Contrary to popular belief, moderate increases in temperature and increased nitrogen from acid rain actually improves forest productivity, providing there is sufficient moisture.
Michigan's forest industry produces thousands of jobs and hundreds of thousands of tons of unused residues each year. Why not use that woody material to help generate clean electric power?
New York City College of Technology intends to make inroads in the prediction of natural disasters with support from a three-year, $459K grant from the National Science Foundation. The funds are targeted for faculty-supervised student research in state-of-the-art satellite and ground-based remote sensing.
In a new model of atmospheric carbon dioxide levels, sea level variation, Northern Hemisphere ice sheets and Antarctic ice over the past 34 million years reported in Nature, University of Massachusetts Amherst climatologist Robert DeConto and colleagues at four other institutions cast new light on estimates of polar ice volume and the relationship to sea level. Their model has implications for understanding future effects of global warming.
Thousands of trees and shrubs are pulling contaminants out of the ground, eliminating the need for an $8 million treatment facility at the Fort Drum military installation.
Reflecting the heterogeneous nature of rural America, rural Americans are divided "“ primarily along religious lines "“ on their perspectives of environmental conservation and climate change, a new brief from the Carsey Institute finds. This religious and environmental divide presents a challenge to political candidates.
Moderate global warming and acid rain actually could be a good thing for northern hardwood forests, because it makes the trees grow faster and store more carbon.
Grinnell College experts available to discuss climate change, sustainability and green campus efforts, and effects of chronic disease on couples.
With electrical consumption in the U.S. up 54% in the past twenty years, rising fuel costs, and growing concerns about the environment, who wouldn't want to make better use of one's energy while saving money and reducing one's CO2 emissions?
Researchers have created a new material that overcomes two of the major obstacles to solar power: it absorbs all the energy contained in sunlight, and generates electrons in a way that makes them easier to capture.
Dalhousie University in Halifax Nova Scotia has been twice recognized for its efforts to create a greener, more sustainable campus.
Software that will save data centers millions of dollars in energy costs has won the Southeastern Universities Research Association Intellectual Property to Market (IP2M) competition. The patent-pending invention, dubbed EcoDaemon by the researchers at Virginia Tech who created it, ranked number one among submissions from more than 60 research institutes in the southeast.
University of Michigan researchers have developed a new tool that uses natural "fingerprints" in coal to track down sources of mercury polluting the environment.
A report scheduled to be published online this week in early edition the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences suggests that maintaining the proper balance of herbivorous fishes may be critical to restoring coral reefs, which are declining dramatically worldwide.
Health experts from the Wildlife Conservation Society today released a report that lists 12 pathogens that could spread into new regions as a result of climate change, with potential impacts to both human and wildlife health and global economies.
Climatologist Robert DeConto and colleagues are reporting in the Oct. 2 issue of the journal Nature that their latest climate model of the Northern Hemisphere suggests conditions would have allowed ice sheets to form there for the last 25 million years, or about 22 million years earlier than generally assumed.
Frank Wolak, professor of commodity price studies at Stanford University, will address the UC San Diego Economics Roundtable on October 14, placing these demands into perspective with claims of the environment.
Chalk up another environmental benefit for shade-grown Latin American coffee: University of Michigan researchers say the technique will provide a buffer against the ravages of climate change in the coming decades.
A study in Shanghai, China on various modifiers, and their effects on outdoor air pollution and daily mortality rates indicates that air pollutant levels are higher in the cool season than in the warm season (except for ozone, which is higher in the warm season), and that females, the elderly, and the disadvantaged are more vulnerable to the effects of outdoor air pollution overall.
Despite widespread concern about climate change, annual carbon dioxide emissions from burning fossil fuels and manufacturing cement have grown 38 percent since 1992, from 6.1 billion tons of carbon to 8.5 billion tons in 2007.
By killing large swaths of forests in the Rocky Mountains, mountain pine beetles may be altering local weather patterns and air quality. NCAR is leading an international field project exploring how the loss of trees and other vegetation influences rainfall, temperatures, smog, and other aspects of the atmosphere.
Leading Florida-based scientific researchers released two new studies today, including a Florida State University report finding that climate change will cause significant impacts on Florida's coastlines and economy due to increased sea level rise. A second study by researchers at Florida Atlantic University recommends that the state of Florida adopt a series of policy programs aimed at adapting to these large coastal and other impacts as a result of climate change.
Two species of giraffe, several rhinos and five elephant relatives, along with multitudes of rodents, bush pigs, horses, antelope and apes, once inhabited what is now northern Pakistan.
Environmental scientists studying the world's shrinking polar ice sheets will soon get a substantial boost in computing power thanks to IU's Polar Grid Project. Project partners are poised this week to deploy a collection of customized computational resources to Antarctica that will allow scientists -- both on site and remotely -- to more securely and efficiently process data during polar field expeditions.
New ways of teaching today's agriculture is the topic of a new article written by Nicholas Jordan and colleagues, featured in the 2008 Journal of Natural Resources and Life Sciences Education. With the increasing importance of agriculture in developing biofuels, bioproducts and other goods and services, new methods are needed to teach the resulting intellectual, moral, and practical challenges.
Climate has been implicated by a new study as a major driver of wildfires in the last 2,000 years. But human activities, such as land clearance and fire suppression during the industrial era (since 1750) have created large swings in burning, first increasing fires until the late 1800s, and then dramatically reducing burning in the 20th century.
