Mitigating ice sheets and mountain glaciers melt with geoengineering

The inadequacy of current emission reduction measures necessitates exploring innovative approaches to address the critical issue of ice sheet and mountain glacier melting. Geoengineering emerges as a potential solution to mitigate severe cryospheric changes. This review systematically examines geoengineering techniques tailored to ice sheets and mountain glaciers, analyzing their efficacy, risks, and limitations based on existing literature. Results indicate that while geoengineering technologies can reduce glacier and ice sheet melting, challenges related to environmental risks, ethical dilemmas, and technical feasibility constrain their broader application. Probably more important than technical feasibility is societal acceptance. Therefore, their application raises critical ethical questions, including intergenerational responsibility and equitable resource allocation. Ultimately, the review proposed seven recommendations: focusing on energy conservation and emissions reduction; integrating technologies and strategies; developing means to optimize albedo enhancement; implementing dynamic monitoring; comprehensively assessing the socio-ecological and economic benefits and risks of technologies; transnational climate governance and cooperation; and building ethical and legal frameworks. These strategies aim to guide policymakers in developing effective and equitable strategies for mitigating ice sheet and mountain glacier melting in the context of global climate change.