Feature Channels: Environmental Health

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As cities grow bigger and faster, water pollution is becoming a serious problem.

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The widespread presence of tiny plastics, known as microplastics and nanoplastics, in our environment is raising alarm.

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Alternate wetting and drying, a rice irrigation practice dating back to the 1980s, is part of a broader Texas A&M AgriLife study investigating its potential to reduce water and fertilizer use.

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PM2.5 (particulate matter less than 2.5 micrometers in diameter) is a critical pollutant affecting air quality and public health. In China, rapid industrialization and urbanization have led to severe PM2.5 pollution, posing significant health risks and environmental concerns.

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In 2020, global plastic production reached over 360 million tons, with most being petroleum-based and non-biodegradable.

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Managing municipal solid waste (MSW) poses significant challenges for Small Island Developing States (SIDS) like the Maldives, due to unique socio-economic and environmental factors.

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The world’s top fossil fuel firms subtly reset online conversations about climate change by ignoring discussions of extreme weather in favour of sharing praise for their own sustainability work, according to a new research paper in Nature’s npj | Climate Action series.

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Addressing climate change has become a central issue in Chile’s public policy. As part of that debate, Dr. Maisa Rojas, researcher in Atmospheric Physics, who currently serves as Chilean Minister for Environment and Marco Billi of the Centre for Climate and Resilience Research, Universidad de Chile, propose a new model of governance at the country level to facilitate the changes needed.

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Virginia Tech has pedaled its way to national recognition as a gold level Bicycle Friendly University, a prestigious designation awarded by the League of American Bicyclists.

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The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has determined that reducing methane gas emissions will immediately reduce the rise in global temperatures. The gas is up to 85 times more potent of a greenhouse gas than CO2, and more than half of it is emitted by human sources, with cattle and fossil fuel production accounting for the largest share.

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New research published in the January issue of Nature Cities examines, for the first time, the potential benefits of combining heat adaptation strategies with mitigation strategies to lessen heat exposure across major U.S. cities. It also identifies the regions in which these strategies could best benefit future populations.

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Exposure to phthalates, a group of plasticizing and solvent chemicals found in many household products, was linked to a lower probability of getting pregnant, but not to pregnancy loss, according to research by a University of Massachusetts Amherst environmental and reproductive epidemiologist.

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Puerto Rico has faced several human-made and natural crises in recent years, including the devastating effects of Hurricane Maria in 2017. Building disaster resilience and recovery is crucial for community well-being and requires a comprehensive approach with cooperation from multiple organizations. A new study from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign examines the partnership between a Puerto Rican non-governmental organization (NGO) and a group of academics.

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Most modern ocean models focus on two categories of waves: a barotropic system, which has a fast wave propagation speed, and a baroclinic system, which has a slow wave propagation speed. To help address the challenge of simulating these two modes simultaneously, a team from DOE’s Oak Ridge, Los Alamos and Sandia National Laboratories has developed a new solver algorithm that reduces the total run time of the Model for Prediction Across Scales-Ocean, or MPAS-Ocean, E3SM’s ocean circulation model, by 45%.

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Pollution spewing from a booming global economy poses a number of different threats to human health. Researchers from Zhongyuan University of Technology proposed a new possible avenue to efficiently convert nitrate, a widespread water pollutant, back to valuable ammonia.

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In a ground-breaking first, researchers have predicted full lifecycle carbon emissions of vehicles using different transportation modes such as high-speed railways, private vehicle and bus.

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There may be a simple way to convince meat eaters to consume vegan food, according to a new USC study: Don’t call the food “vegan.”

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The following statement was released by WCS President and CEO Monica Medina upon the conclusion of the UN Climate Conference:

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The program, “Building Capacity in Microbiome Innovation for Plant Health, Soil Fertility and Environmental Sustainability,” is the first workforce-development USDA-NIFA grant to a research-intensive Hispanic-Serving Institution, which will help address the complex challenges facing traditional agriculture and declining interest of the next generation in food, agriculture and natural resources careers.

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Nutrient runoff from agricultural production is a significant source of water pollution in the U.S., and climate change that produces extreme weather events is likely to exacerbate the problem. A new study from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign looks at how extreme rainfall impacts runoff and suggests possible mitigation strategies.

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Around Anchorage, communications among the critically endangered population of Cook Inlet beluga whales may be masked by ship noise in their core critical habitat, accordingly to the first repertoire of their calls.

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Dr. Jiajue Chai at the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry (ESF) received two National Science Foundation grants totaling nearly $700,000 to advance research on improving air quality in large cities. Chai, an assistant professor in ESF’s Department of Chemistry, studies how atmospheric compositions influence air quality, ecosystem health, and climate change.

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Natural resource management decisions in protected areas impact more than the wildlife and landscapes they’re charged to conserve.

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Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) researchers, along with scientists from more than a dozen institutions, have completed a first-of-its-kind high-resolution assessment of carbon dioxide (CO2) removal (CDR) in the United States.

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“The ministers chose today to break from traditional silos and to pursue strategies that put nature at the heart of climate change responses.” –Joe Walston, Executive Vice President of WCS Global Conservation

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Dubai, Dec. 9, 2023 – The following statement was issued today by Daneil Zarin, Executive Director of Forests and Climate Change at the Wildlife Conservation Society:

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Magnesium oxide is a promising material for capturing carbon dioxide directly from the atmosphere and injecting it deep underground to limit the effects of climate change. But making the method economical will require discovering the speed at which carbon dioxide is absorbed and how environmental conditions affect the chemical reactions involved.

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As sea level continues to rise, threatening ecosystems, communities and infrastructure, experts are searching for ways to better understand how coastal environments may change in the future.

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Undergraduates are invited to apply for a six-month fellowship sponsored by the Gulf of Mexico Coastal Ocean Observing System

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A team of sustainability scientists at the University of Massachusetts Amherst recently announced in the journal PLOS ONE that they have developed a community-based framework, founded on extensive local and traditional knowledge, to help assess and respond to the kinds of ecological threats that are widely dispersed across a varied landscape and whose solutions are not immediately obvious.

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Researchers at the FLEXLAB® facility, a unique buildings testbed at Berkeley Lab, are helping the buildings and utilities sectors and U.S. policymakers develop new technologies for a zero-low-emissions grid.

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A greenhouse gas far more potent than CO2, methane emissions are blamed for at least a quarter of the climate change underway on Earth. Researchers are exploring way to put microbes to work removing enough of that methane from the atmosphere to dampen global warming.

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Syngenta Crop Protection, a global leader in agricultural innovation, has become a sponsor of the International Alliance for Phytobiomes Research, cementing a pioneering partnership between the research community and industry aimed at advancing fundamental science to accelerate sustainable agriculture.

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Since 2011, parts of the Indian River Lagoon’s benthic cover has changed from primarily seagrass until 2015, to primarily the green macroalga C. prolifera after 2018. While native to the lagoon, C. prolifera acts as an invasive species that can move into new spaces and dominate due to its competitive ability in impaired habitats.

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Michael Berkowitz, who heads up the University of Miami’s Climate Resilience Academy, is in Dubai for the United Nation’s 28th Conference of the Parties, the climate summit commonly referred to as COP28. Here’s what’s important to him.

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The following statement was issued by WCS President and CEO Monica Medina concerning the US Administration’s announcement today of a new $3 Billion pledge to the Green Climate Fund, the largest fund supporting climate action in developing countries:

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“The COP28 UAE Presidency in collaboration with the World Health Organization and other partners is holding the first ever Health Day and climate-health ministerial.

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