Submitted by Ronnie Hall on
More information and detail: background briefing about geoengineering at COP 16
At COP 16, the CBD took an important decision on geoengineering, which sent a clear message about the need for precaution to the world. By consensus, the Conference of the Parties reaffirmed its moratorium on climate geoengineering and a prior one on ocean fertilization (a form of marine geoengineering). The decision even went further than the original decision taken in 2010, by urging Parties and encouraging other governments to ensure their implementation (decision 16/22, paragraph 6).
To understand the concerns that led Parties to decide to reinforce the moratorium on geoengineering, it is useful to read the summary that was proposed by the Pacific Islands, led by Fiji, and submitted as agreed text by all parties in the contact group to the last plenary. This explains the rationale: “Recognizing further that climate geoengineering activities, including marine and solar geoengineering activities, could result in serious and irreversible impacts on biodiversity and the livelihoods of indigenous peoples and local communities, and deeply concerned that the growth of uncontrolled geoengineering field experiments that may cause harm to biodiversity and people are proposed or under way”. This paragraph had to be deleted in the last COP Plenary after the “veto” of just one country: Saudi Arabia, a high greenhouse gas emitting country with an oil-based economy that is also invested in geoengineering, on the basis that there is no need to transition from oil exploitation as technofixes like geoengineering can theoretically counteract the climate damages. Saudi Arabia obviously failed to recognize the reality that geoengineering can also cause other serious damages.
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Decision CBD COP 16/22 on Biodiversity and Climate Change re geoengineering
6. Reaffirms decision IX/16 C on ocean fertilization, paragraph 8 (w) of decision X/33 on biodiversity and climate change and decisions XI/20 and XIII/14 of 9 December 2016 on climate-related geoengineering, and urges Parties, and encourages other Governments, to ensure their implementation.
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In paragraph 20 of the same decision 16/22, the COP 16 also decided to invite all Parties, observers, stakeholders and relevant organizations to provide information on measures taken at the national or international level in relation to the moratorium decisions. This is important, as there are several countries that are parties to CBD that are sponsoring or allowing geoengineering projects and experiments, that are or could potentially be in violation of the CBD’s decisions.
The issue of geoengineering was also discussed in another decision relating to the impacts that it would have on marine and coastal biodiversity (Decision CBD COP 16/17). In this regard, a paragraph related to coral bleaching, which recognizes the need for urgent action, also reaffirms decision X/33 on biodiversity and climate change (which is the geoengineering moratorium decision). This is also important, as there are experiments being conducted and planned to deploy marine cloud brightening (a solar geoengineering technique), supposedly to protect corals. By recalling and reaffirming this decision the CBD has issued a warning against the use of these techniques in relation to coral reefs. The need for more understanding on the impacts of marine geoengineering is also recognized as one of the gaps “in need of additional focus” with respect to marine and coastal biodiversity and island biodiversity in order to support the implementation of the Global Biodiversity Framework (Decision CBD COP 16/17, Annex 1(d)).
Geoengineering is a high-risk technological global gamble, which high greenhouse gas emitting and polluting companies and countries love, because it gives them an excuse to avoid real reductions as well as providing new business opportunities. Also, the UNFCCC’s decision to open carbon markets for so called carbon “removals” paves the way for lucrative geoengineering projects to be presented as removals, even though they are not proven to be really sequestering any carbon. Facing all these threats to biodiversity and communities, the CBD’s strong message of precaution is vital and timely.
More information: background briefing about geoengineering at COP 16