Climate degradation can be mitigated through various means, the most crucial being the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. The Atmosmare Foundation, together with its partners, has conceived and implemented various emission reduction methods.
However, we are in a situation where global emissions have not yet begun to decline, and the complete cessation of emissions remains a distant dream. Therefore, other measures are also required.
For years, Atmosmare has implemented various small-scale carbon sequestration projects in Finland. The most significant of these is a five-hectare carbon and nutrient sequestration plot located in Lieto, owned by the foundation, which combines water and climate protection, and where carbon sequestration has been carried out since 2009. Concurrently, nutrient leaching from this former shoreline field, which was problematic from a water protection perspective, has decreased.
Carbon sequestration activities have now expanded, and since 2023, we have made promising progress in carbon sequestration projects implemented in two different African countries.
It is, however, quite clear that even with emission reductions and carbon sequestration combined, the rising greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere cannot be brought under control quickly enough, and the accumulation of heat on Earth will continue for far too long. Warming must not be allowed to progress to the extent that we exceed dangerous tipping points. For this reason, we have long proposed that the Earth must be artificially cooled.
We have focused particularly on the climate-cooling effect of shipping and proposed that the cooling sulfur emissions from ships should be allowed in situations where their cooling effect is maximized and health risks are minimized. Advocacy work has been carried out for years, for example, by contacting decision-makers in the EU and IMO. The concerns presented in Ships, Sulphur and Climate (2011), a book by Risto Isomäki and Esko Pettay published with the support of the foundation, are even more relevant today.
Unfortunately, we did not succeed in influencing the regulation concerning sulfur emissions at the time. The latest research data has now confirmed that the global sulfur limits for ships, which came into force in 2020, have indeed accelerated global warming in the feared manner. Based on the research results, it is also better understood how sulfur emissions should be optimized to achieve the greatest possible cooling effect. This topic will therefore once again be at the top of our action list for the coming years.
Atmosmare has also been involved in numerous projects promoting renewable energy solutions. For example, we have supported the development of small-scale solar energy solutions in India. Among other things, the projects have developed a portable solar-powered drinking water purifier suitable for remote areas, India’s first solar-powered boat, and a partially light-transmitting solar panel suitable for placement over crops.
What is often common to Atmosmare’s projects is that they aim to achieve significant benefits with a small investment. The foundation also addresses topics that often go unnoticed by traditional environmental protection organizations.
The work Ships, Sulphur and Climate is available as an e-book.
