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Report: U.S. Businessman Launches Risky Geoengineering Venture in Pacific Ocean

The Guardian reports a U.S. businessman has dumped about 100 metric tons of iron sulphate into the ocean off the Canadian coast as part of a risky for-profit geoengineering venture that appears to violate two international resolutions. California businessman Russ George dumped the iron to spark an artificial plankton bloom that now appears to stretch up to 10,000 square kilometers. The plankton is supposed to absorb carbon dioxide as part of a controversial tactic called "ocean fertilization" that could produce profitable carbon credits. But scientists have raised concerns the process could irreparably damage ocean life and might even worsen global warming. George has previously failed to conduct similar dumps near the Galápagos and Canary Islands, prompting the Spanish and Ecuadorean governments to bar his vessels. The recent dump happened in July off the west coast of Canada, where the head of the local Haida Nation said it was touted as a "salmon enhancement project." The Haida Nation president said the local people would have rejected the project if they had known of any potential negative consequences to the ocean.

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