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Small-Scale Climate Solutions | Earth Wise

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In order to meet international climate targets, we need to cut greenhouse gas emissions in half over the next decade and reach net-zero by mid-century.  Achieving this will require unprecedented and rapid changes in how energy is supplied, distributed and used.

Researchers at several European universities collected data on a wide variety of energy technologies at different scales and tested how well they performed in accomplishing an accelerated low-carbon transformation. 

Large-scale, costly, non-divisible or so-called lumpy technologies, such as utility-scale generation, nuclear power, carbon capture and storage, high-speed transportation, and whole-building retrofits are often seen as the most effective way to achieve emission-reduction goals. A key finding of their study is that low-carbon technologies that are smaller scale and can be mass deployed are more likely to enable a faster transition to net-zero emissions.

So-called granular options include solar panels, electricity storage batteries, heat pumps, smart thermostats, electric bikes, and ride-share services.  These options scale not by becoming larger but by replicating.

Small-scale options are quicker to deploy, their technologies have shorter lifespans and are less complex, so innovations and improvements can be brought to market more rapidly.  They are also more widely accessible and help create more jobs, giving governments a sound basis for strengthening climate policies.

However, smaller-scale technologies are not a panacea.  There are no small-scale replacements for industrial plants and other kinds of major infrastructure, but in many different contexts, they can outperform larger-scale alternatives as a means of accelerating the low-carbon transformation.

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Smaller scale solutions needed for rapid progress towards emissions targets

Photo, posted April 8, 2019, courtesy of the City of St Pete via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

The Earth Itself Is Quieter | Earth Wise

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Our stories often discuss how human activities change the natural environment.  With most of us confined to our homes, the lack of human activities is having profound effects on the environment.  We are talking about some of these this week.

With about a third of the world’s population sheltering in place, our planet is much quieter these days.  It isn’t just our machines, vehicles, and factories that are making less noise.  The earth itself is quieter.  There has been a reduction in the earth’s seismic vibrations.

According to the journal Nature, various human-powered movements contribute to the persistent vibration of the earth’s crust.  Things like engines firing up in factories, trains pulling into stations, and trucks barreling down highways all make contributions to seismic activity.  Taken individually, such things are insignificant, but taken together, they produce a background of seismic noise that makes it difficult for seismologists to detect natural signals such as volcanic activity and earthquake aftershocks.

With much human activity on pause during the coronavirus outbreak, seismologists across the globe are seeing significant reductions in background seismic noise levels.

This respite in seismic noise, for as long as it lasts, represents an opportunity for scientists to better study the natural activity in the earth’s crust. Researchers studying the impact of ocean waves to predict volcanic activity and those who triangulate the location of earthquake epicenters may be able to make more sensitive measurements than under normal conditions.

There are very few positive things one can say about the coronavirus crisis, but it is providing opportunities to study and observe aspects of the natural world that are ordinarily drowned out by the bustle of humanity.

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Coronavirus lockdowns across the globe are actually causing the Earth to move less

Photo, posted March 9, 2020, courtesy of Jeremy Segrottvia Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Sea Turtles Prospering During The Shutdown | Earth Wise

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Our stories often discuss how human activities change the natural environment.  With most of us confined to our homes, the lack of human activities is having profound effects on the environment.  We are talking about some of these this week.

Seven different species of sea turtles are found in the world’s oceans and play important roles in marine ecosystems.  Over time, human activities have tipped the scales against the survival of these animals.  They have been hunted for their eggs, meat, skin, and shells and face habitat destruction and accidental capture in fishing gear.  Their nesting grounds in beaches are constantly disturbed and endangered by human activity.

With the beaches in Florida closed in the effort to stop the spread of coronavirus, there is less plastic waste, fewer people and vehicles, and fewer artificial lights on the beach that disorient emerging turtle hatchlings.  Because of all of these factors, sea turtles have been building their nests without disruptions.

