Russ George’s Plan To Stop Climate Change Via Ocean Pasture Restoration
Dear Friends & Neighbors,
Russ George on Ocean Pasture Restoration (Attribution: Facing Future youtube channel-Ocean Pasture Restoration, Presented at: WindermereSun.com)
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Here at Windermere Sun, we’re interested in listening to and helping to promote all kinds of solutions to our earthly problems. In this post, I would like to introduce you to the concept of the Ocean Pasture Restoration solution proposed by Russ George.
This “rogue” ocean hacker says the solution to climate change is easy & cheap — so why are governments trying to stop him? In the video published on June 9, 2022, “The highly controversial plan to stop climate change| Russ George for Heretics“, below:
To learn more about who Russ George is, please refer to the excerpt from wikipedia, in italics, below:
Russ George (Darcy Russel George; born 6 December 1949) is an American businessman and entrepreneur best known for founding the San Francisco-based firm Planktos Inc. which claims to “restore ecosystems and slow climate change”.[2][3][4] In 2007 he provided testimony to the House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming.[1] The ecorestoration treeplanting company he founded in Canada in 1973 originally called Coast Range has planted upwards of 250 million trees[citation needed], and continues even now. He used to be member of Greenpeace and was part of the crew of the Rainbow Warrior, though today he considers Greenpeace one of his greatest opponents.[5] In the 90s, he founded several companies conducting Cold Fusion research.
So, let’s take a closer look at Ocean Pasture Restoration, in italics, below:
In 2012, the Haida Salmon Restoration Corporation decided on conducting an ‘ocean pasture restoration experiment’ by spreading more than 100 tonnes of an iron-rich dirt-like substance over a large area in the Pacific Ocean. Russel George was chosen to act as the lead scientist of this operation.
In July 2012, George departed from Victoria with a crew of 11 on a chartered fishing vessel named the Ocean Pearl, loaded with 100 tons of iron-rich nutrient. The vessel exited the Strait of Juan de Fuca and headed northwards into the Gulf of Alaska until they reached the currents known as the Haida Eddies, approximately 200 miles westward of the coast of Haida Gwaii. The crew spent the next weeks zigzagging the ship over the ocean while mixing the 4 000 50-lb bags of nutrients with seawater and pumping them overboard using a hose before returning to Victoria to take 20 more tons of nutrient aboard to repeat the process in August. As of 2022, this remains by far the largest Iron fertilization operation in history.[4][6]
George claimed this resulted in increased growth of phytoplankton over 10,000 square miles.[7][8] Some critics asserted George’s actions were illegal[9] while others have argued that they were not.[10][11] Scientists were especially concerned regarding the fact that previous similiar Experiments, like the EisenEx experiment conducted in November 2009 had shown that fertilizing the ocean with iron in this manner would especially promote the growth of a genus of microalgae known as Pseudo-nitzschia which in turn produces large quantities of Domoic acid, a potentially deadly neurotoxin which accumulates through the food chain.[12] The Canadian Food Inspection Agency reported a significant increase in concentrations of Domoic acid on the northern coast of Haida Gwaii in the latter half of 2012,[13] and citizens of Old Masset reported with unease that the island was hit by the strongest red tides ever seen there.[6]
Critics allege violations of the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and the London Convention on the Dumping of Wastes at Sea which contain moratoriums on geoengineering experiments.[3] Parties to the London Convention and London Protocol expressed grave concerns about this experiment.[14]
Romany M. Webb, Senior Fellow and Associate Research Scholar for the Sabin Center for Climate Change Law at Columbia Law School answered this way: “The parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity have adopted a resolution, which says that countries should avoid “ocean fertilization activities,” except those conducted as part of small-scale scientific research projects in coastal waters. Notably, however, the resolution is not legally binding. So, provided countries complied with other provisions of the Convention on Biological Diversity, they could go ahead with the (OPR) type of project.” Webb added that the amendment to the London Protocol that relates to OPR has not “yet entered into force so, at the moment, has no legal effect.”[15]
