00:00Protect Arctic from dangerous climate engineering, scientists warn.
00:03Plans to fight climate change by manipulating the Arctic and Antarctic environment are dangerous,
00:08unlikely to work, and could distract from the need to ditch fossil fuels,
00:11dozens of polar scientists have warned. These polar geoengineering techniques aim to cool
00:16the planet in unconventional ways, such as artificially thickening sea ice or releasing
00:20tiny, reflective particles into the atmosphere. They have gained attention as potential future
00:25tools to combat global warming, alongside cutting carbon emissions. But more than 40
00:29researchers say they could bring severe environmental damage and urged countries to
00:33simply focus on reaching net zero, the only established way to limit global warming.
00:38Geoengineering, deliberately intervening in the Earth's climate system to counter the impacts
00:42of global warming, is one of the most controversial areas of climate research.
00:46Some types are widely accepted. Removing planet warming carbon dioxide from the atmosphere
00:50via planting trees or using machines, for example, are recognized parts of net zero efforts.
00:55Net zero means balancing the amount of planet-warming greenhouse gases produced by human activities
01:00with the amount being actively removed from the atmosphere. But some more radical geoengineering
01:05ideas, like reflecting sunlight, are dealing with the symptoms of climate change rather than the
01:09causes, said lead author Martin Siegert, professor of geosciences at the University of Exeter.
01:13For supporters, it is worth exploring techniques which could help rain in rapidly rising temperatures,
01:18which are already bringing severe impacts for people and ecosystems around the world.
01:22But for opponents, the risks are simply too great, particularly for the fragile polar regions,
01:27about which much remains unknown.
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