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Side Event #5641

Status: SCHEDULED

Date Wednesday
2024.10.23 @ 16:30
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Room Cano Cristales - CEE meeting room
Plaza One
Capacity: 136 people
Conference SBI-05 / COP-16 / CP-MOP-11 / NP-MOP-05
Meetings(s)
COP-16
Sixteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity
Title Climate geoengineering and biodiversity – why the CBD needs to affirm precaution
Hosts
ETC Group | HBF | TWN | IEN | CIEL | CoA |
Topics
Climate Change and Biodiversity
Marine and Coastal Biodiversity
Conference of the Parties
Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework
Implementation of the Convention on Biological Diversity
Indigenous peoples and local communities
Chemicals and pollution
Ecosystem Approach and Restoration
 

 

The crises of biodiversity loss and climate change are thoroughly intertwined: many of the drivers of climate change are also drivers of biodiversity loss, while climate change in itself is a major threat to biodiversity and the communities that sustain it.

 

The absence of meaningful action to tackle the root causes of the climate crisis has led to the emergence of the concept of geoengineering - that is, large-scale technological interventions to manipulate Earth systems with the aim of countering some of the effects of climate change.   

 

The CBD took a groundbreaking decision to address climate geoengineering and its potential impacts on biodiversity and associated communities early on. In a laudable example of foresight and precaution, since 2008 the CBD has adopted several important decisions on geoengineering. Of particular importance is decision X/33 (w), which calls on governments not to allow the deployment of geoengineering activities until certain conditions are met - all of which remain unmet today. (See all CBD decisions on this matter at https://www.cbd.int/climate/geoengineering)

 

Despite this de facto moratorium, since CBD COP15 geoengineering projects and experiments, including many with commercial aims, have multiplied rapidly, with potentially serious impacts on biodiversity in forests, coastal zones, seas and the deep ocean. Proposals to intervene in a number of marine and terrestrial ecosystems increasingly feature in UNFCCC negotiations and IPCC pathways.

 

In light of this reality, the CBD needs to take steps to reaffirm and implement its important precautionary decisions to prevent the potentially devastating impacts of geoengineering deployment on biodiversity.

 

The issue of the impacts of geoengineering has also been taken up in the last year by the Human Rights Council, the London Convention/London Protocol (LC/LP), the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA), the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) and other United Nations bodies.

 

At this side event, delegates will hear from a panel of experts including scientists and Indigenous Peoples’ and civil society representatives, who will discuss geoengineering projects currently underway, their potential impacts on biodiversity and what measures are needed to protect forest, marine and coastal biodiversity, communities and the rights of Indigenous Peoples.

 

Organizers: ETC Group, Heinrich Boell Foundation (HBF), Third World Network (TWN), Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL), College of the Atlantic, (CoA) Indigenous Environmental Network and the Hands Off Mother Earth Alliance (HOME Alliance). The HOME Alliance is integrated by over 200 organizations, including 31 international networks, from over 50 countries (https://www.handsoffmotherearth.org/)

 

 

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Protect coastal and marine biodiversity from geoengineering

Briefing for delegates

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Marine biodiversity, geoengineering  

Geoengineering Map

Interactive global Map with geoengineering projects, research, experiments

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Information on Geoengineering

Geoengineering Monitor is a timely source for information and critical perspectives on climate engineering. It contains technology briefings, news, articles and other resources on geoengineering around the globe.

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The Seaweed Delusion - Industrial seaweed will not cool the climate or save nature

As the world scrambles for a climate fix, seaweeds – or “macroalgae” – have been thrust into the limelight. Buoyed up by hype and hundreds of millions of dollars of so called “green” investment, a new “blue carbon” seaweed industry is invading coasts and seas. Under close scrutiny, most of the arguments being used to promote these “blue carbon” seaweed projects – which include industrial-scale farming and sinking seaweed – fail to stack up and they imply a series of potential grave impacts on biodiversity The Seaweed Delusion is a report that critically analyzes the promises and realities of this new geoengineering industry

seaweed-delusion

Marine geoengineering, Macro algae cultivation, biomass sinking  

Geoengineering and Human Rights

Geoengineering technologies – carbon dioxide removal (CDR) and solar geoengineering or solar radiation modification (SRM technologies) – pose significant, unprecedented risks to a wide range of human rights. These risks disproportionately affect vulnerable and marginalized communities, and the technologies remain largely unproven and infeasible at scale. Understanding these human rights implications is crucial for any informed discussion on geoengineering research or governance. This short briefing highlights language from recent reports and expert statements in the field of human rights as they concern geoengineering technologies

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Solar Geoengineering Non Use Agreement

There are growing calls in recent years for research on “solar geoengineering“, a set of entirely speculative technologies to reduce incoming sunlight on earth in order to limit global warming. This initiative, backed by over 500 scientists and 1300 civil society organizations from all over the world, stands against such emerging initiatives to explore planetary techno-fixes as a climate policy option. Solar geoengineering deployment at planetary scale cannot be fairly and effectively governed in the current system of international institutions. It also poses unacceptable risk if ever implemented as part of future climate policy. A strong political message from governments, the United Nations and civil society is urgently needed

Solar Geoengineering, Precautionary Approach  
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