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BRUSSELS — The European Union should prohibit solar geoengineering technologies to combat climate change and push for a worldwide ban for the time being, the bloc’s scientific advisers said Monday.
The recommendation comes at the request of the European Commission, which had asked its Scientific Advice Mechanism how to address the risks and opportunities of so-called solar radiation modification and how best to regulate research and use of such technologies.
The reports mark the first time the Commission has been given specific scientific advice on the matter.
SRM technologies try to limit global warming by reflecting more sunlight away from the Earth, for example by brightening clouds or injecting sun-dimming aerosols into the stratosphere. Yet this might come with significant side effects, such as changes in rainfall patterns that could endanger food security.
To date, research into these technologies and their consequences has been limited. SRM would also only mask global warming rather than address its root cause — the continued increase in greenhouse gas emissions driven by burning oil, gas and coal.
That’s why the EU must prioritize cutting emissions and “agree on an EU-wide moratorium on the use of SRM as a measure for offsetting climate warming,” said the scientists, who issued an in-depth assessment alongside their recommendations.
They also want the bloc to push for an international treaty governing the technologies, negotiating for global “non-deployment of SRM in the foreseeable future” but allowing for strictly controlled scientific research.
Switzerland has sought to start the global conversation on SRM governance for years, but could not find enough support given the heated debates around the subject.
The EU should also “ensure that the global governance system addresses the risk of militarisation of SRM technologies in an international treaty,” and bolster its satellite observation system to scan the globe for any unauthorized use of SRM.
“Fifty years of scientific research indicate that reducing … emissions would help us avoid dangerous climate change while also bringing multiple additional benefits for the people and the planet. SRM technologies, by contrast, address the symptoms but not the source of the climate problem,” the scientists write.
The EU should reevaluate its positions on SRM every five to 10 years to ensure the latest research is considered, the scientists added.
Reactions to the publication were mixed.
Mary Church, geoengineering campaign manager for the Center for International Environmental Law, said that the recommendation for a nondeployment treaty was “encouraging” but did not go far enough.
“Reviewing the position every five years sends very mixed signals about commitment to preventing the use of solar geoengineering,” she said, adding that the EU should rule out funding for outdoor SRM experiments as they “risk normalizing these dangerous technologies.”
Others were relieved that the reports kept the door open to more research.
“The floods in Valencia and the lack of progress in Baku underscore the grave dangers we face as the climate unravels,” said Cynthia Scharf, a senior fellow at the Brussels-based Center for Future Generations think tank, referring to October’s flooding disaster in Spain and the COP29 climate conference in Azerbaijan.
“With the U.S. stepping back from climate leadership, now is the time for [the] EU to step forward,” she added. “Research is a sound investment in a safe Europe.”
