Feature Channels: Environmental Science

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By swapping solar photovoltaics for coal, the US could prevent 51,999 premature deaths a year, potentially making as much as $2.5 million for each life saved. A team from Michigan Technological University calculated US deaths per kilowatt hour per year for coal related to air pollution-related diseases associated with burning coal.

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Research out of the University of New Hampshire has found that some roads, as far as two miles from the shore, are facing a new hazard that currently cannot be seen by drivers - rising groundwater caused by increasing ocean water levels.

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Researchers from the University of Notre Dame are collecting data on multiple aspects of wind flow patterns shaped by meteorological forcing on intricate terrain through carefully planned field observations.

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Seven years after the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill, researchers embark on new expedition to the Gulf to monitor impacts on deep sea corals

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Corn, beans, and squash—the “three sisters”—have traditionally been grown together for best results. The Soil Science Society of America (SSSA) June 1 Soils Matter blog post explains how companion plantings use plants’ strengths to their best advantage.

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Experts from the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences can provide insight about hurricane preparation, agricultural crops, tree damage, hurricane-proofing your home and more.

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Researchers from Arizona State University are available to discuss President Trump's decision on the Paris climate agreement

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Sonja Klinsky, senior sustainability scientist and assistant professor at Arizona State University, researches strategies for global cooperation on climate and human well-being. Klinsky is available to discuss the consequences of the U.S. pulling out of the Paris climate agreement. Klinsky can be reached at [email protected].

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The researchers discovered that routing runoff contaminated with road salts to stormwater ponds actually resulted in plumes of highly contaminated groundwater moving from the ponds to streams.

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A team led by the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory has identified a novel microbial process that can break down toxic methylmercury in the environment, a fundamental scientific discovery that could potentially reduce mercury toxicity levels and support health and risk assessments.

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Researchers from Arizona State University’s School of Life Sciences and their collaborators may have a new tool to help conserve this iconic desert reptile. For the first time, they have decoded the animal’s genome; their findings appear in the current issue of the journal PLOS ONE.

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A new University of Washington study finds that people who believe climate change is a problem and see economic, environmental and/or social benefits to using tidal energy are more likely to support such projects. Also, connecting pilot projects to the electricity grid is an important factor in garnering public support.

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BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- New Indiana University research shows many Americans don't know how clean water gets to their homes and especially what happens after wastewater is flushed away, knowledge that is vital in confronting challenges including droughts and failing infrastructure that can lead to contamination.

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Camille Delavaux studies mycorrhizal fungi and plant pathogens in the context of plant invasion in tropical ecosystems.

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Wastewater treatment plants have a PR problem: People don’t like to think about what happens to the waste they flush down their toilets. But for many engineers and microbiologists, including the University of Wisconsin-Madison's Daniel Noguera and Katherine McMahon, these plants are a hotbed of scientific advances.

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In the western United States 160,000 abandoned mines contaminate soils in the region. Researchers hope to solve this problem with biochar, a charcoal-like substance that can reduce the toxic consequences of mining for metals.

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About 1 to 2 million years ago, early humans in East Africa periodically faced very dry conditions, with little or no water in sight. But they likely had access to hundreds of springs that lingered despite long dry spells, allowing our ancestors to head north and out of Africa, according to a groundbreaking study by scientists at Rutgers University-New Brunswick and other institutions. The international team showed that climate may not play such a primary role in human evolution as is commonly asserted.

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A new study finds that drone deliveries emit less climate-warming carbon dioxide pollution than truck deliveries in some — but not all — scenarios.

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Oleo Sponge could make oil spill cleanup more efficient.

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Scientists have confirmed that exposure to coal combustion residuess lead to higher levels of trace elements in yellow-bellied sliders, a freshwater turtle native to the Southeastern U.S.

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For BGSU graduate student Lauren Jonaitis, roadkill is more than simply dead animals; it represents a tremendous loss of life and also the degree to which humans are impinging on natural habitats and pathways. Rather than simply bemoan the carnage, Jonaitis is using roadkill as a way to study what is happening and as a guide to improving planning and decision making.

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The discovery of anomalously high levels of mercury in rocks from the Ordivician geological period has led to a new interpretation of the ensuing mass extinction. A sequence of disturbances may have led to catastrophic cooling by reflective sulfate aerosols injected into the atmosphere by massive volcanism. The finding is important since aerosol cooling is under consideration as a way to temper global warming.

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Nature Geoscience study analyzes global satellite observations, shows vegetation alters climate and weather patterns by as much as 30%. The researchers used a new approach and found feedbacks between the atmosphere and vegetation can be strong, explaining up to 30 percent of variability in precipitation and surface radiation. The paper is the first to examine biosphere-atmosphere interactions using purely observational data, could improve weather and climate predictions critical to crop management, food security, and more.

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Summer can bite. It can burn or itch. It can make you extremely sick…or worse. “Summer is a great time to get outside, but we tend to forget some of the season’s perils and common sense ways to avoid or treat them,” said Dr. Jennifer Caudle.

