Water


Cosco Busan Restoration Work About to Begin

The final report summarizes impacts from the November 2007 oil spill and describes restoration projects, which trustees will begin to fund this spring.

Study Suggests Costly Shortcuts When Buying Conservation from Farmers

Farmers in the U.S. and the European Union receive billions of dollars in government subsidies each year to make changes in their operations that will improve the environment. However, a new study by Paul Armsworth, assistant professor in ecology and evolutionary biology at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, finds that these government programs may offer very poor value for money.

"Green" Cashmere Protects Patagonian Wildlife

The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) applauds the efforts of Argentina’s Grupo Costa del Río Colorado cooperative in its first U.S. sale of “green” cashmere, produced through a system of sustainable practices that protects guanacos, rheas, Andean cats, and other wildlife of the windswept expanse of the Patagonian Steppe.

Researchers Challenge Study on Hydrofracking's Gas Footprint

A Cornell study's contention that hydraulic fracturing would be worse for climate change than burning coal is being challenged by another study, also by Cornell researchers.

Fossil Fuel Emissions Found on Alaska's Glaciers

A new study concludes that fossil fuel emissions are likely contributors to a substantial amount of organic carbon found on glaciers in Alaska.

Citizen Scientists Learn More about Air and Water Pollution in the U.S. Virgin Islands

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is encouraging individuals and community groups in the U.S. Virgin Islands to apply for grants that will allow “citizen scientists” to collect information on air and water pollution in their communities and seek solutions to environmental and public health problems.

Proposed Action to Clean New Jersey Superfund Site

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has proposed a plan to clean up contaminated sediment, soil and debris in streams and in an area near lagoons in which industrial wastewater was stored at the Universal Oil Products Superfund site in East Rutherford, N.J. The proposed cleanup plan will eliminate the threat of contaminants spreading off the site through the streams that carry water into Berry’s Creek, located on the eastern border of the site. The EPA is simultaneously overseeing a comprehensive study of the site to determine what other measures may be necessary to address the contamination.

Drinking Water and Wastewater Systems Across the Country Get Overhaul

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will provide up to $15 million in funding for training and technical assistance to small drinking and wastewater systems, defined as systems that serve fewer than 10,000 people, and private well owners.



Climate Change Could Impact Polar Ecosystems

Polar ecosystems could be at risk from the spread of toxic cyanobacteria if the climate continues to warm, say scientists.

Study Suggests Asian Emissions Contribute to Air Pollution in Western United States

As Asian countries develop, they are emitting more ozone precursors that pollute surface level air. Many studies have documented this pollution being carried by air currents to the western United States.

New Study of Global Freshwater Scarcity

A new report published in the online journal PLoS ONE, analyzing water consumption in 405 river basins around the world, found that water scarcity impacts at least 2.7 billion people for at least one month each year.

Expert Plans Coast-to-Coast Trip on 10 Gallons of Gas or Less

Alternative fuels expert Dr. Cliff Ricketts of Middle Tennessee State University firmly believes he can go coast-to-coast on l0 gallons of gasoline or less.

Generating Electricity from Vibrations in Road Surface Works

A pilot research project into vibration energy on the N34 provincial motorway near Hardenberg in the eastern Netherlands has shown that vibration energy as a local energy source is a sustainable alternative for the batteries of roadside sensors and other applications.

Experts Call for Cleaner Air

Urgent action is needed to reduce the high concentrations of dangerous air pollutants in Europe, according to experts writing in the European Respiratory Journal.

Lake Tahoe Water Clarity Improved in 2011

Lake Tahoe clarity improved in 2011, but overall has remained nearly stable since 2000, according to UC Davis scientists who study the lake.

Overfishing Threatens the Survival of Seabirds

From gannets to seagulls, puffins to penguins, all seabirds suffer the same drop in birth rates when the supply of fish drops to less than a third of maximum capacity. That's the result from an international study on the relationships between predators and prey in seven ecosystems around the world, published in the magazine Science and coordinated by Philippe Cury, an IRD researcher.

Chemists Study Mutated Plants, Possibly Better for Biofuels

Genetic mutations to cellulose in plants could improve the conversion of cellulosic biomass into biofuels, according to a research team that included two Iowa State University chemists.

Rena's Chief Officers Plead Guilty, Sentencing May 25

The names of the master and second officer of the container ship that ran aground on New Zealand’s Astrolabe Reef on Oct. 5, 2010, have been suppressed while their case is before the courts. They pleaded guilty to altering the Rena’s documents after it ran aground.

Developing Sustainable Power

The invention of a long-lasting incandescent light bulb in the 19th century spurred on the second wave of the industrial revolution, illuminating homes, extending leisure time and bringing us to the point today where many millions of people use a whole range of devices from mood lighting to audiovisual media centers, microwave ovens to fast-freeze ice makers, and allergy-reducing vacuum cleaners to high-speed broadband connected computers in their homes without a second thought.

Oregon Lumber Mill Cited for Toxic Chemical Leaks and Violations

Sanders Wood Products Company in Liberal, Ore., was found to have a series of PCB leaks and other violations of federal PCB laws at its lumber mill, according to a settlement reached with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The company will pay over $108,000 in penalties.