In a new book, the director of the University of Oregon's Climate Leadership Initiative says that addressing human contributions to global warming requires a mindset tuned to "The Power of Sustainable Thinking." The book targets decision makers in the public and private sectorbut is accessible to "anyone interested in changing thinking and behavior about the climate and sustainability."
Manufacturers' efforts to cut costs and reduce waste through so-called "lean" manufacturing techniques haven't always taken the environment into account. But two researchers at Missouri University of Science and Technology hope to show that manufacturers can be both lean and green by incorporating processes designed to conserve energy and minimize environmental impact with a lean manufacturing philosophy.
Last month, immense ice shelves collapsed into the Arctic Ocean. Polar bears are losing vital hunting grounds and countries are now staking claims to potential oil reserves under the pole. To better gauge the climate changes, Ohio researchers will "reanalyze" a decade of atmospheric, sea, ice and land surface data merged into a single computer model.
Biochar, the product of a slow-burning charcoal-creation process using sticks and wood scraps, can vastly improve soils for growing food and other plants. Because it sequesters carbon, it could also help mitigate global warming.
The American Chemical Society is now offering Global Challenges/Chemistry Solutions, a series of podcasts focusing on daunting global problems and how new discoveries from the labs of chemists and other scientists offer solutions.
The home of the Ithaca College School of Business is the first facility for a college or university business school in the world to attain platinum LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) status. The college is also constructing a new administration building to platinum LEED standards.
From global warming today to how it will impact the climate at the end of the century, Katharine Hayhoe can discuss what to expect and how fewer emissions can create less climate impact.
The biggest energy bang for the buck comes from sunlight, says Binghamton University researcher Seshu Desu. And together with his research team, he's hoping to tap into that immense supply of renewable energy and make it easily accessible as a flexible, large-area and low-cost, power source.
UC San Diego, one of the nation's greenest universities, this fall will emphasize 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.
As University of California San Diego students start school, they'll walk on new carpet and sit on furniture made from recycled material, drink from reusable water bottles, eat with a full line of recyclable food service products and register in some of the universities' 80 green seminars, workshops and courses. The greening of UC San Diego's campus this fall is a part of the university's drive to be one of the greenest universities and to train a new generation of leaders in sustainable living.
Risk of consequences depends on heat-trapping gas emissions.
Iowa State University's Song-Charng Kong and his students are working to reduce emissions in diesel engines, develop a computer model of a gasoline engine and optimize new engine technologies. The results could be cleaner, more efficient engines in our cars and trucks.
A nationwide study of nitrate trends in the ground water of the United States was recently completed by scientists at the U.S. Geological Survey. Nitrate is the most common chemical contaminant found in ground water, and is related to infant health and possible cancer risks. The study focused on 24 well networks in the U.S. from 1988 to 2004, of which 7 well networks showed statistically significant increases in concentrations of nitrate during this period.
Six area school teachers who participated on Earthwatch expeditions around the world this summer"”thanks to the Tampa Bay Rays"”will be recognized at a special awards ceremony preceding the Rays-Sox game on Wednesday, September 17th, at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida.
As part of the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment (ACUPCC), Cornell University has calculated its first greenhouse gas inventory. This news from the inventory indicates that Cornell will be on course to reduce central utilities emissions by almost one-third "“ far exceeding the university's goal of being 7 percent below 1990 levels of carbon emissions by 2012. The university is expected to meet that goal by 2010, two years ahead of schedule.
The recent dramatic melting and breakup of a few huge Greenland glaciers have fueled public concerns over the impact of global climate change, but that isn't the island's biggest problem. A new study shows that the dozens of much smaller outflow glaciers dotting Greenland's coast together account for three times more loss from the island's ice sheet than the amount coming from their huge relatives.
The Lighting Research Center (LRC) at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute has earned the notable distinction of receiving one of only 13 first-ever research grants awarded by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). The $250,000 grant will fund research for a project titled "Quantifying the Impact of Daylight and Electric Lighting on Student Alertness, Performance, and Well-being in K-12 Schools."
From air quality to wildlife scat, the Summer 2008 Virginia Tech Research magazine provides articles about environmental research.
Two University of Massachusetts Amherst researchers are developing computer models to predict the strength of structural composite lumber (SCL), which could broaden the use of the sustainable material in large building projects.
Fires and burning industrial waste contribute a surprising amount of pollution.
Climate change will cost the Maryland economy billions of dollars, and the state is particularly vulnerable to a "cascade" of economic consequences, says a new report from the University of Maryland's Center for Integrative Environmental Research (CIER). Even though the chief impact will come from rising sea levels along the state's coast, the researchers predict that the effects will be transmitted throughout the entire state's economy to a significant degree.
Scientists and volunteers affiliated with Earthwatch have uncovered signs of an oil leak in Chuuk (formerly known as Truk) Lagoon, a popular dive destination in Micronesia.
Rose Ann Cattolico is convinced algae can be a major source of environmentally friendly fuels for everything from lawn mowers to jet airplanes. Now an investment company that works with universities to commercialize early-stage technology invested in the University of Washington biology professor's work, forming a startup company called AXI.
Maryland Athletics is launching an aggressive recycling program for home football games this year, part of a campus-wide initiative to green the university that is spearheaded by President C.D. Mote, Jr. The new program, "Feed the Turtle," will kick off at the season home opener on Saturday, Aug. 30.
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