Air pollution is dangerously high around schools near some U.S. industrial plants, according to a recent study involving researchers from the University of Maryland and Johns Hopkins University.
A Georgia Tech City and Regional Planning study on climate change, published February 10, 2009 online by Environmental Science and Technology, shows that "smart growth" combined with the use of hybrid vehicle technology could reduce cities' carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions "“ the principal driver of global warming "“ significantly by 2050.
"As the two versions of the bill move to conference committee, we hope Congressional negotiators maintain the House bill's strong investments in education, clean energy and America's natural resources - all proven ways to stimulate shovel-ready projects and rapidly create jobs," said NWF's Adam Kolton.
For the first time, farmers have data that tracks at the county level on-site and off-site energy use and carbon dioxide emissions associated with growing crops in the United States.
A study of coarse and fine particulate matter (PM) generated by the California wildfires of 2008 suggests a toxicity level greater than that of an equivalent dose of PM in ambient air, as reported in the January 2009 issue of Environmental Health Perspectives. The study adds to growing literature supporting source and component specific differences in toxicity of pollutant particles of a given size, and challenges regulators to consider toxicity as well as mass or size when regulating particle pollution.
Dalhousie University is celebrating the recent launch of the NSERC Canadian Healthy Oceans Network (CHONe). CHONe will bring together Canada's marine science capacities and provide a baseline of information against which future changes in the oceans can be monitored and understood.
University of Wyoming researchers are seeking volunteers to assist with an air quality monitoring study that will record ozone levels around Pinedale and at various sites in the Upper Green River Basin.
Steve Ross, a research associate professor at the University of North Carolina Wilmington's Center for Marine Science is available to discuss the proposed protection of ancient coral reefs located off the coast of North Carolina.
NIST has issued a new reference material to aid in the detection and measurement of the potent carcinogen hexavalent chromium in soil. The new reference material will provide a crucial benchmark for the high-quality chemical measurements needed to guide and assess cleanup efforts.
Award-winning environmental author Tom Horton debates growth and the Chesapeake Bay with Chesapeake Bay Foundation President William Baker and Maryland Department of Planning Secretary Richard Hall during the symposium "Growth is Killing Chesapeake Bay" at Salisbury University.
An Inconvenient Truth opened millions of people's eyes to the issues of pollution and global warming and put films about the environment back in the public eye. Now, filmmakers want to do more than create works that inform and illustrate the importance of sustainability they want to incorporate sustainable, environmentally-friendly practices into their craft. Enter the Code of Best Practices in Sustainable Filmmaking, a new guide among the first of its kind to help filmmakers assess the carbon dioxide (CO2) footprints of their productions and find ways to reduce, neutralize, and offset them.
A new study shows that average life expectancy in 51 U.S. cities increased nearly three years over recent decades, and approximately five months of that increase came thanks to cleaner air.
Dalhousie University has launched a new academic program - Environment, Sustainability and Society, offered through the equally new College of Sustainability. It is first program (and college) of its kind in Canada and is the most significant and far-reaching change to the way Dalhousie educates its students in recent memory. This foreshadows the way in which the environment and sustainability will factor into post secondary education the world over.
At a time when President-Elect Barack Obama is examining ways to launch a Green New Deal to reenergize the slumping economy and fight the threat of global warming, UC San Diego Extension has created a specialized certificate in Sustainable Business Practices.
Climate change scientists detail the history of combustion and its affect on the environment from cavemen to the haze of megacities, concluding that man must find new alternatives to generate energy.
MGSM is launching a new Bright Green MBA program for this Spring. The program will be based at our San Diego Campus. It is a two year course that blends weekend workshops with online learning. It will be taught by Faculty with backgrounds in Sustainability research, Green Entrepreneurs and Thought Leaders.
The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) and the University of California, San Diego, one of the nation's greenest universities, are joining for a groundbreaking symposium on January 22-23 to explore how to improve the technology sector's energy efficiency while developing innovations to help other industries reduce their carbon footprints.
A new study reveals that women living in coastal areas and in the Northeast U.S. were more likely than other women to have blood mercury (BHg) concentrations exceeding levels of concern, as reported in the January 2009 issue of Environmental Health Perspectives (EHP). Women living near coastal areas had 3-4 times greater risk of exceeding acceptable levels of mercury than women living in inland regions.
The evolutionary history of diatoms -- abundant oceanic plankton that remove billions of tons of carbon dioxide from the air each year -- needs to be rewritten, according to a new Cornell study. The findings suggest that after a sudden rise in species numbers, diatoms abruptly declined about 33 million years ago -- trends that coincided with severe global cooling.
President Bush's newly designated ocean reserves may build more momentum in creating more protected areas in the Pacific Ocean. The marine scientist who led the effort to create the world's largest marine protected area is available for comment.
Economists use leading indicators "” the drivers of economic performance "“ to take the temperature of the economy and predict the future.
Now, in a new study, scientists take a page from the social science handbook and use leading indicators of the environment to presage the potential collapse of ecosystems.
A new tool has been developed that will help measure the rupture resistance of soils by calibrating the correct amount of pressure between a thumb and forefinger of students and soil scientists when studying soils in the field. The measurement is important for accurately assessing the quality and makeup of soils.
A team of scientists from the New York-based Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) has reported a rapid recovery of coral reefs in areas of Indonesia, following the tsunami that devastated coastal regions throughout the Indian Ocean four years ago today.