Edward A. (Ted) Parson, the Dan and Rae Emmett Professor of Environmental Law and Faculty Co-director of the Emmett Institute on Climate Change and the Environment at the University of California, Los Angeles said about the Haida project at the time, “There’s a ruckus going on over an experiment in ocean fertilization conducted off the coast of British Columbia in July and disclosed this week. The Haida Salmon Restoration Corporation, an enterprise of the Haida village of Old Massett, used a large fishing vessel to spread 100 tons of iron sulfate-rich dust on the ocean surface west of Haida Gwaii (or the Queen Charlotte Islands). The aim of the release was to increase plankton growth and there promote growth of fisheries and maybe also remove carbon from the atmosphere. Such interventions exist in a near legal vacuum. Critics of the Old Massett Haida project are claiming it violates international law, but this is simply not true. Mainly due to vigorous lobbying by a couple of small NGOs (the same ones now outraged at the Haida project), parties to the CBD have adopted two decisions discouraging ocean fertilization, and geoengineering generally. But these are purely advisory – and are moreover so clumsily drafted that even if they were legally binding (which they are not), their operational meaning would be utterly opaque… Nations are under no legal obligation to refrain from ocean fertilization research, nor to submit proposals to any international process.”[16] Search warrants were executed by Environment Canada‘s enforcement branch to investigate Russ George’s office concerning the iron enrichment he performed in 2012 off the coast of British Columbia.[17][18]
John Disney, President of the Haida Salmon Restoration Corporation, made this statement on October 19, 2012: “Our project has generated a great deal of media attention both nationally and internationally. I want to tell you about the project, what we did, how we did it. This project was not entered into lightly. And we have complied with every necessary aspect of the ocean governance before undertaking the work. I want to make very clear: we do not consider micronutrient replenishment of a naturally occurring substance to be pollution. We are using this for restoration purposes, to restore the salmon back to their rightful place in the Old Massey economy. We have created a great team, working to develop the knowledge that will allow us to have a sustainable future, and that is the guiding principle of the company. As President, I am very cognisant of all of the requirements of the scientific and legal nature that applies to this project. I’d like to say that at this time that the international media and national media seems to have focused on Russ George who we brought in as our Chief Scientist. I want to make this emphatically clear: Russ George did not, I’m saying did not come to us to dupe us or sell us a bill of goods. We approached him, and we based that on ten years of work with him in other fields. I’ve known Russ for over ten years and I’ll tell you something that is very rare: he has never once lied to me, he’s only told me the truth, he has a great integrity, and he’s never let us down. And every time he’s told me something that I thought was unbelievable I’ve checked it out and he’s always been right. And I challenge anyone else in the corporate world to come up with that about a person. Russ has one aim in life: he wants to try and make the planet a better place. That’s it. I don’t care what else you read.”[19]
In May 2013, the Haida Salmon Restoration Corporation removed George as a director of the company and ended his employment.[20] Russ George sued the Haida Salmon Restoration Corporation, its directors, and several others in 2014.[21] In a counterclaim the Haida Salmon Restoration Corporation claimed that Russ George lied about his credentials and academic qualifications, assaulted the project leader, and acted in an “irrational, unprofessional and offensive manner”.[21] In 2016, Russ George was ordered to pay security for legal costs.[22]
On July 15, 2014, the oceanographic scientific data gathered during the project was made publicly available under the ODbL license.[23]
The experiment did result in a unusually large phytoplankton bloom that lasted at least til September 2012, when it became increasingly difficult to detect as the biomass dispersed into the surrounding waters.[24] In the seas of Southeast Alaska, the relevant area of the experiment, the expected catch of Pink Salmon in 2013 was predicted by salmon experts and managers to be 54 million fish.[25][26] The catch turned out to be 224 million Pinks, the largest catch in Canadian history.[27][28] Russ has claimed this to be definitive Proof of the success of the Experiment,[29] despite claims that no definitive link between the experiment and the higher levels of the food chain (including Salmon) could be determined.[24][30] Research conducted on 13 major iron-fertilization experiments in the open ocean since 1990 determined that the method is unproven; with respect to the Haida Gwaii project, “scientists have seen no evidence that the experiment worked”, concluded a 2017 article in Nature.[31]