In April, it was nesting season for leatherback turtles, the largest of all sea turtles. In May, loggerhead turtles arrive in Florida.  Later in the summer, green turtles will arrive.

It takes about 60 days for sea turtle eggs to incubate and to hatch.  During that period, lots of things can happen to a nest on an active beach – it can get trampled, people can dig it up, and artificial light can confuse the hatchlings as they try to find their way to the water.  With the current shutdown, it should be a productive nesting season for sea turtles.

On the other hand, when beaches reopen, there may well be a major influx of people flocking to the beach because they have been stuck indoors for an extended period of time.

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Sea turtles are thriving as coronavirus lockdown empties Florida beaches

Photo, posted August 9, 2016, courtesy of Florida Fish and Wildlife via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

The Lockdown Cleans Up Indian Air | Earth Wise

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Our stories often discuss how human activities change the natural environment.  With most of us confined to our homes, the lack of human activities is having profound effects on the environment.  We are talking about some of these this week.

India suffers from some of the worst air pollution in the world.  Of the most polluted cities in the world, 21 out of 30 were in India in 2019.  According to World Health Organization standards, at least 140 million people in India breathe air containing 10 times or more greater levels than the safe limit for pollutants.  Air pollution contributes to the premature death of 2 million Indians every year.

Half of India’s air pollution comes from industry, 27% from vehicles, and 17% from crop burning.  Crop burning is prevalent because it is much cheaper than mechanical tilling after the harvest.

On March 25, the Indian government placed its 1.3 billion citizens under a strict lockdown to reduce the spread of COVID-19.   The country-wide mandate decreased activity at factories and drastically reduced car, bus, truck, and airplane traffic.

Within one week, NASA satellite sensor observed aerosol levels at a 20-year low for this time of year in northern India.  Aerosols are tiny solid and liquid particles suspended in the air that reduce visibility and can damage the human lungs and heart.  Some aerosols have natural sources, such as dust storms, volcanic eruptions, and forest fires.  But many come from human activities such as the burning of fossil fuels and croplands.  Scientists expected to see changes in atmospheric conditions during the Indian lockdown, but the current changes are dramatic.  They also present a unique opportunity to separate how natural and human sources of aerosols affect the atmosphere.

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Airborne Particle Levels Plummet in Northern India

Photo, posted April 29, 2020, courtesy of Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Wildlife Reclaims Yosemite National Park | Earth Wise

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Our stories often discuss how human activities change the natural environment.  With most of us confined to our homes, the lack of human activities is having profound effects on the environment.  We are talking about some of these this week.

Yosemite National park is normally awash in humanity – there were over 300,000 visitors in April of 2019 and typically 4 million people visit each year.  But as of March 20, the park was closed to tourists to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.  Only a skeleton crew of employees remains in the park.

Without all the people, wildlife is coming out of hiding.  It did so in previous park closures during government shutdowns, but those closures were pretty short.  This one is expected to be the longest on record.

The bear population within the park has quadrupled and many larger animals – such as bobcats and coyotes – are congregating outside of cabins and other buildings and prowling empty roads and walkways instead of hanging back at the edges of human settlements. 

In addition, the air at Yosemite is cleaner due to the lack of exhaust and diesel, and Yosemite Valley is nearly silent, apart from natural sounds from the river and the wind.  According to some observers, the park’s current condition is probably similar to what visitors in the 19th century witnessed. 

The few park employees sheltering in place are taking advantage of the virtually unimpeded natural amenities of the park.  Many are hiking to its lakes and waterfalls, enjoying trails that are empty apart from animals.  As some of the people staying in the park have noted, one could not ask for a better place to be isolated.

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Coyotes, bobcats and bears: Wildlife is reclaiming Yosemite National Park

Photo, posted October 30, 2019, courtesy of Ania Mendrek via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Coronavirus Shutdowns And The Environment | Earth Wise

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Our stories often discuss how human activities change the natural environment.  With most of us confined to our homes, the lack of human activities is having profound effects on the environment.  We are talking about some of these this week.

