noaa
Newsletter
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New challenges arise as NOAA considers the regulation of solar geoengineering
In the face of mounting climate change impacts, calls grow for stronger oversight of efforts to modify the Earth's climate through solar geoengineering.
In short:
- The U.S. lacks robust regulations for solar geoengineering, sparking concerns among environmentalists and scientists over the potential consequences of unregulated climate intervention.
- Current laws only require minimal notification before launching geoengineering experiments, a standard critics argue is insufficient for overseeing the complex implications of such activities.
- As the planet warms, the interest in geoengineering as a stopgap solution to climate change increases, despite the significant risks and ethical questions it raises.
Key quote:
"I am more concerned about this than anything else. [Climate solutions] are not going to get deployed in time, which is only going to create more of a demand for something like this.”
— David Bookbinder, climate attorney and former Sierra Club’s chief climate counsel
Why this matters:
Geoengineering presents a controversial but increasingly considered option for temporarily mitigating climate change effects. However, its potential to alter weather patterns, impact global geopolitics, and cause unforeseen environmental consequences necessitates thorough regulation and public discussion.
EHN’s Pete Myers argues that once deployed, geoengineering gives excuses to avoid reducing carbon emissions.
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Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash
NOAA’s Arctic report card for 2023
Observations from researchers and residents, published annually in a report by NOAA, reveal a region grappling with rapid change.
Newsletter
Photo by Francesco Ungaro on Unsplash
For Florida’s ailing corals, no relief from the heat
No immediate end is in sight to the unprecedented marine heat wave stressing the state’s coral reefs, raising fears the heart-rending losses seen here may portend a global bleaching event that could affect reefs from Florida to Colombia, scientists of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration have said.
Photo by Jaime Casap on Unsplash
Mark Gongloff: How climate change threatens us, even here in Pittsburgh
We can’t let the size of the challenge keep overwhelming our capacity to solve it.
Top Story
Photo by Gene Gallin on Unsplash
NOAA plans $2.6 billion to help prepare for and respond to disasters
Coastal communities, Tribal nations, and weather forecast accuracy are among the planned beneficiaries of $2.6 billion the Department of Commerce plans to use to help communities be more resilient to climate change, weather hazards and sea level rise.
Photo by Daniel Gregoire on Unsplash
Carbon dioxide is growing at near-record rate, NOAA reports
Despite rising awareness about global climate change and its devastating impacts, carbon dioxide levels keep treading in the wrong direction.
Insurance firms need more climate change information. Scientists say they can help
Floods, wildfires, heat waves and hurricanes cause billions of dollars of property damage each year. Can federal climate scientists help the insurance industry keep up?
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