Biology: Marine Ecology: General Ecology: Nature Ecology: Research Ecology: Sea Life Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geography Geoscience: Oceanography
Published

New research finds that more than 90% of global aquaculture faces substantial risk from environmental change      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Many of the world's largest aquatic food producers are highly vulnerable to human-induced environmental change, with some of the highest-risk countries in Asia, Latin America and Africa demonstrating the lowest capacity for adaptation, a landmark study has shown.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: General Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Chemistry: Organic Chemistry Energy: Technology Environmental: General Environmental: Water Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry Physics: General
Published

Don't wait, desalinate: A new approach to water purification      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A water purification system separates out salt and other unnecessary particles with an electrified version of dialysis. Successfully applied to wastewater with planned expansion into rivers and seas, the method saves money and saps 90% less energy than its counterparts.

Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry
Published

Act now to prevent uncontrolled rise in carbon footprint of computational science      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Scientists have set out principles for how computational science -- which powers discoveries from unveiling the mysteries of the universe to developing treatments to fight cancer to improving our understanding of the human genome, but can have a substantial carbon footprint -- can be made more environmentally sustainable.

Environmental: General Environmental: Water Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry Geoscience: Geography
Published

Study of Earth's stratosphere reduces uncertainty in future climate change      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

New research reduces uncertainty in future climate change linked to the stratosphere, with important implications for life on Earth. A significant source of uncertainty relates to future changes to water vapor in the stratosphere, an extremely dry region of the atmosphere 15--50 km above the Earth's surface. Future increases in water vapor here risk amplifying climate change and slowing down the recovery of the ozone layer, which protects life on Earth from harmful solar ultraviolet radiation.

Environmental: General Environmental: Water Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry Geoscience: Geography Geoscience: Geology Geoscience: Oceanography
Published

Study of deep-sea corals reveals ocean currents have not fuelled rise in atmospheric carbon dioxide      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Pioneering analysis of deep-sea corals has overturned the idea that ocean currents contributed to increasing global levels of carbon dioxide in the air over the past 11,000 years.

Biology: Biochemistry Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Worse than diesel and gasoline? Bioenergy as bad as fossils if there is no pricing of CO2 emissions from land-use change, experts argue      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Demand for modern biofuels is expected to grow substantially in order to mitigate climate emissions. However, they are far from being a climate neutral alternative to gasoline and diesel. A new study shows that under current land-use regulations, CO2 emission factors for biofuels might even exceed those for fossil diesel combustion due to large-scale land clearing related to growing biomass. Before bioenergy can effectively contribute to achieving carbon neutrality, international agreements need to ensure the effective protection of forests and other natural lands by introducing carbon pricing, the expert team argues.

Biology: Marine Biology: Zoology Ecology: Animals Ecology: Sea Life Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General Environmental: Water Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Gray whales off Oregon Coast consume millions of microparticles per day      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers estimate that gray whales feeding off the Oregon Coast consume up to 21 million microparticles per day, a finding informed in part by feces from the whales.

Biology: Biochemistry Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry
Published

Investing in nature improves equity, boosts economy      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new study shows that current trends in environmental degradation will lead to large economic losses in the coming decades, hitting the poorest countries hardest. But there is hope: investing in nature can turn those losses into gains.

Environmental: General Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Severe Weather
Published

New nationwide modeling points to widespread racial disparities in urban heat stress      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Using a combination of satellite data and modeling to study the temperatures and humidity people might feel in urban areas, researchers have pinpointed who in the U.S. is most vulnerable to heat stress.

Environmental: General Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

21st century economic growth will be slower than we thought      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The global economy will grow slower in the 21st century than economists have expected, a finding that has implications for our ability to adapt to climate change in the coming decades, according to new research.

Anthropology: General Archaeology: General Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geography Paleontology: Fossils
Published

Lessons in sustainability, evolution and human adaptation -- courtesy of the Holocene      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The El Gigante rockshelter in western Honduras is among only a handful of archaeological sites in the Americas that contain well-preserved botanical remains spanning the last 11,000 years. Considered one of the most important archaeological sites discovered in Central America in the last 40 years, El Gigante was recently nominated as a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Environmental: General Environmental: Water Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geography
Published

New study reveals global reservoirs are becoming emptier      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Over the past two decades, global reservoirs have become increasingly empty despite an overall increase in total storage capacity due to the construction of new reservoirs. Researchers used a new approach with satellite data to estimate the storage variations of 7,245 global reservoirs from 1999 to 2018.

Energy: Alternative Fuels Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Severe Weather
Published

City buildings could blow air taxi future off course      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Air taxis may be coming to our cities in the near future, but a new study warns regulations will need to address dangerous wind gusts around city buildings and other urban infrastructure.

Environmental: General Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry Geoscience: Geography Geoscience: Volcanoes
Published

Effect of volcanic eruptions significantly underestimated in climate projections      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have found that the cooling effect that volcanic eruptions have on Earth's surface temperature is likely underestimated by a factor of two, and potentially as much as a factor of four, in standard climate projections.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: General Ecology: General Ecology: Nature Ecology: Research Environmental: Biodiversity Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Traditional methods cannot give us the insights we need to understand changing ecosystems      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

If we want to face up to the challenges posed by climate change and other global environmental changes, we need to bring complexity science into the mix with ecology and biodiversity conservation.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Energy: Alternative Fuels Energy: Technology Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Perovskite solar cells set new record for power conversion efficiency      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Perovskite solar cells have attained now attained the extremely high efficiency rate of 24.35% with an active area of 1 cm2. This ground-breaking achievement in maximizing power generation from next-generation renewable energy sources will be crucial to securing the world's energy future.

Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry
Published

Will engineered carbon removal solve the climate crisis?      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new study explored fairness and feasibility in deep mitigation pathways with novel carbon dioxide removal, taking into account institutional capacity to implement mitigation measures.

Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Potential financial losses from a renewable energy transition are concentrated among the wealthy      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

One common rationale against climate action is that the resulting fossil fuel investment losses could impact people's retirement or long-term savings. However, researchers report that the loss of fossil fuel assets would have a minimal impact on the general populace. In high-income countries, most financial losses would be borne by the most affluent individuals for whom the loss makes up a small percentage of their total wealth. In contrast, the financial loss of lower-income individuals would be minimal and feasible for governments to compensate.

Biology: Zoology Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: Extinction Ecology: Nature Environmental: Biodiversity Environmental: General Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Conservation policies risk damaging global biodiversity, researchers argue      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Rewilding, organic farming and the 'nature friendly farming' measures included in some government conservation policies risk worsening the global biodiversity crisis by reducing how much food is produced in a region, driving up food imports and increasing environmental damage overseas.

Biology: Biochemistry Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: General Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General Environmental: Water Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry
Published

Rain gardens could save salmon from toxic tire chemicals      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Specially designed gardens could reduce the amount of a toxic chemical associated with tires entering our waterways by more than 90 per cent, new research shows.