The 3D maps may help researchers track and predict the ocean’s response to climate change. By Jennifer Chu | MIT News Office Life is teeming nearly everywhere in the oceans, except in certain pockets where oxygen naturally plummets and waters become unlivable for most aerobic organisms. These desolate pools are “oxygen-deficient zones,” … [continued]
Aquatic ecologist John A. Downing happily remembers childhood holidays at his family’s vacation home at Wabana Lake, near Grand Rapids, Minnesota. The lake was upstream “from almost everything,” making it difficult for pollution to reach it, he said. But some eventually got there anyway. “It’s still beautiful, but somewhat greener around the edges,” he said. “I have been diving in these lakes since I was 9 years old, and as I get older, I notice there are more frequent surface algae blooms.”
The term “air pollution” has become so ubiquitous that when anyone hears those words, they have an understanding of what they mean. To a degree, it is an accepted fact of the modern world that the air we breathe is contaminated in some way, but most people don’t realise the severity of the problem, the effects it can have on health, or the potential there is to combat the ongoing epidemic. In a series of articles, CleanTechnica will be examining the issues surrounding air pollution in more depth, and this first article will act as an introduction to some of the main issues.
Originally published on Gas2. Oh, those dirty rotten scoundrels at Volkswagen. They deliberately programmed their diesel cars to report lower emissions than actually occurred in real world driving. Their lack of concern for the environment has increased our risk of heart disease, emphysema, and the heartbreak of psoriasis. How could … [continued]
The emissions of nitrous oxide, a potent greenhouse gas, from agricultural operations in the central United States may be greatly underestimated, and in some instances are as much as 40% higher than previously thought, according to a new study. A recent study of the indirect emissions of nitrous oxide from … [continued]
Thanks to protracted temblors in the US (and some other English-speaking nations) over the role of fossil fuels in generating climate change, many of us sometimes forget that agriculture, deforestation, and land use change (AFOLU, for short) also emit a large proportion of greenhouse gases. Those with a rough idea … [continued]
Almost everyone in the media has taken a stab at summarizing, if not snap-judging, the results of Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s one-day UN climate summit last week. The meeting had a real name, but Robert N. Stavins in his New York Times runup to the conference was the only writer I … [continued]
This article originally published on Shrink That Footprint by Lindsay Wilson In 2010 human activity caused 50 Gt CO2e of greenhouse gas emissions. These emissions were 76% carbon dioxide (CO2), 16% methane (CH4), 8% nitrous oxide (N20) and 2% F-gases. The big terrestrial emitters were China (23%), the USA (14%), Europe … [continued]
Greenhouse gases trap heat from the sun and warm the planet’s surface. Of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, the majority are related to energy consumption, and most of those are carbon dioxide. From 1990 to 2011, energy-related carbon dioxide emissions in the United States increased by about 0.4% per year. … [continued]
A national research team headed by the Columbia University Engineering School has found that sewage treatment plants in the U.S. could save $100 million per year in electricity costs with a few simple tweaks to cut down on emissions of nitrous oxide, a powerful greenhouse gas.