The COVID-19 pandemic is a global catastrophe, but it has ironically been a boon for the environment.  By taking billions of people off the streets around the globe and slashing all forms of travel, the global environment has seen dramatic changes.

Sea turtles in many countries are prospering by not having to compete with humans for precious beach space.  Animals everywhere have more freedom to roam and are taking advantage of the opportunity. The Himalayas are visible from parts of India for the first time in decades.

Satellite imagery has shown dramatic drops in nitrogen dioxide emissions in China, where pollution from vehicles is a serious public health problem.  Similar reductions in air pollution are evident in India, Italy and even in Los Angeles.  The city that is notorious for its smog suddenly has pristine air.

In Venice, water in the canals has become clear in the absence of heavy boat traffic stirring up sediments from the bottom.  Wildlife that normally is invisible such as jellyfish are being spotted.

Not all the changes to animal behavior are desirable.  Some wildlife that have become dependent on humans as a source of food are becoming aggressive and are taking to the streets of cities to look for food.  Monkeys in Thailand are mobbing towns and brawling, hunting for things to eat.  Rats in New York City are fighting over suddenly meager food supplies.

In many ways, the natural world is reacting to much of humanity sheltering in place.

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On Earth Day 2020, coronavirus shutdowns are a gift to the environment

Photo, posted April 2, 2020, courtesy of Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Too Many Bison | Earth Wise

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The population of large herbivores in Yellowstone National Park has undergone many dramatic changes over the course of time.  The numbers of both the iconic Rocky Mountain elk and bison have gone up and down as a result of human interactions.

Bison, of course, once were a dominant species from east of the Appalachians to west of the Rocky Mountains, with most of an estimated 30 million living on the Great Plains.  As the west was settled, bison populations plummeted and by the late 1800s, they were nearly extinct.

When Yellowstone was established, there were exactly 22 bison in the park.  By 1925, there were more than 750 in the park and culling of the herd in the park’s Lamar Valley was practiced for the next four decades.

The elimination of predators like grey wolves and cougars in the early 1900s caused both elk and bison populations to mushroom and both underwent culling.  When culling was ended in 1968, there were 4,000 elk and 100 bison.  Within 20 years, those numbers were 20,000 and 1,000.   Reintroducing wolves and cougars reduced the elk population to about 5,000, but bison numbers have continued to grow, now reaching about 4,000.

While the long-term recovery of the Yellowstone bison herd is a major conservation success story, the fact is that bison are powerful ecosystem engineers.  Large numbers of them disrupt species distribution across scrub steppe and grasslands because of what they eat, trample, and rub their horns and bodies on.  They have a tremendous capacity to limit the structure and composition of ecosystems.

Park administrators have complicated management decisions to make to take into account the often wide range of ecological effects that abundant large herbivores can have on ecosystems.

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Bison in northern Yellowstone proving to be too much of a good thing

Photo, posted August 10, 2016, courtesy of Brian Gratwicke via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Plants Paying For Biofuels | Earth Wise

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Biofuels are an important element in broader strategies to replace petroleum in transportation fuels like gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel.  The idea is that biofuels recycle carbon by getting it from growing plants rather than from fossil sources.  The biggest problem with biofuels is that they cost more than conventional petroleum fuels, so there is economic incentive to keep burning the fossil fuels.

One strategy to make biofuels cost competitive is to have the plants provide additional economic benefits beyond being a feedstock for fuel.  This in principle can be done by engineering plants to produce valuable chemical compounds, or bioproducts, as they grow.  Bioproducts include such things as flavoring agents and fragrances as well as biodegradable plastic.  These bioproducts can be extracted from the plants and then the remaining plant material can be converted to fuel. 

Researchers at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory recently published a study to determine what quantities of bioproducts plants need to produce to result in cost-effective biofuel production.

