Environment
- Environment
Thirdhand smoke poses lingering danger
Harmful cigarette chemicals that linger on surfaces, known as thirdhand smoke, can go on to pollute the air and may harm people’s health.
- Environment
Oil from BP spill may be sitting on seafloor
More than four years after the Deepwater Horizon disaster in the Gulf of Mexico, scientists find that oil is still lingering over a large area on the seafloor.
- Environment
No water contamination found in Ohio’s fracking epicenter
Methane in Ohio groundwater comes from biological sources, such as bacteria, not fossil fuel exploration.
- Environment
Engineered plants demolish toxic waste
With help from bacteria, plants could one day clean up polluted sites.
- Climate
Rivers may gush under sullied skies
By dimming sunlight and curbing evaporation, air pollution can increase the amount of water flowing through rivers, new simulations suggest.
- Environment
World’s first full-scale clean coal plant now up and running
After decades of delays, technology that cuts carbon emissions from commercial power plants has made its worldwide debut.
- Environment
Human ingenuity takes on Mother Nature in ‘The Big Ratchet’
Geographer Ruth DeFries explains how technological innovations have allowed humans to overcome environmental challenges throughout history.
- Environment
Crops take up drugs from recycled water
Plants irrigated with recycled wastewater can soak up tiny amounts of pharmaceutical compounds but what this means for human health is unclear.
- Climate
Greenhouse gases reached new records in 2013
Levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere rose more last year than any other year since 1984, according to a September 9 report by the World Meteorological Organization.
- Materials Science
Greener water splitter for hydrogen fuel designed
A new gadget that runs on a single AAA battery might truly reduce the carbon emissions from hydrogen fuel cell production down to zero.
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- Environment
Carbon capture and storage finally approaching debut
Carbon capture and storage offers a way to rein in global carbon emissions. But financial and regulatory obstacles, as well as public fears, are delaying the technology’s long-awaited implementation.
