GEOENGINEERING TO THE RESCUE?

“Homo sapiens has emerged as a force of nature rivaling climatic and geologic forces,” Erle Ellis

"Geo-engineering" as a solution to climate change is increasingly gaining attention within the science world. "Isn’t it just one of those things that come up and everyone seems excited about only to learn later that it can’t really help after all?”, I asked myself the first time I read about geoengineering. So what is this technology that is gradually becoming the main word in climate change talks?

The concept of GEOENGINEERING refers to "the deliberate large-scale intervention in the Earth’s climate system, in order to moderate global warming". The definition of geoengeneering in itself seemed ironic to me, upon first hearing. How can anyone possibly make any meaningful interventions in the climate system which is so complex that I am yet to come across someone who can claim to fully understand it! Then the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change concluded in 2007 that geoengineering options remained largely unproven. Such is the controversy surrounding geongeneering.

But why should anyone not be happy with what appears to have solution to arguable the greatest challenge the world faces: CLIMATE CHANGE. The world has been grappling with this challenge for a while now. Climate change MITIGATION, activities that reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, or enhance the capacity of carbon sinks to absorb GHGs from the atmosphere, has been proposed several years ago and we are still grappling with it. Climate Change ADAPTATION, i.e., reducing the negative impacts of climate change and take advantage of any opportunities is also being tried and its successes are there for all to see. It has been extremely difficult and sometimes even thought of as impossible to build the international political consensus on how and to what levels to reduce GHG emissions. Talk of adaptation is equally discouraging. So, with all these challenges with mitigation and adaptation, are we now closer to what will save the world?

Geoengeneering is divided into two broad categories:
1.Carbon dioxide removal (CDR) techniques which address the root cause of climate change by removing greenhouse gases from the atmosphere; and
2. Solar radiation management (SRM) techniques which attempt to offset effects of increased greenhouse gas concentrations by causing the Earth to absorb less solar radiation.

CDR techniques will reduce the levels of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere, allowing outgoing long-wave (thermal infra-red) heat radiation to escape more easily. SRM techniques will reduce the net incoming short-wave (ultra-violet and visible) solar radiation received, by deflecting sunlight, or by increasing the reflectivity (albedo) of the atmosphere, clouds or the Earth’s surface. These are surely what the world needs to address climate change, don’t you think so? At last, we are going to win the battle with climate change! Well, don’t be too fast to conclude, does geoengineering not have any negatives?

Some of the few studies into geoengineering has revealed that despite all the positives, including counteracting many effects of climate change, that are touted about Geoengineering, there could be unintended negative repercussions as well. The climate system is inherently too complex and the possibility of unanticipated harmful side effects must be expected. In their book “GEOENGINEERING FOR DECISION MAKERS” the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, lists the ten (10) major concerns of Geoengineering as:
1.Unintended Negative Consequences
2.Potential Ineffectiveness
3.Risk of Undermining Emissions-Mitigation Efforts
4.Risk of Sudden Catastrophic Warming
5.Equity Issues
6.Difficulty of Reaching Agreement
7.Potential for Weaponization
8.Reduced Efficiency of Solar Energy
9.Danger of Corporate Interests Overriding the Public Interest
10.Danger of Research Driving Inappropriate Deployment

These concerns, some of which have been addressed partially by some studies, are important and need addressing before any large-scale deployment of geoengineering technologies is undertaken.

So is geoengenieering to the rescue? It’s time for us to think, work and engage. Maybe YES, maybe NO. What do you think?

"Before we start geoengineering we have to raise the following question: are we sufficiently talented to take on what might become the onerous permanent task of keeping the Earth in homeostasis? Consider what might happen if we start by using a stratospheric aerosol to ameliorate global heating; even if it succeeds, it would not be long before we face the additional problem of ocean acidification. -- James Lovelock

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CLIMATE CHANGE AND AGRICULTURE: ASSESSING AFRICA’S VULNERABILITY

The contribution of agriculture to GDP in Africa varies across countries but assessments suggest an average contribution of 21% (ranging from 10 to 70%) of GDP (Mendelsohn et al., 2000).

Introduction
The Inter-Governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) defines vulnerability as “the degree to which a system is susceptible to, or unable to cope with, adverse effects of climate change, including climate variability and extremes. Vulnerability is a function of the character, magnitude, and rate of climate variation to which a system is exposed, its sensitivity, and its adaptive capacity.

