October 2007
Sea Pipes To Prevent Global Warming
Two British scientists have proposed a unique solution to find "a fundamental cure for the pathology of global hearing". In a letter published in the journal Nature, Professor James Lovelock and Dr Chris Rapley have suggested that pipes hanging in the ocean which would enable deep water to mix with surface water, could help the see absorb vastly greater amounts of carbon dioxide than at present.
The background for this notion is comes from Professor Lovelock’s Gaia hypothesis, which takes a holistic approach to the state of the planet, seeing it as a single organism. Propounding that the earth possesses a "planetary-scale control system" that has kept the environment suitable for life to flourish, he and Dr Rapley believe that the current positive feedback response caused by global warming is quickening change at a dangerous rate. Indeed, a purely human response that does not look into harnessing the earth’s own untapped potential to help fight the threat is currently considered by them to be inadequate.
As such, both scientists argue that the Earth’s oceans are "a promising place to seek a regulating influence" because they cover over 70% of the planet’s surface. It is considered that "fertilising" the plankton present in the top layer of the ocean by using nutrient rich water from a few hundred metres below would provide a significant boost to CO2 absorption capabilities through the growth of algae, which the upper layer of seawater lacks in large quantities, rendering it an "ocean desert". The pipes, a couple of hundred metres long and 10metres in diameter, would have a one-way valve for wave movement to create the mixing of water. The effect of the scheme would also in turn draw down CO2 to produce dimethyl sulphide, to form light reflecting clouds. Even the power source would be green as the water itself would be pumped upwards through the pipes by the action of the waves themselves.
The scientists noted: "such an approach may fail, perhaps on engineering or economic grounds and the impact on ocean acidification will need to be taken into account. But the stakes are so high that we put forward the general concept of using the earth system’s own energy for amelioration."
They continued: "The removal of 500 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide from the air by human endeavour is beyond our current technological capability. If we can’t heal the planet directly, we may be able to help the planet heal itself."
Most promisingly, the scheme seems to have the support of Sir Richard Branson who launched a £13million prize fund to be awarded to the developers of the best way of removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Contemplating funding a trial of the project, the millions of tubes needed would be scaled back to between 10,000 and 100,000 in a suitable region. "A small scale test at a tropical island with a coral reef would do for a start. With average wave height of one metre, each pipe moves about five tons of water per second – this might be enough to change the surface significantly for algal growth in a few years".
As to whether there is the potential for a real sea change to CO2 levels in the test zone, time, and a little help from Sir Richard Branson, will tell.
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