Commission mulls solar radiation modification to curb global warming

The European Commission is assessing the viability of technologies designed to modify solar radiation in a bid to slash greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the atmosphere, according to remarks shared by an EU official at an Euronews event held in Brussels today (September 24).

So-called ‘geoengineering’ refers to techniques aimed at removing CO2 and modifying levels of solar radiation in the atmosphere. Vicky Pollard, policy officer at the Commission’s climate action department, said the term covers a “very wide range of possible technologies”, including strategies to release particles into the atmosphere to reflect sunlight and reduce global temperature.

Asked whether the EU executive is examining any geoengineering technologies, Pollard pointed at solar radiation modification, saying the Commission is taking a steer from the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), an intergovernmental UN body, which has flagged methods to deliberately alter the Earth’s climate systems to counteract global warming in several reports. 

“What’s happening at the moment is that with research funds we look at regulation into research of solar radiation modification because this is a global issue … In terms of funding and the amount of work the focus is on the technologies and the approach is to reduce GHGs,” Pollard said.

“It’s part of the [Commission’s] debate; some think it will solve the problem of GHG emissions and because some are tempted to go down that route, we need to understand its implications and ensure that we have a robust regulation,” the EU official added.

Current geoengineering techniques are criticised for posing a risk to biodiversity, precipitation patterns, and the ozone layer, according to a 2021 study conducted by the European Parliament Research Service (EPRS).

Florence Rabier, director-general at the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts, said the concept of solar radiation modification “sounds attractive” but “it’s not a method of choice” and urged more investigation into it.

“For sure we don’t know what it does to the ozone layer and that it’s not going to counteract some other effects of climate change because the CO2 will still be there. We also know it will be costly and we would need to do it for decades or centuries to be effective,” Rabier said.

In a joint communication in June 2023 on the ‘climate-security nexus’, the Commission and the EU External Action Service (EEAS) said the EU did not currently consider geoengineering to be the solution to climate change absent clear scientific knowledge.

“These technologies introduce new risks to people and ecosystems, while they could also increase power imbalances between nations, spark conflicts and raise a myriad of ethical, legal, governance and political issues,” according to the joint document.