Marine Geoengineering Industry

Will O'Brien believes that marine geoengineering represents a significant opportunity similar to how space exploration has created massive companies. He sees the ocean as "the new space" with potential for billion-dollar companies to emerge in this sector, particularly around environmental stewardship and resource extraction.

Key Points:

• Environmental Stewardship Philosophy:

  • His environmental beliefs stem from Christian notions of stewardship - "we should look after our lands and our seas because it's our duty"
  • Climate action is evolving from simply "avoiding worst case scenarios" to actively stewarding the planet
  • "We take control, we get involved" rather than just reducing harm

• Active Environmental Management:

  • Envisions controlling environmental factors: "Augustus a rainmaker can make it rain when we want it to rain"
  • Believes we can intentionally restore ecosystems: "Aziz can come in and bring back the seagrasses"
  • Sees potential for targeted carbon drawdown and increasing fish stocks

• Economic Balance:

  • These tools are needed "in tandem with growing the size of the economic pie"
  • "We don't want to just shut down the economy" or stop emissions altogether
  • Compensatory mechanisms allow continued economic growth while managing environmental impact

• Marine Geoengineering Opportunities:

  • Cites example of iron fertilization: "Give me a tanker of iron filings and I will give you an ice age"
  • Adding iron to ocean can stimulate algae growth, which draws down carbon and increases fish populations
  • Describes a controversial experiment that resulted in "the biggest take of salmon ever" but led to legal troubles

• Key Requirements for Success:

  • Better science and technology development
  • Proper governance frameworks since "the ocean is like a public space"
  • Careful ecosystem management to avoid unintended consequences

• Treasure Hunting Potential:

  • Claims there are "hundreds [of shipwrecks] that potentially have billions on them"
  • Knows people working on treasure recovery who "haven't shared their plans publicly yet"

• Prediction:

  • "There is gonna be like a billion dollar company built in marine geoengineering of some description"