A US research non-profit called the Arctic Ice Project (AIP) is closing down its operations and has cancelled ongoing geoengineering experiments in the Arctic, citing environmental concerns and “potential risks to the Arctic food chain”.
The Silicon Valley-based organisation proposed the release of tiny silica particles over parts of the Arctic Ocean, which would in theory reflect sunlight from the surface and cool down melting ice.
Announcing the shutdown last week, AIP said test results – along with “skepticism towards geoengineering”, funding barriers and “resistance” to introducing new materials into the Arctic Ocean – had led it to end the project, which was conceived over a decade ago.
The proposed technique is one of several controversial methods aimed at slowing down global warming and its effects on the Earth. Broadly grouped under the term “geoengineering”, these emerging technologies have garnered growing attention in international policy discussions, with some countries like Switzerland proposing global regulation. Other countries like Mexico have placed cautionary bans on experiments.
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Climate and indigenous campaigners welcomed the shutdown of AIP’s experiments in Alaska and noted that indigenous communities in Alaska have long opposed the project’s activities over fears of collateral impacts.
“Our concerns about the reckless use of harmful materials were dismissed, yet we knew that the health of our ecosystems and the wisdom of our people must not be overlooked,” said Panganga Pungowiyi, a climate geoengineering organiser at the Indigenous Environmental Network (IEN).
Ongoing experiments
More than 190 countries have signed a moratorium on new geoengineering experiments under the United Nations’ biodiversity convention, a decision that was reaffirmed at last year’s COP16 summit in Cali, Colombia.
However, dozens of new experiments have taken place in the last five years, according to German non-profit Geoengineering Monitor, including the use of methods that are currently covered by the international moratorium.
For example, Geoengineering Monitor recorded 27 ocean fertilisation experiments (harvesting plankton in the ocean to increase photosynthesis and capture CO2) and 17 solar radiation management experiments (spraying sulphur particles into the atmosphere to reflect sunlight and cool down the planet).
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In 2024, US-based startup Make Sunsets drew fire because it sprayed sulphur particles into the air in Mexico without prior consent, leading the country to enact a precautionary ban on similar tests.
The startup has been selling “cooling credits” – a similar concept to carbon credits, where companies fund emissions-cutting projects to offset their climate impact – to finance experiments and has conducted at least seven more tests in several places across California.
The US, which is not a signatory to the UN’s Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), allows companies to engage in geoengineering tests under the Weather Modification Act of 1976, as long as they report them.
Aerial drone view of ice textures formed in the Svinafellsjokull glacier following global warming, Iceland, Polar Regions (Photo: Copyright: carloxalbertoxconti)
Arctic ice management
Despite AIP winding down its operations in the Arctic, other startups have ventured into the lesser-known group of methods known as Arctic ice management, which seek to halt melting ice through human interventions.
AIP aimed to use tiny particles of silicon dioxide, which it described as similar to “small, fine, white beach sand that floats”, to increase the reflectivity of sea ice and cool down the Arctic. Some others have pursued the same method.
US-based Bright Ice Initiative – which was also set up by AIP’s founder Leslie Field – has conducted experiments on glaciers in Iceland and plans new tests at the Chhota Shigri Glacier in the Indian Himalayas. A 2022 study published in the journal Earth’s Future suggested the particles might actually accelerate the loss of sea ice.
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Other companies have tried different approaches. UK-based startup Real Ice seeks to “refreeze” the Arctic by pumping seawater from below the ice to the surface during winter months to try and thicken ice cover. It aims to test the technique in Canada’s northern Nunavut region and eventually sell “cooling credits”.
Many indigenous organisations, meanwhile, have called for a halt to these experiments. “Nature is not a laboratory; it is a living entity we are in relationship with,” said the IEN’s Pungowiyi, cautioning against “other forms of geoengineering that threaten our sacred spaces”.
(Reporting by Sebastian Rodriguez; editing by Megan Rowling)
The post Arctic geoengineering experiment shuts down over environmental risks appeared first on Climate Home News.
