SURPRISING WAYS TO ADDRESS CLIMATE CRISIS
Here are eight interesting specific ways some in the scientific community are proposing that will solve a part of the world’s climate change crisis. While some may pose some relief, we all know that the best way to solve the climate crisis is to reduce emissions through a combined effort of political will and individual actions. However, even a small innovation can help in the task before us. Here are eight steps that are currently under study and might hold some promise. A few are very questionable in nature--meaning the side effects might be worse than the current problem. Here are the ideas:
Planting millions of trees via drones. A United Kingdom company has been working on using a fleet of low-flying drones that could “fire” tree seeds strongly enough into de-forested areas to insure proper planting. This could possibly cover many more acres in less time.
Massive “palm-treelike” wind farms that would be planted in the ocean. These units would be twice the size of the largest units today. The blades would hang like palm leaves and would be segmented to catch any breeze. There are more “ocean-based” wind- farms and the unique blades deserve to be studied.
Some scientists are trying to put together research funds to build a satellite that will be dedicated to gathering information on methane leaks from old and functioning well. They would find these leaks sooner and stop them faster. Since methane is 80 times as heat trapping as carbon in the atmosphere, this is a worthy project. It, however, remains up to authorities to repair the wells to make the difference in affecting climate change.
Bringing cold water to coral reefs to prevent them from dying. This idea depends upon pumping col water to the reefs giving them a chance to survive. At best, this is a stop-gap measure. Connections of underwater pipes to the reef, energy cost of the pumps, and sources for the cold water need to be considered. This idea might help in certain situations, but the overall solution is to prevent the ocean from warming in the first place.
Scientists in Japan have developed a fast- acting enzyme that can break down plastics in a matter of days. These scientists believe this will help the plastics industry to reuse old plastics faster and, this, eventually, help the ocean plastic problems. This has some promise, but manufacturers will still want “pure” plastic to make products and people will still toss one-use plastics that will get into the ocean. The use of enzymes might be a part of the solution--but not enough to solve the huge plastic problem.
Researchers in many countries are working on finding more surfaces to use as solar panels to supply energy. Some ideas are roadways as solar panels, commercial building windows used as solar panels, roof top solar panels that are the roofing material and other examples. This has some real potential in helping the overall energy supply.
Finding ways to block the sun from entering the earth’s atmosphere through particles sent into the air. Thumbs down for this idea. Vehicles already send particles in the air that block the sun--but they also add to other pollutants to trap the heat that is causing the climatic changes.
Some scientists are working to find more genetically modified crops that might be able to survive the growing weather extremes. The worth of these experiments depends upon the reader's acceptance of GMO’s. Mankind will need to be more resilient, however, there are other choices that may prove more ecologically sound--please see the ideas of the Land Institute at www.landinstitute.org
It is wonderful to find new ways of fighting climate change. We, however, must be aware of the cost and effectiveness of these innovations. There is no way around the fact that we humans need to own up to our contribution to the problem and reach for true solutions. This involves political and personal responsibility and action.
EARTH STEWARD ACTION: Are you registered to vote and plan to vote in every election? Do you try to discover how potential leaders feel about climate change issues?
SOURCE: www.globalcitizen.org/en/contents/8-cracy-innovations-that-can-save-the-planet