Sustaining the Arctic in Order to Sustain the Global Climate System

• Published in: Sustainability
• Main Authors: Daniel Bodansky, Rafe Pomerance
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2021
• Subjects: Arctic; climate engineering; climate intervention; solar radiation management; Environmental effects of industries and plants; TD194-195; Renewable energy sources; TJ807-830; Environmental sciences; GE1-350; Ice; permafrost
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.3390/su131910622; https://doaj.org/article/43154c3e7bb949139d2046186776251f

The unraveling of the Arctic is bad enough for the Arctic itself, but it will have enormous consequences for the entire planet since the Arctic is a crucial component of the global climate system. Current policies do not provide much hope to prevent these harms. We have committed the earth to too much warming to take a step-by-step approach. We have entered a period of history when planetary management has become unavoidable and must move forward on many fronts simultaneously. Key components of a multiprong approach include decarbonization, focus on short-lived climate forcers, greenhouse gas removal, adaptation, Arctic interventions, and solar climate intervention. This article discusses the last option, which may be the only means of cooling the earth quickly enough to save Arctic ice and permafrost. Scientific research is essential to better understand its feasibility, effectiveness, and safety. However, research is not enough; we need to be ready to respond right away if Arctic or global temperatures need to be lowered quickly. This means we need significant technology research and development so that solar climate intervention technologies are deployment-ready in the relatively near future, perhaps in a decade or two, and could be used should the need arise and should research show that they are effective and safe.