Arctic geoengineering experiment shuts down over environmental risks
Climate Change
Bowen urged to lead with vision and ambition to accelerate fossil fuel phase out at Bonn climate meeting, as global energy crisis bites
Bonn, Germany, Monday 8 June 2026 — As the UN climate negotiations in Bonn commence, Greenpeace Australia Pacific is calling on Climate and Energy Minister Chris Bowen to lead with vision and ambition to advance multilateral climate cooperation, and use his unique position to drive concrete progress at COP31 and ensure a meaningful partnership with the Pacific.
In the context of a global energy crisis and turbulent geopolitics, the Bonn Climate Change Conference will be a critical moment to sustain emerging political momentum towards a just transition away from fossil fuels. The midway point on the road to COP31 in Türkiye in November, Bonn will be the first time Minister Bowen has attended a major UN conference in his role as COP31 President of Negotiations.
The start of the Bonn meetings also marks 100 days since the illegal US-Israel war on Iran sparked a global energy shock and after 57 countries including Australia met in Santa Marta, Colombia in April for the world’s first conference on the transition away from fossil fuels — a landmark moment signalling political winds of change in the face of threats to multilateralism.
Speaking from Bonn, Dr Simon Bradshaw, COP31 Lead at Greenpeace Australia Pacific, said: “Amidst a global energy crisis, accelerating climate disasters and a looming super El Niño, the urgency to accelerate climate action and break free from fossil fuel dependence has never been clearer.
“Minister Bowen has been telling Australia and the world that we are in a global ‘fossil fuel crisis’, and that unhooking from fossil fuels is fundamental both to tackling the climate crisis and to ensuring secure and affordable energy. It’s time to match that message with a clear vision and agenda for COP31 — one that has the transition away from fossil fuels at its heart.
“As COP31 President of Negotiations, Australia has both the opportunity and responsibility to build on the momentum of COP30 in Belém and the recent landmark conference in Santa Marta on transitioning away from fossil fuels. This includes leading by example at home, with an immediate halt to new fossil fuel projects — including the mammoth proposed Browse gas project — and committing to develop a national roadmap away from fossil fuel production.”
“Few countries have as much skin the game as Australia: we are a country highly vulnerable to extreme heat, fires, floods and other impacts of climate change, we are suffering the consequences of fossil fuel dependency in terms of our energy security and affordability, but we have some of the world’s best renewable energy opportunities.
“Bonn is a key moment for the incoming Presidency to start shaping the vision, building the necessary trust, and actively setting priorities and expectations for the COP. We therefore hope and expect our Minister to be much more vocal and active in Bonn.
“Australia, in partnership with the Pacific, is taking the reins of global climate cooperation at a critical moment in the world’s transition away from fossil fuels. There is no more time to lose.”
Also in Bonn, Shiva Gounden, Head of Pacific at Greenpeace Australia Pacific, said: “Multilateral cooperation is the antidote to climate and geopolitical chaos. At Bonn, Pacific nations’ legacy of leadership from the frontlines of the climate crisis can be our guiding star as we build a more peaceful and secure world for all.
“We must build on the progress at Santa Marta and break the hold fossil fuels have on our global security and economies. Pacific nations are already facing the brunt of a global climate crisis, but now facing the compounding injustice of an energy crisis brought on by fossil fuel dependence. We did not create either of these crises, but are among the most exposed to both.
“The International Court of Justice made clear that responsibility to address the climate crisis extends beyond borders and that continuing to expand fossil fuel production, including for export, could constitute an internationally wrongful act — a ruling that has now been overwhelmingly endorsed by the UN General Assembly. Continuing down the fossil fuel path, and failing to align efforts with limiting warming to 1.5C, is a breach of our international legal obligations.
“We must not lose sight of what’s needed — by elevating the voices of Pacific leaders, backing Pacific-led solutions, and maximising the opportunity of the Pacific pre-COP, we can ensure the 1.5°C imperative and the transition away from fossil fuels are central to the agenda at COP31, and that communities are granted the finance they need to build a strong, resilient future beyond fossil fuels.”
Ahead of SB64, Greenpeace International has produced a policy briefing outlining the core elements of a just transition away from fossil fuels and the urgent, priority actions needed from national governments and through global co-operation to make it a reality.[1]
ENDS
[1] A Just Transition Away from Fossil Fuels: Policy Briefing
Photos in the Greenpeace Media Library
Media contact
Kate O’Callaghan on +61 406 231 892 (Whatsapp/Signal) or kate.ocallaghan@greenpeace.org
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