The study looked at a compound called limonene, which is used for flavoring and fragrance.  They calculated that if this compound was accumulated at 0.6% of the biomass dry weight, it would offer net economic benefits to biorefineries.  This corresponds to recovering 130 pounds of limonene from 10 tons of sorghum on an acre of land.

Such quantities are completely practical but, on the other hand, none of these substances are needed in huge quantities. Just six refineries could supply the world with limonene.  So, fuel crops would need to be engineered to produce a broad range of bioproducts to enable a viable cost-effective biofuel industry.

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Making Biofuels Cheaper by Putting Plants to Work

Photo, posted September 28, 2019, courtesy of Michele Dorsey Walfred via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Conservation In Vermont | Earth Wise

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In recent times, Vermont and neighboring states have been losing forest land to development at a rate of almost 1,500 acres per year.  With forest fragmentation gaining ground across New England, conserving land for future generations of people, wildlife, and plants has become both increasingly important and increasingly difficult.

According to a new study published by researchers at the University of Vermont, the state has already protected a third of the highest priority targeted lands needed to protect and connect valuable wildlife habitats and corridors.  The protected lands amount to 1.3 million acres.

Most of the currently conserved lands are forested.  However, there are high-priority targeted surface water and riparian areas – ponds, rivers, shorelines, and wetlands – and not nearly enough of these have been protected.  (Many animals require zones along waterways in which to travel between the habitats they need to survive).

The state of Vermont and a number of partners have laid out a comprehensive and thoughtful vision that would ensure that Vermont remains a good place for all forms of life in the future.  The new study provides a crucial benchmark of current levels of forest protection to help prioritize future conservation actions. 

Three groups dominate in responsibility for the state’s protected lands:  the federal government, the state government, and private non-profit organizations.  (Each of these account for roughly a third of existing protected lands).

Going forward, Vermont’s nonprofits will play an increasingly important role in land conservation, especially in continuing to protect those areas that are rich with species diversity.  Nonprofits are engaging more and more deeply in restoring wetlands that were previously degraded, planting new forests along river shores, and protecting unique natural communities while also protecting working forests and farmland.

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Vermont Has Conserved One Third of the Land Needed for an Ecologically Functional Future

Photo, posted June 15, 2014, courtesy of Wesley Carr via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Safer Ways To Be Blue | Earth Wise

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Creating blue fabric has always been desirable for people.  It has never been easy, but the original way to do it – by using indigo from plants – has been around for 6,000 years.  Natural indigo is a rare commodity, often referred to as blue gold.  In the 19th century, synthetic indigo was developed and ultimately replaced the natural substance.

Synthetic indigo dye is not an environmentally friendly substance.  In order to get it to adhere to fabrics, substances called mordants are required.  These are commonly made from metals like chromium and aluminum, are generally toxic, and kill off plants exposed to factory wastewater, destroy ecosystems, and poison drinking water.   The dye itself is slow to decompose and is bad for the environment. 

Recently, an organic chemist in Brazil named Erick Bastos has figured out a new way to produce blue dye using, of all things, a pigment from beets.  By extracting the pigment and tweaking its molecular pattern, he has managed to transform the red color of the pigment to a brilliant blue.

Beet roots contain pigments called betalains and just a tiny amount of beetroot juice can render a lot of dye.  By mixing these pigments with a couple of ingredients, a chemical reaction occurred, and the color transformed from red, to yellow, then green, and finally blue.

Testing so far on human liver cells, retinal cells, and developing zebrafish has revealed no toxicity.  The results suggest that the new dye – dubbed BeetBlue – is safe.  Further testing is needed to know if it is truly safe and whether it will last in the wash.  Meanwhile, Professor Bastos is not patenting the dye and hopes it will provide a better way to be blue.