Here's one more reason to say "shade grown, please" when you order your morning cup of coffee. Shade coffee farms, which grow coffee under a canopy of multiple tree species, not only harbor native birds, bats and other beneficial creatures, but also maintain genetic diversity of native tree species and can act as focal points for tropical forest regeneration.
Earth and its inhabitants are besieged by environmental hazards and the projected impact from global climate change. To help counter the destructive nature of these hazards, powerful new tools are available, from using satellites to applying new analytical capabilities. A recent gathering of global experts explored how best to use these 21st century capabilities - and understand political and institutional barriers that must be overcome in the future.
Want to save gasoline, lower your power bills and help save the environment? New Vanderbilt research identifies seven simple actions individuals can start today that have the potential to dramatically reduce energy use and carbon emissions.
UC San Diego, one of the nation's greenest universities, emphasizes a wide range of sustainability concepts in dozens of classes and seminars ranging from global warming and consumerism to alternative energy, all taught by some of the university's most distinguished faculty.
More than half of the daily commuters to the UC San Diego campus are pedaling bikes, riding shuttle buses or carpooling with fellow students, staff and faculty, an alternative transportation milestone for one of the nation's greenest universities.
Want to be easier on the earth this season? SUNY-ESF scientists advise you to put up a natural tree, make some gifts and then turn your tree into bird feeder.
People say they want a sustainable society. But are we ready to pay the price in sharply lower growth? Does the American Dream depend on our growth-based economic model, or can sustainability fit with our core cultural values? This excerpt from a recently published feature asks the harder question: not whether we can, but whether we want to.
In a unique collaboration between Earthwatch and UBS, four project teams embarked on summer research expeditions to study permafrost in the Canadian Arctic or declining songbird habitat in the Tetons. Green school projects are now underway in four major cities (Stamford, NY, Chicago, San Fran)"”from giving trees to rooftop gardens.
The Environmental Finance Center (EFC) at Syracuse University has launched NYFoodtrader.org, a virtual farmer's market that will connect New York producers, consumers and traders with local food fresh from the field. NYFoodtrader.org provides farmers with a no-cost, easy and unique venue for announcing and displaying their products all year long.
A "revolution" in the way we illuminate our world is imminent, according to a paper published this week by two professors at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Innovations in photonics and solid state lighting will lead to trillions of dollars in cost savings, along with a massive reduction in the amount of energy required to light homes and businesses around the globe, the researchers forecast.
A Tennessee professor is calling on Santa Claus this year to give seaweed instead of coal to children who have been naughty and not nice. Doing so could save delivery of up to 5,000 tons of coal to children's stockings worldwide, estimates Gerald Smith, professor of religion and environmental studies at Sewanee: The University of the South in Sewanee, TN.
"President-elect Obama has once again shown he understands clean energy and climate must be addressed at every level of government from a wide range of policy perspectives," said NWF President & CEO Larry Schweiger.
A white Christmas is nice, but if you're dreaming of a "green" new year, St. Lawrence University in Canton, New York, has some easy ways to make it a reality.
President-elect Barack Obama introduced his energy and environment team, naming Carol Browner to lead a new council on climate, environment and energy issues; Steven Chu as energy secretary; Lisa Jackson as EPA administrator; and Nancy Sutley as head of the White House Council on Environmental Quality. Larry Schweiger, president and CEO of the National Wildlife Federation reacts.
Three major global climate-change projections scaled down to Oregon's Rogue River Basin point to hotter, drier summers with increasing wildfire risk, reduced snowpack and rainier, stormy winters, according to a report coordinated by the University of Oregon's Climate Leadership Initiative and the National Center for Conservation Science & Policy.
The University of California, San Diego plans to store power produced at night from a planned 2.8 megawatt "green" fuel cell and use the energy during peak-demand hours the following day when electricity rates are highest.
Several innovative steps designed to maximize the efficiency of Argonne's new Blue Gene/P high-performance computer have saved many taxpayer dollars while reducing the laboratory's environmental footprint.
For thousands of years, the content of a classical education remained the same. Then the world started to fill up. Recognizing that a humanistic education must cover sustainability, USC expands its "˜green' courses and programs.
Half of the globe has warmed at least one half of one degree Fahrenheit (0.3 C) in the past 30 years, while half of that -- a full quarter of the globe -- warmed at least one full degree Fahrenheit (0.6 C).
Scientists at the University of Idaho recently discovered that 17α-ethynylestradiol "“ an active chemical in birth control pills commonly released into the environment through human urine "“ causes cells in rainbow trout to have an abnormal number of chromosomes. This condition may be why many embryos fathered by exposed specimens die within three weeks.
Construction management Department at UALR offers a new course this spring teaching builders the techniques of building environmentally friendly new construction and retrofitting existing business to be more green.
Researchers have known that the animal feeding industry creates a significant amount of greenhouse gas emissions, particularly methane and carbon dioxide. As the industry works to address this concern, scientists at Purdue University and the University of Missouri have tested various types of oil sprays to measure their effectiveness in reducing these emissions. The results show positive signs in reducing environmental impact.
Calling New Orleans "the canary in the global warming coal mine", two Tulane University professors say the Crescent City must embrace unconventional thinking in order to recover in a sustainable way from Hurricane Katrina while withstanding a continual threat from rising sea levels, diminishing wetlands and future storms. They stress that the number one priority for Louisiana should be to combat global warming and accelerated sea-level rise.