Stopping a Geoengineering Project in Cape Cod

In 2024, national and local environmental justice groups expressed outrage against the LOC-NESS experiment – a geoengineering project that proposes dumping over 60,000 gallons of sodium hydroxide into the ocean off of Cape Cod. This experiment is intended to test a new form of geoengineering called “ocean alkalinity enhancement” that comes with catastrophic risks to the ocean environment and its ability to absorb carbon emissions. Sodium hydroxide is a dangerous, caustic chemical that causes chemical burns on contact with skin, and would be dumped into waters frequented by at least eight endangered species, including North Atlantic Right Whales and Leatherback Turtles.

Geoengineering in any form only addresses a symptom of climate change – warming land and water temperatures, for example – and not the source of the problem. By putting valuable time and resources into these projects, we’re only jeopardizing our ability to quickly phase out fossil fuels and endangering our ecosystem with dangerous experiments. Many geoengineering projects, if implemented, will also negatively impact communities in the Global South and coastal communities – those already suffering the worst impacts of climate change. That’s why Friends of the Earth is opposing geoengineering projects across the United States, including LOC-NESS.

Following bad press and a slew of negative public comments submitted to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), as well as warnings from the National Marine Fisheries Service that the project could endanger fish populations in the area, the researchers behind the experiment chose to delay until at least 2025. While temporary, this is a huge victory for environmental justice activists and Tribal leaders who’ve expressed dismay for LOC-NESS and its potentially destructive impacts on marine life and the coastal communities that rely on the ocean.

The United States is unfortunately very susceptible to geoengineering schemes.The U.N. Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) has established a moratorium on geoengineering for most of the world, but the U.S. is one of the only countries that has not ratified the CBD, and no federal law explicitly prohibits or regulates the deployment of most geoengineering technologies.

However, this win supports the notion that geoengineering projects prove to be a lot more trouble than they’re worth. With respect to marine geoengineering, the technologies we’ve seen would have to be implemented at truly massive scales to have any impact on the climate, imposing disastrous side-effects on ocean ecology. Many companies are also rushing to implement marine geoengineering so they can sell “carbon credits” to polluting companies for a profit. Additionally, solar geoengineering projects like marine cloud brightening or stratospheric aerosol injection could reduce rainfall in the Amazon, severely damage global air quality and even increase the likelihood of diseases like malaria. The idea of engineering our way out of the climate crisis may seem alluring, but it’s ultimately a false promise with potentially deadly consequences.

While we’re elated by the decision to postpone the LOC-NESS experiment, there’s plenty of work to still be done in Cape Cod and beyond. This project has only been paused, and we will continue to pressure the EPA to deny the permit requests to carry out the experiment next year. In addition, residents in areas that will potentially be impacted by geoengineering projects must speak out against these dangerous distractions to local officials and government representatives. With persistence and determination, we can get away from these false solutions and get back to solutions that help us achieve a more healthy, just world.