Introduction to SRM: Analysis of Potential Benefits & Risks in the Latin America & Caribbean Context

Current commitments made under the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change are insufficient to keep global warming below 2°C, and according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), much greater ambition is necessary. In response, scientists and other stakeholders are considering the viability several solar radiation modification (SRM) techniques. These aim to reflect solar radiation (sunlight) back into space or allow more heat to escape Earth’s atmosphere in order to counter some of the effects of climate change by reducing the global temperature. SRM approaches would not address the causes of climate change and so cannot be substitutes for reducing emissions or removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. At best, they might ‘buy time’ while those essential measures are accelerated. However, the international community does not yet know enough about the risks, costs and potential benefits, or governance requirements, to understand if SRM approaches could be viable, or – if so – whether, when or how to deploy them. In this context, the webinar presents the principles of stratospheric aerosol injection and marine cloud brightening, two of the main SRM approaches. During the discussion, we address the potential benefits and risks of SRM, their governance challenges and present the initial findings of ongoing research on the hydrological impacts of SRM in La Plata Basin.