The albedo effect—the ability of arctic ice to reflect sunlight—is one of the most important natural regulatory features of the Earth. The albedo effect is essential in ensuring that the Earth’s climate is stable and fluctuates within temperatures that sustain life. In recent years, however, “roughly one-half of the surface area, and three-fourths of the volume of ice in the Arctic has been lost” (Field et al., 2018). This is in part due to anthropogenic activities that accelerate the warming of Earth, and thus contribute to the melting of Arctic ice. As a result, a decrease in Arctic albedo has been observed, correlating with the rapidly rising temperatures and warming effects of climate change. The depletion of Arctic ice could lead to methane release from permafrost reserves that are now exposed to sunlight, further contributing to greenhouse gas emissions and climate change. If Arctic ice is lost entirely, the ensuing warming effect would be akin to another twenty-five years of present-level carbon dioxide emissions. Therefore, restoring Arctic ice reflectivity is evidently a powerful tool that could mitigate the effects of a global temperature rise.
The Arctic Ice Project—previously known as Ice911 prior to September 2020—has proposed a solution to aid the regrowth of Arctic ice with the use of a “localized surface albedo modification technique” (Field et al., 2018). The technique involves strategically distributing powder-like glass beads over parts of the Arctic in an effort to increase albedo and begin an Arctic cooling trend. Ultimately, the organization aims to launch a positive feedback loop: increasing ice albedo will result in more of the sun’s light being reflected. This will cause cooler temperatures, leading to increased ice formation and yet another increase in albedo. Eventually, the feedback loop will begin anew, driven and sustained by natural forces, without human intervention.
This technology has shown promising results in both field testing and laboratory simulations. A study conducted in 2016 at Lake Elmo, Minnesota, yielded results in favour of the technology. Areas treated with a single layer of the glass beads were made 20% more reflective . Thus, when ice in untreated areas completely melted, significant ice coverage was still present in areas covered by the beads. This field test provides a glimpse of the effectiveness of this technology as well as how this technology may positively impact Arctic ice formation when implemented in future practices.
The composition of the beads was meticulously deliberated to ensure efficiency as well as minimal negative environmental impacts. The Arctic Ice Project took into account various criteria—including albedo, buoyancy, nontoxicity, wettability, and respirability—before settling on silica glass beads. The beads are “bright white hollow glass spheres, of average diameter 65 μm, chosen for their brightness, nontoxic formulation, and relatively low cost” (Field et al., 2018). Due to the size and buoyancy of the material, the beads are able to float on water and are too large to be inhaled by animals. Despite these considerations, the beads outlined in the proposal by the Arctic Ice Project raise concerns in terms of environmental impact, effectiveness, and feasibility.
The Arctic is a delicate and fragile biome. Introducing man-made components can have unforeseen consequences, not only on Arctic ice, but the entirety of the Arctic ecosystem as well. If the beads float indefinitely in the Arctic water, ecosystems and waterways may become clogged, and animals may ingest the material. The Arctic Ice Project challenges the former claim, stating that silica is abundant in nature as silica regularly washes from weathered rocks into the sea. In terms of the latter concern, studies conducted by the organization have shown no adverse effects on the animal species that were examined. However, the sample size for this animal testing was quite small. It is possible that this test is unrepresentative of the rest of the Arctic animal population and the possibility of negative effects on animals should not be dismissed. The Arctic Ice Project is working towards expanding data on the impacts of the beads on more marine life species. Due to the novelty of this innovation, testing on long term ecological impacts—such as what happens when the beads remain in the water for extended periods of time—has yet to be investigated. Although the beads themselves may function as intended, it would be unwise to rule out the possibility of negative environmental effects as data is lacking.
Aside from the composition of the beads, the mere presence of the beads in Arctic waters can have an impact as well. Scientists worry that the beads may block sunlight from organisms below the water’s surface that require sunlight to thrive. For example, the silica beads may prevent sunlight from reaching photosynthesizing plankton. As plankton make up the foundation of the Arctic food chain, any change in plankton availability can have unpredictable effects on the rest of the food web. A collapse or imbalance in the food chain can lead to the extinction of some species and the population boom of others, threatening biodiversity and effectively uprooting the careful balance of natural ecosystems. This in turn can have untold effects on the human population as many aquatic plants provide oxygen and act as carbon sinks, helping to delay the effects of climate change.
The effectiveness of this technique is also debated within the scientific community. If silica beads are distributed throughout the Arctic, the beads are likely to be quickly dispersed by harsh winds and tides, rendering the technology ineffective. The hydrophilic nature of the beads, however, may play a crucial role in allowing the materials to remain in place (Field et al., 2018). If the treatment is applied in wetter conditions, the beads will be held to the surface by the water and eventually frozen in place.
Other scientists claim that this intervention simply will not work. Despite increased albedo, the Arctic will continue to warm as anthropogenic carbon emissions will continue to rise. The project must be scaled up to an impracticable degree to offset the effect that greenhouse gasses have on the Arctic climate.
With regards to feasibility, although silica is a plentiful material, the scale of this project necessitates more than a 100% increase in production to create 300,000 tonnes of beads, enough to span 25,000km2. At current rates, the production of this quantity of beads would cost approximately $300,000,000. It is not yet known how funding for this project will be obtained.
The localized surface albedo modification technique outlined by the Arctic Ice Project is an effective and promising technology. The approach will rebuild a natural state of ice in the Arctic with minimal environmental disruption and no predicted rebound effect if treatment is halted. Despite anxieties, the utter lack of progress in climate mitigation necessitates the use of this technology. Current evidence and testing are enough to substantiate the Arctic Ice Project’s proposal, deeming the technology an effective technique for increasing sea ice albedo and restoring plentiful ice coverage across the Arctic.
References
Field, L., Ivanova, D., Bhattacharyya, S., Mlaker, V., Sholtz, A., Decca, R., Manzara, A., Johnson, D.,
Christodoulou, E., Walter, P., & Katuri, K. (2018, May 21). Increasing Arctic Sea Ice Albedo Using
Localized Reversible Geoengineering. AGUJournals.
Niiler, E. (2019, October 18). Can Tiny Glass Beads Keep Arctic Ice From Melting? Wired.
Zimmer, K. (2020, September 23). The daring plan to save the Arctic ice with glass. BBC Future.
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