans can fully control. A moritorium on geoengineering is highly appropriate but there's plenty of scope for deviant/overconfident states or businesses to indulge themselves, perhaps making things worse.
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What's In a Critter's Name? 56. Lynx
The lynx's name comes from the Greek word 'leucos', meaning white or bright. This may be a reference to the animal's eyes, ...
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The UK government continue their quest to turn England's rivers back into sewers. They first facilitated the privatised water companies...
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Garden plants in France, The Netherlands, The UK and Sikkim (NE India).
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