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Global Climate Governance In 3d: Mainstreaming Geoengineering Within A Unified Framework, Gabriel Weil
Global Climate Governance In 3d: Mainstreaming Geoengineering Within A Unified Framework, Gabriel Weil
Scholarly Works
The failure of conventional climate change mitigation to reduce climate-related risks to tolerable levels has spurred interest in more unconventional—and riskier—climate interventions. What currently sounds like science fiction could become a reality in the not-so-distant future: planes blasting particles into the sky to block the sun, vast deserts covered with mirrors, algae sucking carbon into the depths of the ocean. Scholars tend to lump all these unconventional climate measures together in a fuzzy category called “geoengineering,” and set them apart from conventional climate change mitigation. But the characteristics of climate interferences vary across three distinct dimensions, which the mitigation-geoengineering dichotomy …
Permitting Seaweed Cultivation For Carbon Sequestration In California: Barriers And Recommendations, Korey Silverman-Roati, Romany M. Webb, Michael B. Gerrard
Permitting Seaweed Cultivation For Carbon Sequestration In California: Barriers And Recommendations, Korey Silverman-Roati, Romany M. Webb, Michael B. Gerrard
Faculty Scholarship
Interest is growing in seaweed cultivation and sequestration as a carbon dioxide removal strategy. This white paper explores the barriers to seaweed permitting for carbon sequestration in California, including a complex, costly, and time-consuming lease and permitting process. Other states in the U.S., namely Maine and Alaska, have permitting systems designed to be more supportive of seaweed cultivation. This paper describes the legal framework for seaweed cultivation permitting in California and discusses the permitting systems in Maine and Alaska. The paper then explores possible reforms to streamline California’s permitting process, while maintaining appropriate environmental and other safeguards.
Removing Carbon Dioxide Through Ocean Fertilization: Legal Challenges And Opportunities, Korey Silverman-Roati, Romany M. Webb, Michael Gerrard
Removing Carbon Dioxide Through Ocean Fertilization: Legal Challenges And Opportunities, Korey Silverman-Roati, Romany M. Webb, Michael Gerrard
Faculty Scholarship
Carbon dioxide removal (“CDR”) will be needed, alongside deep emissions cuts, to achieve global temperature goals. According to a 2022 report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, to keep global average temperatures within 1.5°C above preindustrial levels, carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions must reach net-zero by mid-century. Scientists have proposed a number of land- and ocean-based CDR techniques. This paper focuses on ocean fertilization, which involves adding iron or other nutrients to the ocean to stimulate the growth of phytoplankton that uptake carbon dioxide and convert it into organic carbon. The hope is that the organic carbon …