A LOOK AT GEOENGINEERING

Engineering the Earth; Jeff Goodell sizes up the silver-bullet technologies that may be needed to combat rising planetary temperatures
Eric Roston, March 25, 2010 (BusinessWeek)

"The Good: Goodell explores with infectious curiosity and thoughtful narration this strange, promising, and untested suite of climate fixes…The Bad: The book's deadline must have been too early for Goodell to explain why climate scientists have been in a PR pickle…The Bottom Line: If you think climate change has much to do with what U.S. political parties currently say they think, or that it has a single clear solution, read this book and think again…"

"… Ken Caldeira, a climate modeler with the Carnegie Institution for Science…articulated a central conundrum…"If you are pushed against the wall in a Senate meeting room and asked what you can do to cool off the planet in a hurry, what do you say?"…That's one question probed in Jeff Goodell's judicious and much needed new book, How to Cool the Planet…[G]eoengineering has become a flashpoint within the already ferocious climate debate…[and is] commanding serious attention from public- and private-sector luminaries…A lot of kooky geoengineering ideas have bubbled up…Goodell, a contributing editor at Rolling Stone…resists the temptation to write about these, focusing instead on ideas that are beginning to attract research dollars..."

From Clean Skies

"…[Ideas include the release of] tons of aerosol particles into the sky..[to] reflect the Sun's light…[Pumping] infinitesimal water droplets into the air to buffer ocean clouds' reflectivity…[and] whitening rooftops around the world to reflect solar energy back to space…Which authorities would regulate any of these moves, and how, is anyone's guess, and therefore a looming diplomatic and legal problem—beyond the still-speculative nature of much geoengineering science.

"Climate action in Washington has stalled in no small part because of the feared costs to businesses and consumers of rising energy prices…"Who can resist a cheap fix?" [Goodell asks]…[M]any environmentalists, that's who. They fear that geoengineering would let polluters off the hook and exacerbate the underlying problem, which is an atmospheric destabilization more dramatic than anything in the recent geological record. Some polluters have embraced geoengineering precisely because of its possible low price…"

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"…Along the way they've picked up advocates in Stephen J. Dubner and Steven D. Levitt, whose bestseller SuperFreakonomics includes a chapter on geoengineering that commits two basic errors: oversimplifying Earth system science and falling in love with the aerosol particle solution…[They] trumpet a simple answer to climate change in part because they didn't do enough research to understand how little they did. By contrast, Goodell understands there's no approach to the problem that doesn't confront fundamental questions, such as: What is the Earth for? Where does nature end and humanity begin? There is no trace of climate alarmism or political advocacy here. Goodell takes a detailed look at the range of hard choices humanity faces and explores how complicated moral and ethical considerations will dictate our response.

"Goodell is also a skilled writer. He splices complicated ideas into pithy turns of phrase…Geoengineering, says Goodell, may be an inexpensive way…Or it could be a costly mistake. We don't know yet. In a final chapter called "Human Nature," he writes: 'I do believe this is what it comes down to. We can use our imagination and ingenuity to create something beautiful and sustainable, or we can destroy ourselves with stupidity and greed. It is our choice.'"