Geoengineering

Targets

• Cloud control and the weather - attempts to influence precipitation may help irrigate the planet in the future, and may have power to help avert extreme weather conditions.

• Tundra reclamation - the earth is currently in the middle of an ice age - and much of the large northern landmasses are frozen wastelands. Some geoengineering interventions aim at improving this situation.

• Ocean reclamation - the world's oceans represent ecological wildernesses. The main problem is that all the food sinks to the bottom - where there is no light and plants cannot grow. Ocean reclamation aims to fix this problem - by surfacing over the oceans.

• Desert reclamation - some of the world's equatorial regions have baked. They badly need irrigating on a large scale.

• Mountain reclamation - some of the planet is too high off the ground. The air is thin, and plants do not grow well. Mountains cause clouds to empty themselves - and create dry areas in their "precipitation shadow". Unfortunately, mountain reclamation looks as though it will be difficult and expensive.

• Surface water - water supplies are of critical importance to plant and animal health. Constructing reservoirs by building dams helps supply fresh water.

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