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How Do You Make a Less Toxic Blue Dye? Start With Red Beets

Photo, posted November 7, 2005, courtesy of Lain Buchanan via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

A Giant Marine Preserve | Earth Wise

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The Seychelles islands are located east of Kenya, near the equator.  Its beautiful beaches, virgin jungles, thriving coral reefs, and UNESCO-listed nature reserves are among the many attractions of the archipelago’s 115 islands.  The larger inner islands are quite developed for tourists, studded with many luxurious five-star resorts.  The natural wonders of the Seychelles are clearly its prime asset.

Given this, the Seychelles have now established 154,000 square miles of marine protected areas, fulfilling a pledge to protect nearly a third of its vast territorial waters.  This is an area twice the size of Great Britain.

About half of the newly protected areas will be “no-take zones” in which economic activity such as fishing and mining will be prohibited.  Only limited economic activities will be permitted in the other half of the protected areas.

The President of the Seychelles signed the decree establishing the marine reserve in mid-March.  The reserve will help protect the nation’s fisheries resources and safeguard a host of species including endangered sea turtles, sharks, and the Indian Ocean’s last remaining population of dugongs, which are marine mammals similar to manatees.

The funding for managing and protecting the new marine reserves will come from what is termed a debt-for-nature deal.  It is an agreement that was worked out with the help of The Nature Conservancy that allows the country to restructure nearly $22 million in foreign debt in exchange for protecting marine resources and enacting climate adaptation measures.

This major expansion of the Seychelles’ marine protected area is a major step in the conservation of the archipelago’s biodiversity.  The success of that conservation will ultimately depend upon enforcement, public-private partnerships, and innovative management.

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Seychelles Creates a Marine Reserve Twice the Size of Great Britain

Photo, posted October 22, 2017, courtesy of Falco Ermet via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Antarctica’s Hot Summer | Earth Wise

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The Southern Hemisphere’s recent summer brought drought, heatwaves and bush-fires that ravaged Australia.  At the same time, Antarctica experienced a summer of extreme weather.

In East Antarctica, the Casey research station in the Australian Antarctic Territory had its first heatwave event, recording extreme maximum and minimum temperatures over three consecutive days in January.  Record high temperatures were also reported at bases on the Antarctic Peninsula.

The Casey station recorded a record high maximum temperature of 49 degrees Fahrenheit and a record overnight low of 36 degrees.  In February, Brazilian scientists reported a high temperature of 69 degrees at Marambio, an all-time record for Antarctica.

Ecologists say that the hot summer would most likely lead to long-term disruption of local populations, communities, and the broader ecosystem.  That disruption could be both positive and negative.

Most life in Antarctica exists in small ice-free oases and depends on melting snow and ice for a water supply.  Melt water from the warming temperatures will lead to increased growth and reproduction of mosses, lichens, microbes and invertebrates.

However, excessive flooding can dislodge plants and alter the composition of communities of invertebrates and microbial mats. If the ice completely melts early in the season, then ecosystems will suffer drought for the rest of the season.

Extreme events often have impacts for years after the event.  There will be long-term studies of the areas affected by the recent Antarctic heat wave. Such extreme events associated with global climate change are predicted to increase in frequency and impact, and even the most remote areas of the planet are not immune to them.

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Antarctica’s summer of extreme heat

Photo, posted January 30, 2014, courtesy of Andreas Kambanis via Flickr

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

American Robins And Climate Change | Earth Wise

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American robins are migratory songbirds that can be found throughout much of North America.  Named after European robins because of their reddish-orange breast, American robins are often found hopping across lawns and nesting on porches.  Their rich caroling is among the first pre-dawn bird songs heard in spring and summer.  

While some overwinter in northern parts of the United States and southern Canada, most American robins migrate south to overwinter in places like Florida and the Gulf Coast, as well as central Mexico and the Pacific Coast.  They typically head south by the end of August and return north sometime between February and March to their breeding grounds in Canada and Alaska.  They spend their short time there trying to find a mate, build a nest, raise a family, and consume enough food to sustain themselves on their long return journey south.

