Environment in the News

While I looked through the internet for information on the environment that really struck my interest, I noticed that a lot of the articles written had very contrasting opinions. For the environment to be saved, people from all political parties will need to agree on something diplomatically which respects all viewpoints. If the population is divided in disagreement about something as important as the environment, no plan will be able to take affect. That is why "Scientists Debate Shading Earth As Climate Fix" by Richard Harris struck my interest. The idea is very controversial, but could seemingly be a much needed fix. When massive volcanoes erupt, they emit fine particals into the atmosphere which actually cool the earths temperature. New studies and ideas have brought about the concept of actual climate engineering. Emitting auerosols into the atmosphere is relatively cheap, and could seriously cool the global temperature. In this idea holds the potential of a weening off process of fossil fuels, without the pressure of rushing because of climate change.

The idea at first seemed super far fetched. Even in the article it said something like it went from cocktail parties to seriously sober meetings. At first, to think we can shoot out particles to shade our earth is almost science fiction sounding. But the idea makes sense. It is cheap and quick- and has proven potential.

But of course, there is no such thing as a quick fix. The aerosols can deplete the ozone layer, allowing ultraviolet waves to hit earth. It could also cause environmental drought in other places of the world. I think that something like this should be intensely studied, but only used in a serious environmental crisis. The only thing is, some people say we're already at the tipping point.......

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=105483423