A look at our changing environment.
Worldwide, people are producing more food than ever, but most of that production is concentrated into only a handful of places. For example, fully one third of the world’s wheat and barley exports come from Ukraine and Russia. Across the globe, several major crop-growing regions, including some in the United States, are heading towards sharp […]
The majority of us spend about 80% of our time indoors. The quality of the air that we breathe depends on the age and type of building we occupy along with any sources of indoor pollution that may exist and, ultimately, the quality of the air outdoors. The HVAC used to heat, ventilate, and cool […]
More than 30% of the world’s food is lost after it has been harvested. That’s enough to feed more than a billion people. Much of that loss is fruits and vegetables that go bad before they can be eaten. Refrigeration is the most common way to preserve foods, but the energy and infrastructure required is […]
Nuclear power has been around since the 1950s, but it has fallen out of favor in recent decades, in part due to a couple of traumatic disasters at nuclear power plants. In fact, only two new nuclear power plants have been built in the US in the past 30 years, and they took a very […]
As global temperatures continue to rise and ecosystems shift, animals are left with limited options. They must either adjust to the changing conditions in their habitats or relocate to cooler environments. For many species, neither choice is easy – or sometimes even possible. Ecologists had long assumed birds were among the most adaptable species in […]
Sea Urchins are real troublemakers. On the West Coast, the sea urchin population exploded when the sunflower sea stars that eat them were decimated by a wasting disease. Urchins devour kelp and they ate up 96% of the region’s kelp forests. Kelp forests serve as shelter and food for a vast array of marine life […]
Air pollution is a problem for most of the world’s cities. Many cities in India and China continue to face major public health crises due to their polluted air. American cities also don’t escape from polluted air. Californian cities still struggle with smog despite decades of effort to reduce it. But one major city that […]
The world lost a record amount of forests last year. The biggest factor for the unprecedented losses were wildfires that raged around the world. According to the annual update by the University of Maryland and the World Resources Institute, pristine rainforests alone lost 17 million acres, which was nearly twice as much as in the […]
Climate science is not popular with the current administration. Phrases like “climate crisis”, “clean energy”, and “climate science” itself are prohibited from websites, reports, regulations, and other communications by government employees and federal funding recipients. Once again, the United States is turning away from climate mitigation efforts and will have a drastically reduced ability to […]
Researchers estimate that hundreds of millions of birds die hitting buildings every year in the United States. Striking buildings is believed to be one of the major factors behind the nearly 30% decline in North American bird populations since 1970. Chicago is one of the most dangerous cities for migrating birds based on its location […]
As the world struggles to implement technologies and find the political will to reduce carbon emissions, there are also ongoing efforts to find ways to capture carbon from emitting sources and from the atmosphere itself. After capturing carbon dioxide, there is then the need to safely store it or make use of it. Current methods […]
A substantial amount of corn is grown in this country for the purpose of producing ethanol. The value of doing so is debatable for many reasons. Nevertheless, the majority of the corn crop is grown for food. But along with all that corn, there is corn stover. Stover is the dried stalks, leaves, and other […]
Globally, coastal areas are being squeezed between rising seas on one side and human development on the other. The average distance from the high waterline to the first built-up area with human structures or paved roads is less than 400 yards around the world. The narrower a coast, the sooner rising sea levels cause problems. […]
Concrete is the most widely used building material on Earth. It has a dangerous and costly flaw: it cracks easily. Cracks in concrete can lead to inconvenient damage or to catastrophic structural failures such as collapses of buildings, bridges, or highways. Concrete is made by mixing crushed stone and sand with powdered clay and limestone […]
A new study by the Columbia University Climate School has found that all of the 28 most populous cities in the United States are sinking to some extent. This phenomenon of subsidence is not just taking place in cities on the coast, where relative sea level is an issue, but also in cities in the […]
Floating photovoltaic systems – known as floatovoltaics – are becoming increasingly popular. These are arrays of solar panels installed over artificial water bodies such as irrigation ponds, wastewater treatment plants, and reservoirs. These projects maximize the space for producing clean energy while not taking up natural lands. Wherever there are bodies of water, there are […]
Carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxides are two of the most problematic human-generated air pollutants that negatively impact air quality, the climate, and human health. Satellites are an important tool for monitoring emissions of these pollutants, but they have limitations. For the most part, satellites have limited spatial resolution, meaning that they can’t reliably narrow down […]
Vertical farming has been increasingly used for leafy greens like lettuce and kale, as well as for herbs and a few fruits like strawberries and tomatoes. A recent study by the Technical University of Munich has investigated the use of vertical farming for a much broader range of foods. The study looked at the positive […]
After hiding underground for the last 17 years, billions of cicadas are taking to the skies this summer. This batch of insects, known as Brood XIV, will cover more of the U.S. than any other 17-year brood. New York and at least 13 other states – Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, […]
In April, the Trump Administration issued a stop order for the Empire Wind offshore wind project in New York, pushing the $5 billion project to the brink of collapse. The project is being built by the giant Norwegian energy company Equinor. When completed, the wind farm is expected to deliver enough electricity to power 500,000 […]