Wildlife and Habitat
Saving the bees
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In recent years, bee populations have been shrinking at an alarming rate. According to the Department of Agriculture, managed honeybee colonies lost almost a quarter of their numbers over the past winter alone. These rapid declines in bees and other pollinators in the United States threaten billions of dollars in crops. [Read more…] about Saving the bees
The warm Pacific caused our weird winter
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Last winter was one of the coldest on record in the American Midwest. Northeastern cities were buried in snow. Meteorologists kept talking about the “polar vortex”. And meanwhile, western states were unseasonably warm and were stricken by drought. By all accounts, it was a weird winter. [Read more…] about The warm Pacific caused our weird winter
Cleaning up with fungus
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Dealing with contaminated soils in industrial and former industrial sites is a continuing problem for society. People employ a variety of methods for removing or remediating persistent organic chemicals in these places. Techniques such as capping, excavation, and even incineration have all been used at one point or another. All the methods have their problems and most are quite expensive. [Read more…] about Cleaning up with fungus
Ecosystems need predators
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Salt marshes are extremely important ecosystems. They shield coasts from flooding, they remove pollutants from water, and they are the baby nurseries for many kinds of fish. In recent years, salt marshes in places like the coastlines of New England have been dying off. [Read more…] about Ecosystems need predators
Seashells
Whether you’re a collector or just a casual beachgoer, you’ve probably bent to pick up a seashell that caught your eye. Children scour the beach for unique shells, and vacationers pocket them as mementos of their travels. Few things seem more innocent, but what is the impact of all those disappearing shells? [Read more…] about Seashells
Keeping a pulse on the Hudson River
Technology has transformed our ability to understand rivers. Take the Cary Institute’s longstanding scientific program on the Hudson River. In the past, to get measurements on environmental conditions, we relied on researchers sampling in boats. Not only is this expensive and time consuming– it isn’t feasible in bad weather. [Read more…] about Keeping a pulse on the Hudson River
Honeybees and environmental health
There are many ways to evaluate the health of a landscape. A new study suggests one way may be to listen to dancing honeybees. Of course, the bees aren’t dancing because they’re happy– rather, they use their signature waggle dance as a way to communicate to one another where the best food can be found. [Read more…] about Honeybees and environmental health
New EPA standards benefit our health
The Environmental Protection Agency recently announced a plan to significantly reduce carbon dioxide emissions from power plants by the year 2030. This is excellent news for the environment, as power plant emissions cause global warming, acid rain, mercury poisoning in fish and wildlife, and ozone damage to crops and trees. [Read more…] about New EPA standards benefit our health
Wildlife is where you find it
I was in New York City last week, hustling with the multitudes down Park Avenue in Midtown along the concrete walks that pass by J.P. Morgan-Chase, Deutsche Bank, and other giants of the financial world. Waiting for the crossing light at 48th street, I noticed a young woman on the opposite corner who was staring intently at a sign post. Not the sign, but the sign post. [Read more…] about Wildlife is where you find it
Summertime ozone
Ozone is a puzzling air pollutant. Human activities are not direct sources of a lot of ozone, but ozone concentrations increase to markedly unhealthy levels in many areas during the summer. About 30 years ago, atmospheric chemists solved this mystery. [Read more…] about Summertime ozone
The rising seas
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Melting polar ice and rising sea levels are some of the most obvious results of the ongoing global warming of our planet. Politicians may argue about whether the warming we are experiencing is caused by humans, but all agree that our planet has warmed during the past couple of hundred years. [Read more…] about The rising seas
Microbeads
When we think about protecting our waterways from plastic pollution, we think of recycling water bottles or moving toward canvas grocery bags. But what about the plastics we can’t see? [Read more…] about Microbeads
New EPA carbon dioxide standards
In a big win for the environment, the Environmental Protection Agency recently released a plan to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. Specifically, it calls for existing power plants to cut their emissions to 30 percent below 2005 levels by the year 2030.
Sunken shipping containers
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Shipping containers on cargo vessels – technically called intermodal containers – have been around since the 1950s. These large steel boxes, some of which are over fifty feet long, are used to carry thousands of goods around the world. [Read more…] about Sunken shipping containers
A window of opportunity
Much has been written about collisions of birds with radio-towers and tall buildings, especially during migration. Now a new study documents another large source of bird mortality—collisions with window glass in residential and low-rise buildings. [Read more…] about A window of opportunity
Large wildlife loss
The decline of large mammals – like elephants and giraffes – is problematic for a number of reasons. Their loss disturbs ecosystems, not to mention the moral implications of allowing some of the most majestic creatures on Earth to approach extinction. But new research suggests another reason we should worry about the loss of large wildlife. [Read more…] about Large wildlife loss
The referee called “foul”
As a child, I remember looking with some fascination at barnacles on the piers in a Cape Cod harbor, and reading about how their growth on the bottoms of boats so slowed their progress in the water that dry-docking for barnacle removal was a common practice. Growths of marine organisms on hard surfaces fall under the general term biofouling. [Read more…] about The referee called “foul”
Our leaky planet
Petroleum deposits formed millions of years ago, when organic-rich sediments were buried and transformed under heat and pressure deep in the Earth’s crust. Most deposits remain deep in the Earth, making it expensive to drill for oil and gas. However, geologic uplift occasionally brings deposits back near the Earth’s surface. [Read more…] about Our leaky planet
Beefalo
