Government ‘not in favour’ of controversial efforts to dim the sun
Ministers expressed their opposition to efforts to reflect more of the sun’s rays back into space and stated that they were “not positive”.
Leader of the House of Commons Sir Alan Campbell has warned that modification of solar radiation could expose the climate and environment to “risks” after a Labor MP called for a debate on geoengineering testing rules.
West Bromwich MP Sarah Coombes said of solar geoengineering: “Solar geoengineering is the idea of injecting particles into the Earth’s atmosphere to darken or reflect the sun’s light and cool the planet.
“It’s something that’s been the subject of science fiction and conspiracy theories for many years.”
Ms Coombes asked: “Given the potential risks of this technology, can we discuss how Britain will work with other countries to organize experiments with the Earth’s atmosphere and how it will work to make sure we are collaborating with other countries on solutions that actually tackle the root cause of climate change?”
Sir Alan replied: “Given the uncertainty about the potential risks to the climate and the environment, we are not in favor of replacing solar radiation.
“We work closely with the international research community to evaluate the latest scientific evidence.”
Solar radiation is already naturally reflected back into space, including by particles in the atmosphere and clouds.
Efforts to develop real-life artificial methods have faced opposition, including from Greenpeace UK, which has warned that the technology will not remove carbon from the air, could disrupt weather patterns and there is “no off switch”.
Mary Church of the Geneva- and Washington-based Center for International Environmental Law warned last month that such intervention “is inherently unpredictable and risks further disrupting an already broken climate system.”
He said: “By predicting unequal global impacts, the distribution will create winners and losers, undermine the rights of billions of people and raise the fundamental question of who will control the global thermostat.”
