Global Warming and Climate Change…
As the planet warms up, even if you disagree about the original causes of global warming and climate change, the consequences for us all living as a global community are still a reality that we will have to face up to at some time in the near future. The effects of global warming may be having little impact on our lives today but perhaps when our children are our age things might be completely different.
I am no expert on global warming and certainly do not understand the full implications of what exactly will happen to our planet, however one aspect that keeps popping up, is that of sea levels rising. This will be a major problem; as the climate warms and polar ice caps melt, our sea levels will rise, causing widespread devastation.
A solution?
Is this too simple? Am I being too naive?
I had this idea while I was thinking about sea- levels rising and what would happen to the excess salt water. Where would it go and what damage would it cause. My solution is to build (as many as it takes) Desalination Units to convert excess seawater into fresh water and use that water to irrigate land that is currently unable to sustain vegetation.
This will produce a bigger global area to produce food for a growing population (estimated to be an extra 3 billion by 2050) and also a bigger area of vegetation will reduce the onslaught of global warming and help reduce topsoil erosion.
There will be major funding benefits, as developing countries will earn export income from what they grow, as well as producing food and produce for their domestic market, helping feed hungry mouths and also stimulating local economies. In addition to providing local jobs, it will also expand the market that developed countries can export to and provide revenues for companies that supply the advanced technologies required to design, build and operate the units.
I know the current trend is to suggest hi tech fixes, such as Solar Radiation Management (SRM) but this technology is untested, expensive and messing with stuff that has the potential to do more damage than the original problem. With sea levels now predicted to rise 1.5 – 2 meters by the end of the century low lying countries are in great danger of major devastation. Let’s use proven, safe technology and start planning NOW!
So, what’s the problem? When can we get started??? Let me know.