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The Darden School of Business has announced the launch of the Business Innovation and Climate Change Initiative, an ambitious new project spearheaded by Darden’s Batten Institute for Entrepreneurship and Innovation aimed at exploring how business innovation can be a source for pragmatic solutions to one of the world’s most urgent issues.

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Penn State researchers have created a new hybrid technology that produces unprecedented amounts of electrical power where seawater and freshwater combine at the coast.

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Scientists are now confident animal life on solid ground started with a few short bursts of marine creatures making the leap from the oceans. New research at the University of Portsmouth also paints a clear picture of how animals rapidly spread out and changed once they made the leap.

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New research from the University of Cincinnati (UC) reveals that residents of the Mid-Ohio River Valley had higher than normal levels of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) based on blood samples collected over a 22-year span. The exposure source was likely from drinking water contaminated by industrial discharges upriver. This is the first study of PFOA serum concentrations in U.S. residents in the 1990s.

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A new study led by researchers at the University of Wisconsin–Madison examined why private-land conservation data is sometimes inaccessible and found that limited capacity within some federal agencies as well as laws prohibiting others from disclosing certain information are to blame.

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Education and research are the two areas where the university has helped make the High Plains one of the top grape-growing regions in the U.S.

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University of Delaware researchers have received funding to study the distribution and concentration of microplastics in the Delaware Bay. This small debris can cause problems in the aquatic food chain. The UD team is hoping their findings can help government regulators shape new policy to protect the environment.

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The first aerial assessment of the impact of South Sudan’s current civil war on the country’s wildlife and other natural resources shows that significant wildlife populations have so far survived, but poaching and commercial wildlife trafficking are increasing, as well as illegal mining, timber harvesting and charcoal production, the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) said in a report issued today.

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In an ATS 2017 International Conference first, respiratory health professionals and patients joined other conference attendees at a rally near the Capitol on Tuesday, May 23 to voice their concerns about recent policies that threaten to undermine many of the ATS’s advocacy priorities including: research funding, tobacco regulation, affordable health care, and clean air. Also participating in the rally was U.S. senators Edward Markey (D-MA) and Tom Carper (D-DE).WASHINGTON, DC – May 24, 2017 – In an ATS 2017 International Conference first, respiratory health professionals and patients joined other conference attendees at a rally near the Capitol on Tuesday, May 23 to voice their concerns about recent policies that threaten to undermine many of the ATS’s advocacy priorities including: research funding, tobacco regulation, affordable health care, and clean air. Also participating in the rally was U.S. senators Edward Markey (D-MA) and Tom Carper (D-DE). Since its inception in 1905,

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Researchers Develop Novel Structure for a High-Efficiency Catalytic Converter Aimed at Boosting Automobile Manufacturers’ Ability to Meet Stringent Vehicle Emissions Standards

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A new study looks at how three varieties of camelina perform when grown in two different regions within the Great Plains. The end goal is to find the camelina variety that performs best in each location or environment--beyond the genetics involved.

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“Grasses do not need as much water as most people are applying,” said Jason Kruse, a UF/IFAS associate professor of environmental horticulture. "What most people do not understand when it comes to their lawns is that all of our warm-season turfgrasses can survive periods of drought.”

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Researchers have figured out how a once-defeated bacterium has re-emerged to infect cotton in a battle that could sour much of the Texas and U.S. crop. And it boils down to this: A smart bacteria with a sweet tooth.

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According to a paper published recently in Ecosphere, Drylands are of concern because broad-scale changes in these systems have the potential to affect 36 percent of the world’s human population.

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The Department of Defense (DoD) has awarded a team of researchers, led by Boise State University biological sciences professor Julie Heath, a four-year, $1.7 million grant to monitor the effects of climate change on American kestrels and develop a modeling system that can be used broadly to predict how other avian species will react to changes in weather patterns. This is an increasingly pressing need within DoD as well as the broader scientific and conservation community.

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A new study examines the spread of mistletoe—a parasitic plant—and finds that the plant’s success is determined not only by its compatibility with a host tree, but also whether or not the plants’ fruiting seasons overlap. Knowing what factors are necessary for the parasite to spread may help scientists better understand the variability of other parasitic interactions, including infectious diseases.

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Will reductions in Arctic snow cover make tundra-dwelling wolverines more vulnerable to climate change than previously thought? That’s a question scientists hope an innovative method described in a new study co-authored by WCS (Wildlife Conservation Society) will help answer.

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TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Spring is here and summer is near, and with the increase in warm weather comes bloodsuckers. No, not vampires, but to some they cause just as much dread. It’s time for ticks, the long lost cousins of spiders and scorpions and the brothers of mites, to have their season, and Dr. John Abbott, director of museum research & collections at The University of Alabama Museums, has the low-down on what types are prevalent in the South, what they do, the dangers they pose, how to avoid them and what to do if bitten by one.