But climate change is making these seasonal rhythms less predictable.  According to a new study recently published in the journal Environmental Research Letters, American robin migration is kicking off earlier by about five days each decade.  The birds now migrate 12 days earlier than they did in 1994.  

For 25 years, researchers at Canada’s Slave Lake have been recording the timing of American robin spring migration.  They attached GPS devices to 55 robins, tracking their movements from April through June. The researchers linked the birds’ movement with weather data, including air temperature, snow depth, wind speed, and precipitation.  The results showed that robins start migrating north earlier when winters are warm and dry. 

Understanding the influence over the timing of migratory events is important because the timing of migration can influence reproductive success.

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A Migration Mystery

American robins now migrate 12 days earlier than in 1994

Photo, posted January 1, 2020, courtesy of Becky Matsubara via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

More Extreme Wildfire Seasons | Earth Wise

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According to a new study led by researchers at Stanford University, autumn in California feels more like summer now as a result of climate change, and this hotter and drier weather increases the risk of longer and more dangerous wildfire seasons.

The research team, whose work was recently published in the journal Environmental Research Letters, found that the frequency of extreme fire weather conditions in the fall in California has doubled since the early 1980s.  Average temperatures during the season have increased by more than 2 degrees Fahrenheit, and rainfall has fallen by approximately 30%.  The most pronounced warming has occurred in the late summer and early fall.  That finding means that tinder-dry conditions coincide with the strong “Diablo” and “Santa Ana” winds that are typical in California at this time of year.     

In recent years, these conditions have fed large and fast-moving wildfires across California.  The state’s two largest wildfires, two most destructive wildfires, and the most deadly wildfire all occurred during 2017 and 2018, resulting in more than 150 deaths and $50 billion in damage.

Because summertime has typically been peak fire season, the recent spate of autumn fires is putting a strain on firefighting resources and funding.  The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic could further strain emergency resources.  Since fire-prone regions have historically shared  wildfire-fighting resources throughout the year, the consequences of California’s extended wildfire season could have a global impact.  (For example, California’s recent autumn wildfires have coincided with the beginning of wildfires in Australia). 

The researchers highlight some opportunities to manage the intensifying wildfire risk in California, including limiting the trajectory of global warming in keeping with the targets identified in the United Nations’ Paris agreement.

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Researchers forecast longer, more extreme wildfire seasons

Photo, posted September 12, 2019, courtesy of the California National Guard via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Boutique Hotels For Birds | Earth Wise

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The changing Arctic climate has had a drastic effect on its seabirds.  In fact, seabirds worldwide are in crisis, with global populations plummeting nearly 70% over the past 70 years as a result of climate change, over-fishing, habitat loss, and other human impacts on their environment.

Above the Arctic circle in Norway, seabird behavior has changed dramatically.  Black-legged kittiwakes – which are the most seafaring member of the gull family – used to nest in cliffs over the ocean and seldom ventured inland.  But in recent years, that has changed.  Because of a warming ocean, increased storminess and other changes that are decimating chick populations in their normal habitat, the birds have been setting up housekeeping in places like shopping centers and office buildings in Tromsø and other towns along Norway’s north coast.

Tromsø, Hammerfest and other towns at the very north end of Norway have become very popular with tourists seeking the Northern Lights and wanting to see glaciers before they disappear.  The booming tourism has been put on hold for the moment as it has elsewhere, but when it returns, the regions growing hotels and shopping areas are facing a problem.

The birds taking up residence on these buildings are unpleasant neighbors.  They are especially noisy during the breeding season and people are having to put up nets or spikes on buildings to discourage the kittiwakes from settling there.

Local ecologists are now building boutique hotels just for kittiwakes. Using abandoned buildings on piers, they are adding ledges for nesting, materials for nest-building, and electronic speakers that croon kittiwake songs.  The hope is that the birds will stay in their own hotels and leave the other ones for the human tourists.

