Bad news for Steven Chu, Bjorn Lomborg and green white jobs.
A new study in the Journal of Climate casts doubt on the latest Great White Hope — the whitewashing of roofs to mitigate climate change.
The researchers say,
White roofs change surface albedo and affect energy demand. A worldwide conversion to white roofs, accounting for their albedo effect only, was calculated to cool population-weighted temperatures by ~0.02 K but to warm the Earth overall by ~0.07 K. White-roof local cooling may also affect energy use, thus emissions, a factor not accounted for here. As such, conclusions here regarding white roofs apply only to the assumptions made.
This passes for a “study?” The error bars are bigger than what we’re measuring, we’re assuming the effect of aerosols on warming, and we don’t really know squat about it – but we don’t think it would work. This counts for a STUDY? Ok….I guess….
No discussion of the economic/environmental affects of mining/production/transport/application of all that calcite/lime, etc, to produce the white wash? And all that for no real benefit. Chu better stick to nuclear phys ed or whatever his degree was in.