Ecosystems


Texas Tech Researcher Links Bee Colony Collapse to Infection

The study shows an association of death rates of the bees with an insect virtus and a fungus.

Study: BP Disaster a Product of 'Regulatory Blowout'

The Center for Progressive Reform's new study recommends regulators apply the "precautionary principle" to assess risks and needed safeguards.

Virginia Tech Professor Wants to Enlist 'Citizen Scientists'

People could record ecological impacts of environmental or natural disasters using smart phones and other devices that would automatically disseminate the information to a single point.

Restoration Plan Would Have Spill Penalty Money Stay in Gulf

The report from U.S. Navy Secretary Ray Mabus says the money will be used for recovery through a coordinated federal, state and local, long-term strategy

More Oxygen Needed to Finish Exxon Valdez Spill Cleanup, Study Says

Researchers in EPA's National Risk Management Research Laboratory in Ohio tested the ability of oil to biodegrade after 20 years and discovered that oxygen was the limiting factor.

Oil Companies Offer Equipment, Seek to Improve Incident Response

ExxonMobil will provide underwater equipment to the Marine Well Containment Company for use by BP in the Gulf of Mexico.

$5M Study to Consider Climate Impacts on Great Lakes Water Quality

University of Michigan-led researchers will examine current climate, land use, precipitation and water governance patterns and then combine the data with climate change models to forecast possible effects.

the moon

Arizona Team Can Grow Plants with Lamps on the Silvery Moon

Researchers are demonstrating that plants from Earth could be grown without soil on the moon or Mars or even urban centers.



IBM Works with Nature Conservancy on Sustaining Watersheds Program

The team will establish a Website for watershed managers and planners to analyze river basins, and make more informed decisions.

Blue Plains Facility Has Until 2015 to Meet New Nitrogen Limits

EPA is reissuing permits for significant wastewater facilities to protect the Potomac River and Chesapeake Bay.

Beach embayment design keeps sand and contaminants in.

Numerical Ocean Models Help Find Causes of Dirty Beaches

U.S. Geological Survey and Michigan State University study applies NOAA models to determine the pathways of contaminants and indicator bacteria.

Webcast on Building Watershed Group Capacity Set

EPA and other panelists will discuss technical tools and support to local watershed groups.

Study: Most Dairy Antibiotics Degrade before Reaching Groundwater

University of California Davis scientists said that most of the antibiotics used to treat dairy cows generally degrade in the top 12 inches of soil.

Growers Sign Petition for Atrazine Use

Long-standing pesticide faces government review, an activist campaign, and two lawsuits.

Revere, Mass., Settlement Covers Raw Sewage Overflows

The city will implement a comprehensive, system-wide plan to ensure that all sanitary sewer overflows associated with insufficient capacity of its separate wastewater collection system are prevented within 12 years.

New Jersey Gives Fuel Oil Industry 6 Years to Meet Sulfur Standard

By 2016, the state will require refiners to produce oil with a maximum sulfur content standard of 15 parts per million; the current standard is 2,000 to 3,000 parts per million.

EPA Takes Tonawanda Coke to Task for Additional Environmental Issues

The agency says the company is exceeding its permitted industrial wastewater discharge, which is piped to Tonawanda's sanitary sewer system.

Landowner and Excavator Failed to Contact Corps of Engineers for Dam

The landowner and the company he hired to perform excavation to create an earthen dam will pay a $30,000 civil penalty.

Emory River Opens for Recreation as Coal Ash Cleanup Continues

Federal and Tennessee agencies have determined that any coal ash remaining in the river presents minimal health risks to recreational users.

Debris free plateau glacier in Bhutan

Scientific Collaboration Reports Glaciers Retreating in Asia

According to the U.S. Geological Survey, glaciers in the Himalaya are a major source of fresh water and supply meltwater to all of the rivers in northern India.