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Norwegians are building boutique hotels for threatened Arctic birds

Photo, posted April 14, 2018, courtesy of Charlie Jackson via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Recycling Coal Plants | Earth Wise

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Over 300 coal-fired power plants in the US have stopping burning coal over the past decade.  Only about 224 plants still produce power by burning coal.  As a result, a new sort of recycling industry is taking shape:  repurposing of coal plants.

Across the country, utilities are finding ways to redevelop these facilities.  Some are industrial in nature and others a far cry from their original purpose.

In January, Beloit College in Wisconsin opened a student union and recreation center in what used to be an Alliant Energy coal-fired power plant.  On the southern coast of Massachusetts, a shuttered 1,600 MW coal plant is being demolished to make way for a logistical port and support center for a planned wind farm 35 miles off shore.

In Independence, Missouri, the city is considering competing plans to recycle the Blue Valley Power plant.  It may become a 50 MW battery storage facility, or possibly a biofuel plant.

Another popular reuse strategy is data centers.  Data centers use tremendous amounts of power and therefore can make use of the former coal plants’ capacity to handle large amounts of electricity.

Retired coal-fired plants have built-in infrastructure and components that can be repurposed for new industry.  The plants typically have access to rail, ports and waterways, as well as proximity to good highway transportation.  The electrical grids to which they are connected can be reused for solar or wind farms at the site.

Given that coal plants are continuing to close, the potential to redevelop them in various ways continues to grow as well.   There is a surge in interest in coal plant redevelopment because these facilities are assets of value.

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Coal-fired power plants finding new uses as data centers, clean energy hubs

Photo, posted January 10, 2017, courtesy of Rusty Clark via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

A Hidden Source Of Arctic Carbon | Earth Wise

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Researchers from the University of Texas at Austin, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and Florida State University have published a paper presenting evidence of significant and previously undetected concentrations and fluxes of dissolved organic matter entering Arctic coastal waters.  The source of the organic matter is groundwater flow atop the frozen permafrost.  The groundwater moves from land to sea unseen, but the new research reveals that it carries significant concentrations of carbon and other nutrients to Arctic coastal food webs.

Globally, groundwater is important for delivering carbon and other nutrients to oceans, but in the Arctic, where much water is trapped in the permafrost, its role was thought to be minimal.  But the new research reveals that groundwater may be contributing an amount of dissolved organic matter to the Alaskan Beaufort Sea that is comparable to what comes from neighboring rivers during the summer.

The researchers found that shallow groundwater flows beneath the surface and picks up new, young organic carbon and nitrogen, but it also mixes with layers of deeper soils and thawing permafrost, picking up and transporting century-to-millennia old organic carbon and nitrogen.  This material is unique because it is directly transported to the ocean without seeing or being photodegraded by sunlight and may be valuable as a food source to bacteria and higher organisms that live in Arctic coastal waters.

The study concluded that the supply of leachable organic carbon from groundwater amounts to as much as 70% of the dissolved organic matter that enters the Beaufort Sea from rivers during the summer.  The role that groundwater inputs play in Arctic coastal ecosystems will be an area of active research for years to come.

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Hidden Source of Carbon Found at the Arctic Coast

Photo, posted June 14, 2015, courtesy of Eugen Marculesco via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Coronavirus And European Energy | Earth Wise

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As people all over the world shelter in place and much ordinary commerce and other activities have ground to a halt, there have been big changes in energy usage.   With production halted, offices shut down, schools closed, and public transport operated on reduced timetables, the demand for energy has decreased dramatically.

In Europe, as a result of all this, during the first quarter of this year, renewables’ share of total energy production was greater than 60%.  Wind farms provided more than 40% of the renewables’ share of total electricity generation.   During February, Denmark, Germany and Ireland saw nearly 50% of their electricity demand met with wind power.  Hydroelectric power was the second largest source of renewable energy during the first quarter, with Norway providing the largest share of this.  In contrast, generation from nuclear plants was at its lowest first quarter figure for the past five years.