In Africa, the agricultural sector contributes about 30% of the continent’s GDP and provides a source of livelihood for almost 70% of Africans (Climate Change and Agriculture in Africa). The agricultural sector has its own problems such as rapid urbanization pushing more fertile arable land out of production, competition with subsidized farmers in Western countries, low productivity of lands, use of obsolete equipment and many more. Compounding the problems of the African farmer is impacts of climate change; increased variability in rains, higher overall temperatures, and storm events that are more frequent and/or more intense. Due to the major role that agriculture plays in the economies of African countries, any slight negative impact on agriculture has significant effects on the people.

Projections of climate change impacts on Agriculture in Africa
Agriculture in Africa is climate-dependent, generally rainfed, and this makes the continent highly vulnerable to climate change. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), projects:
•that 75-250 million people in Africa will face severe water stress by 2020 and 350-600 million people by 2050 due to climate change
•that Agricultural production in Africa will be severely compromised due to loss of land, shorter growing seasons, and more uncertainty about what and when to plant due to climate change
•a possible 50% reduction in yields from rain-fed crops by 2020 in some North African countries, and crop net revenues likely to fall by as much as 90% by 2100 in South Africa.

So, Africa is highly vulnerable to the effects of climate change and the impacts of climate change on African agriculture cannot be overemphasized. As climate change progresses at a faster rate, the vulnerability of Africa’s agriculture worsens.

The Approach for Vulnerability Assessment
Generally, Vulnerability of a system is a function of Exposure, Sensitivity and Adaptive Capacity, i.e.,
Vulnerability = f (Exposure, Sensitivity, Adaptive Capacity)

A vulnerability assessment must, therefore, answer these questions:
Who (or what) is vulnerable …………………………………… System
To what are they vulnerable …………………………………… Exposure
Why are they vulnerable …………………………………………… Sensitivity
What can be done to lessen this vulnerability …………… Adaptive capacity

It is so tempting, and usually the easy way out, to assess the vulnerability of Agriculture at the continental level but the impacts of climate change vary significantly due to the diversity of environments across Africa. So a general vulnerability assessment would usually leave out some hotspots due to the averaging of conditions which takes place at the continent-wide level vulnerability assessment. So as much as possible, it is advisable to lower the scale at which vulnerability assessments are done in order not to leave out specific situations that need addressing.

Importance of assessing Africa’s Agricultural vulnerability to decision makers
Assessing vulnerability is not only important for responding to future climate risks and also the process of assessment also brings out key answers needed to improve the management of current climate risks. A good vulnerability assessment will contribute to setting development priorities and monitoring progress.

Conclusion
First and foremost, for an effective Vulnerability Assessment, one needs to understand who and what is at risk. Understanding who and what is at risk is critical in deciding strategies and measures that may be taken to reduce risk or increase capacity to adapt. An appropriate vulnerability assessment method is very important because each the method or approach one chooses may end up giving a whole different view of the vulnerability of a particular system. Also important to bear in mind is that no method for vulnerability assessment can meet the needs of all adaptation activities. Depending on the system being assessed, a suitable method must be selected because each route one takes has got advantages and disadvantages.

“Africa is an ancient continent. Its lands are rich and fertile enough to provide a solid foundation for prosperity. Its people are proud and industrious enough to seize the opportunities that may be presented. I am confident that Africans will not be found wanting — in stamina, in determination, or in political will.” (Kofi Annan, 1998 address to the Security Council on the Secretary General’s Report on Africa)

References
Climate Change and Agriculture in Africa). http://www.ceepa.co.za/climate_change/index.html. Retrieved: 3 August 2012.

Mendelsohn, R., A. Dinar and A. Dalfelt, 2000: Climate change impacts on African agriculture. Preliminary analysis prepared for the World Bank, Washington, District of Columbia, 25 pp.

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The Untapped Helper in Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation in Ghana – Waste Management (2)

"Waste equals food."— William McDonough

The introductory quote appears simple, however embedded in this statement by William McDonough is a wealth of knowledge and deep understanding. We work hard as humans to put food on our tables. We enjoy our meals and gain vital nutrients to live on. We then convert the unused parts and excess to ‘waste’. The waste if properly managed can provide more food in terms of providing work for persons who manage the waste to produce energy (for the use of society as a whole) or income which will in turn be used to purchase food. The cycle can be beneficial if waste is exploited adequately. There is an even more exciting twist to this – the waste can be managed to ameliorate the likely impact of climate change.

Waste management is a broad subject and a specialized area that requires expert advice. So this piece is by no means meant to be exhaustive but it does raise awareness that waste can be put to good use and should not be left to engulf our beautiful nation and create problems such as ground and surface water pollution, flooding, air pollution and the introduction of disease causing agents that affect the human health of a country’s populace. These impacts have tremendous socio - cultural, economic and environmental implications.

