While there is no substitute for lowering our emissions, some climate engineering approaches are more promising than others, according to a new analysis. Climate engineering refers to strategies that remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and/or reduce solar input, as opposed to preventing new emissions.
Researchers from a variety of disciplines developed criteria to rank such strategies on everything from technical feasibility to cost, ecological impact, public acceptance and ethics. They found that some approaches – like forest and soil management – merit broad-scale application, but others – such as iron fertilization of the oceans – have more negative than positive impacts.
Original research paper published in the the journal Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment in June, 2014.
Names and affiliations of selected authors
