Geoengineering Research (Forum) (Letter to the Editor‪)‬

In "The Need for Climate Engineering Research" (Issues, Fall 2010), Ken Caldeira and David W. Keith issued a strong call for geoengineering research, echoing earlier such calls. I completely agree with them that mitigation (reducing emissions of greenhouse gases that cause global warming) should be society's first reaction to the threat of anthropogenic climate change. I also agree that even if mitigation efforts are ramped up soon, they may be insufficient, and society may be tempted to try to actually directly control the climate by producing a stratospheric aerosol cloud or brightening low marine clouds. It will be a risk-risk decision that society may consider in the future: Is the risk of doing nothing in terms of advertent climate control greater than the risk of attempting to cool the planet? To be able to make an informed decision, we need much more information about those risks, and thus we need a research program. However, such a research program brings up serious ethical and governance issues.