Paul Beckwith and Regina Valdez discuss the topic of Ocean Pasture Restoration with special guests Alex Carlin, Peter Fiekowsky and Russ George. The presentation emphasizes that solving the ‘Climate Emergency’ with emissions reduction alone will not work but rather needs to also include CO2 removal in order to succeed and thereby achieve the overall goal of climate restoration. Ocean Pasture Restoration or OPR is the key CO2 removal method discussed in this video although two other methods are also briefly mentioned. The video concludes with an upbeat performance of Alex’s ‘Climate Restoration’ song. This video was recorded at COP26, Glasgow, Scotland, in the Durdle Door press conference room on November 5th, 2021, and published on November 20th, 2021. This is the second of two videos on the topic of OPR with the ‘Climate Emergency Forum.’ In contrast to the first video, this one includes contributions from Peter Fiekowsky and Russ George and was recorded at COP26. Topics discussed include the following: – The ‘New’ Paradigm which contrasts with the ‘Old’ in that emissions reduction must also include CO2 removal to achieve climate restoration as an essential part of a climate emergency solution. – Ocean Pasture Restoration (OPR) is the main CO2 removal method discussed along with its many practical implementation advantages. OPR is a very gentle and effective method in that it enhances what nature already does. – A major clarification that OPR is performed only in the deep ocean, not in the shallow coastal areas, is provided. This is a major source of the misconceptions by OPR’s naysayers. – Relative to the Amazon Rainforest, the oceans historically have contained 50 Amazon forest equivalent “pastures”, with 50 Amazons of capacity to capture carbon. – A proposal is made that restoring 500 eddies, swirling in the underwater pastures, which is only around 1% of the ocean’s surface, is needed to be firmly on the road to achieving climate restoration. – Two other forms of CO2 removal were mentioned: the production of synthetic limestone as well as the industrial growth of kelp. – Alex performs his climate song. – The fact that Sir David King is now involved in the planning of experiments to trial OPR over the next 4 years. – Stuart Scott (1948 – 2021) is thanked at the end of the presentation, in the video published on Nov 20, 2021, “Ocean Pasture Restoration and The New Paradigm“, below:
Climate Restoration Options:
- Ocean Pasture Restoration- requires approximately 500 eddies which is around 1% of the ocean’s surface
- Synthetic Limestone-99.9% of all carbon is stored on the bottom of the ocean in the form of limestone, Silicon Valley producing limestone in a process similar to oysters as an alternative to sourcing from quarries
- Kelp-industrially grown out in the ocean
The climate negotiations are focusing on ‘mitigation’, that is, reducing society’s carbon emissions, and adaptation, adjusting to the climate change that cannot be avoided. However, the restoration of a safe climate for future generations is largely ‘under the radar’. There is talk of technologies to withdraw C02 from the air, and talk of planting trees, but proposed solutions are mostly land based approaches. The Earth is mostly a blue water covered planet, with about 72% of its surface covered with oceans. The capacity of plankton in the ocean to re-purpose huge amounts of CO2 into rich marine biodiversity is an overlooked way of restoring the health of the oceans, reducing the greenhouse effect and repairing the climate of Earth. We are pleased to present this program on the overlooked capabilities of Ocean Pasture Restoration, in the video published on Dec 13, 2019, “Ocean Pasture Restoration“, below:
The idea to fertilize the ocean using iron to create phytoplankton blooms to absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere to combat climate change has been floating around for a little while now, in the video published on March 26, 2019, “The Plan to Fertilize the Ocean With IRON“, below:
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Gathered, written, and posted by Windermere Sun-Susan Sun Nunamaker More about the community at www.WindermereSun.com
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