The large shift to renewable generation was in great part due to the overall reduction in demand.  This impacts nuclear and fossil-fuel generation much more than renewables because those plants can be throttled back or shut down entirely so as not to needlessly consume costly fuels.   Generation that runs on sunlight, wind, or flowing water does not require fuel expenses, so it makes sense to prefer them when demand is reduced.

The reduction in demand has in turn had a major effect on fuel costs as oil reached low prices that haven’t been seen in years.

The decline in demand and fuel prices and the enhanced role of renewables are expected to continue in the current quarter as the timetable for renewed economic activity remains unknown.

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Renewables achieve clean energy record as COVID-19 hits demand

Photo, posted June 25, 2010, courtesy of Martin Abegglen via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Natural Habitats And Strawberry Farms | Earth Wise

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According to a new study led by researchers from the University of California – Davis, conserving natural habitat around strawberry fields can protect farmers’ yields, their bottom line, and the environment.  The study also suggests that conserving natural habitat in this way has no detectable threat to food safety. 

In this study, which was recently published in the journal Ecological Applications, the research team conducted surveys and experiments at 20 strawberry farms along California’s Central Coast.  This region is responsible for 43% of the nation’s strawberry production. 

The researchers found that strawberry farmers were better off with natural habitat, like forests, grasslands, wetlands, and shrubs, around their farms than without it.  According to the study’s models, adding natural habitat can reduce crop damage costs by 23%.  Removing natural habitat can increase costs by as much as 76%. 

Importantly, the strawberry farms with natural habitat surrounding them showed no signs of increased fecal contamination.  While bird feces were regularly encountered on the ground, only 2 of 10,000 strawberries examined show signs of direct fecal contamination.  Those contaminated berries would be discarded during the hand-harvesting process.   

These findings run contradictory to current best practice recommendations that support natural habitat removal around strawberry farms in order to decrease bird fecal contamination and crop damage.  These food safety requirements were a consequence of the deadly outbreak of E. coli in 2006, which was traced back to spinach grown in this region.   

It seems like our agricultural landscapes can both support and benefit from biodiversity. 

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Natural habitat around farms a win for strawberry growers, birds and consumers

Photo, posted June 16, 2011, courtesy of the USDA via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Tropical Forests As Carbon Sinks | Earth Wise

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Tropical forests are an important part of the global carbon cycle because they take up and store large amounts of carbon dioxide.  Because of this, deforestation in the Amazon and other tropical forests is a major contributor to the growing CO2 levels in the atmosphere.

Therefore, climate models need to accurately take into account the ability of tropical forests to sequester carbon.  It turns out that this is not such a simple matter.  A new study by the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis sought to determine how much detail about tropical forests is needed in order to make valid assumptions about the strength of forest carbon sinks.

They looked at the role of both biotic factors – differences between plant species that are responsible for capturing more or less carbon from the atmosphere – and abiotic factors – local environmental factors like soil properties that also influence carbon sink strength.

It is generally assumed that more diverse forest communities capture available resources more efficiently as a result of complementary characteristics and preferences of certain species to specific conditions.  Factors like soil texture and chemistry are also important.  In general, the results show that abiotic and biotic factors interact with one another to determine how much carbon can be stored by the ecosystem.

Traditional projections of the role of tropical forests in storing carbon mostly rely on remote sensing techniques that integrate over large spatial areas.  The new study shows that there can be large differences in the carbon storing ability of tropical forests and that more detailed models are needed to produce more accurate projections.

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Shedding light on how much carbon tropical forests can absorb

Photo, posted July 17, 2014, courtesy of Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

WAMC Northeast Public Radio

WAMC/Northeast Public Radio is a regional public radio network serving parts of seven northeastern states (more...)