I grew up hearing that cleanliness is next to Godliness and Ghana is one religious country! If we practiced what we preached as the singer Barry White (May his soul rest in peace) asked his loved one to do in his song titled Practice What You Preach, our nation would have been one clean country. It is pathetic to see people sweep and clean their rooms only to dump the rubbish in drains with the hope that the rains will carry it away; oh or that Zoomlion will come and continue. Well, for those of us who do that I am sorry to say that Zoomlion is not a non – profit organization and resides not in our mosquito infested communities in person.

With Ghana’s increasing population and the rising trend in consumerism more waste will be generated inevitably. Mechanisms of using the waste generated for profit is therefore paramount. There are different forms of waste – electronic waste, municipal solid waste, industrial waste, residential waste, commercial waste, biodegradable waste etc and each type will require a special approach in management.
Ghana should move away from looking for dumping sites and landfills (which lumps up everything and deposits it at one place till the site can take no more) and begin to build waste management plants. It would save the authorities involved ,the headache of where to go next when a dump site is full and they would not have to worry about NIMBY (not in my backyard).

Most interestingly, waste management could play a critical role in climate change adaptation and mitigation. What is the big issue and the role of Waste in Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation?

Climate change is generally defined as a change in the statistical properties of the climate system when considered over long periods of time, regardless of cause. In recent times however, the term has been used to refer more specifically to climate change caused by human activity, as opposed to changes in climate that may have resulted as part of Earth's natural processes. To put the potential role of waste into perspective, permit me to delve into the terms global warming, greenhouse effect and define what exactly a greenhouse gas is.

Global warming is the rise in the average temperature of Earth's atmosphere and oceans since the late 19th century, and its projected continuation. The process may not have been a problem if there was no evidence that the process is being altered by anthropogenic factors such as deforestation and the burning of fossil fuels. These and other human activities are increasing concentrations of greenhouse gases and trapping the gases in the atmosphere. So what are greenhouse gases and their effects?

Greenhouse gases (GHG) are gases in an atmosphere that absorb and emit radiation within the thermal infrared range. The primary greenhouse gases in the Earth's atmosphere are water vapour, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and ozone. The greenhouse gases absorb thermal radiation from planetary surfaces and re-radiate in all directions. Why is this bad? This process means that when there is an increase in greenhouse gases, more thermal radiation is absorbed for re-radiation increasing the temperature of the earth’s atmosphere and oceans and hastens the process of climate change.

Where does waste management come in?
Well, this is where and how; during decomposition of biodegradable waste, green house gases are emitted. When oxygen is available the main landfill gas produced is carbon dioxide, but in anaerobic conditions around half the emissions are methane. Methane is known to be the second of the ‘basket’ of greenhouse gases and is much more potent than carbon dioxide per unit. Biodegradable waste needs therefore to be better managed. This is where the opportunity comes in. Ghana produces a lot of bio - degradable waste. Burning our waste as is done in most part of the country will not help as it also increases the emission of GHG’s. Waste prevention and recycling (including composting) divert organic wastes from landfills and reduces the amount of methane released when decomposition takes place.

What can be done?
It will be prudent to develop or to learn from engineering examples that have worked to imposes strict engineering requirements on landfill sites to capture these gases. Waste can be turned into wealth by increasing recycling, composting and recovery of energy from waste.

•Ghana should develop policies and strategies for sustainable waste management.
The waste policies should focus on sustainable resource management, including the need to reduce the quantity of waste produced and to move from waste disposal to waste processing.

•Re-cycling, composting and waste separation should be given due attention and consideration.
Recycling saves energy. Manufacturing goods from recycled materials typically requires less energy than producing goods from virgin materials.

Waste prevention is more effective.
When people reuse things or when products are made with less material, less energy is needed to extract, transport, and process raw materials and to manufacture products. The payoff? When energy demand decreases, fewer fossil fuels are burned and less carbon dioxide is emitted to the atmosphere.

The one most important factor that will determine the success of this quest is the need for people to change. Behavioral change and a shift in the paradigm of Ghanaians is important because it is only when we realize that it is in our own interest to properly manage waste that we will take the needed measures to curb this menace. Education and sensitization should be intensified to get all stakeholders involved in this quest.

Conclusion
We may not receive financial rewards for this mitigation program as we do for other mechanisms such as in carbon trading for example; but as a country you and I would have contributed our quota to reducing the release of greenhouse gases to make the future change in climate less severe. You and I would have helped in adapting to the change and we would have earned the right to be called our own captain planets!

A. Prempeh

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