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Urban Development, Greenhouses Gases can Trigger Extreme Floods

When the rain started to pour down in northern Georgia on September 15th, 2009, the residents of Atlanta were completely unaware that they would be witnessing epic flooding across the city.

16 Mar 2021

Using AI to Detect Sewage Leaks

A new report suggests using AI to better identify untreated sewage leaks and protect rivers and waterways from severe environmental damage.

15 Mar 2021

Nanoplastics in Estuarine Waters can Clump and Form Larger Clusters

As plastic debris weathers in aquatic environments, it can shed tiny nanoplastics. Although scientists have a good understanding of how these particles form, they still don't have a good grasp of where all the fragments end up. Now, researchers reporting in ACS' Environmental Science & Technology have shown experimentally that most nanoplastics in estuarine waters can clump, forming larger clusters that either settle or stick to solid objects, instead of floating on into the ocean.

11 Mar 2021

Reductions in Air Pollutants Without Greenhouse Gas Cuts Could Increase Global Warming

As countries around the world race to mitigate global warming by limiting carbon dioxide emissions, an unlikely source could be making climate goals harder to achieve without even deeper cuts in greenhouse gas production: reductions in air pollution.

11 Mar 2021

Scientists Design a Curved Barrier to Protect People from Air Pollution

A unique curved barrier has been designed by researchers at Imperial College London, who publish new findings in the peer-reviewed journal Cities & Health on how the structure can protect people from the damaging effects of air pollution.

10 Mar 2021

Study Provides a Detailed Accounting of Cannabis Industry's Carbon Footprint

It's no secret that the United States' $13 billion cannabis industry is big business. Less obvious to many is the environmental toll this booming business is taking, in the form of greenhouse gas emissions from commercial, mostly indoor production.

9 Mar 2021

Tougher Environmental Policies Push Firms to Pollute in Countries with Lenient Regulations

Multinational companies headquartered in countries with tougher environmental policies tend to locate their polluting factories in countries with more lax regulations, a new study finds.

9 Mar 2021

Wildfire-Produced PM2.5 More Harmful to Respiratory Health than Other Particulate Pollutants

Researchers at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego examining 14 years of hospital admissions data conclude that the fine particles in wildfire smoke can be several times more harmful to human respiratory health than particulate matter from other sources such as car exhaust. While this distinction has been previously identified in laboratory experiments, the new study confirms it at the population level.

8 Mar 2021

Traffic Restrictions During Lockdown Led to a Sharp Decline in Air Pollutant Emissions

At the starting of the Corona pandemic in March 2020, the extensive mobility restrictions created a special condition for atmospheric sciences.

5 Mar 2021

Model Predicts Transition Paths of Marine Debris into Ocean Garbage Patches

Tons of plastic debris get released into the ocean every day, and most of it accumulates within the middle of garbage patches, which tend to float on the oceans' surface in the center of each of their regions. The most infamous one, known as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, is in the North Pacific Ocean.

3 Mar 2021