Techno fixes for the environment or natural climate solutions and ‘nature-tech’?

News 26.02.18

Posted by Thomson Reuters Foundation
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Two men planting a young tree in a dirt area, demonstrating teamwork and environmental stewardship.
Two men planting a young tree in a dirt area, demonstrating teamwork and environmental stewardship.

It can be tempting in this tech-obsessed age to ascribe technology as the panacea to all our problems. Can we really halt or slow runaway climate change through different industrial fixes such as sucking emissions from the air or bioenergy with carbon capture and storage – better known by the acronym “BECCS.” Despite some of these being seen as one of the most viable and cost-effective negative emissions technologies, they carry risk and are not yet scalable. Conversely, natural climate solutions do not cross “planetary boundaries”. They are available immediately, are scalable and can transform key sectors of the global economy, such as forestry and agriculture. Along with action on renewable energy and energy efficiency, we believe they are the only answer we have to deliver on the Paris climate agreement and stabilise global warming to below 2°C or less in the time required – ie. the next 10 years. TNC’s Justin Adams lays it out here.

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