So while watching the Olympics today, I saw this commercial put out by the Discovery Channel. They are advertising their new show, Project Earth. Their goal to combatting global warming has gone to the extreme as they attempt to experiment with outlandish ideas such as covering a glacier (Greenland actually) with a reflective material (high-tech foil). They fasten huge rolls of special material to the ice by drilling, yeah that’s right …. drilling into the ice. From reading the website, they have a problem with their drill because the ice is just too hard. They are intentionally breaking up the ice to supposedly “save the ice.” Seems like taking two steps back and half a step forward at best to me….. They are creating more surface area for the ice to melt: A bigger ice cube will last longer but a smaller one with more surface area (a slushie) will melt much faster (while absorbing heat faster).

Now how could this idea possibly do anything? Think about it, say it does work and it magically prevents the ice from melting, and the Earth gets .000000001degrees cooler, then what? You’re going to go wrap crazy and cover all of the North Pole and Antarctica? What about the seasonal expansion and contraction of glaciers and ice not to mention the environmental impact on wildlife. I suppose we might as well cover more than just the ice. Let’s put it over the ocean and on top of everyone’s house and lawn to keep us cool. The Earth’s natural system is far too big to be influenced by humans. There’s a reason why the Earth has been naturally heating and cooling since the start of time. What they are really doing is spreading out the world’s largest blanket of litter, that’s right, the green people are trashing the planet with no regard for others, what a shock?

Like other green ideas, it’s rediculously expensive and will not work.