environmental science research papers

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Environmental sciences articles within Scientific Reports

Article 27 May 2024 | Open Access

Microfiber emission from a municipal wastewater treatment plant in Hungary

• Davaakhuu Tserendorj
• , Ádám Illés
•  &  Gyula Záray

Degradation of reactive red (B-3BF) dye wastewater using UV irradiation (254/185 nm) with sodium persulfate in a pilot UV device

• , Yongqiang Li
•  &  Jiangen Qiu

Assimilation of PSO and SVR into an improved ARIMA model for monthly precipitation forecasting

• Laleh Parviz
•  &  Mansour Ghorbanpour

Identification of the Campanian Ignimbrite in the Dead Sea and consequent time-transgressive hydroclimatic shifts in the Eastern Mediterranean

• Rebecca J. Kearney
• , Markus J. Schwab
•  &  Achim Brauer

Agricultural drought-driven mechanism of coupled climate and human activities in the karst basin of southern China

• , Zhonghua He
•  &  Hongmei Tan

Article 26 May 2024 | Open Access

Habitat type modulates sharp body mass oscillations in cyclic common vole populations

• Pedro P. Olea
• , Noelia de Diego
•  &  Javier Viñuela

Article 25 May 2024 | Open Access

Thermophilic-mesophilic temperature phase anaerobic co-digestion compared with single phase co-digestion of sewage sludge and food waste

• Yangqing Hu
•  &  Ce Shen

Research on hybrid reservoir scheduling optimization based on improved walrus optimization algorithm with coupling adaptive ε constraint and multi-strategy optimization

• , Yefeng Tang
•  &  Wen Guo

Pseudomonas and Pseudarthrobacter are the key players in synergistic phenanthrene biodegradation at low temperatures

• Kallayanee Naloka
• , Aunchisa Kuntaveesuk
•  &  Onruthai Pinyakong

Microtopography effects on pedogenesis in the mudstone-derived soils of the hilly mountainous regions

• Banglin Luo
• , Jiangwen Li
•  &  Shouqin Zhong

The study on spatial distribution of water ecological environment carrying capacity during extreme drought conditions

• , Yingying Gui
•  &  Yuling Liu

Article 24 May 2024 | Open Access

Construction and optimization of Green Infrastructure Network in mountainous cities: a case study of Fuzhou, China

• , Danling Fu
•  &  Qunyue Liu

Estimating the severity of landscape degradation in future management scenarios based on modeling the dynamics of Hoor Al-Azim International Wetland in Iran-Iraq border

• Sharif Joorabian Shooshtari
•  &  Fatemeh Jahanishakib

Potential environmental impact of mycelium composites on African communities

• Stefania Akromah
• , Neha Chandarana
•  &  Stephen J. Eichhorn

Long-term exposure to PM 2.5 leads to mitochondrial damage and differential expression of associated circRNA in rat hepatocytes

•  &  Zhonghua Deng

Article 23 May 2024 | Open Access

A dual-responsive RhB-doped MOF probe for simultaneous recognition of Cu 2+ and Fe 3+

•  &  Zhijuan Zhang

Weathering increases the acute toxicity of plastic pellets leachates to sea-urchin larvae—a case study with environmental samples

• Michele Ferrari
• , Filipe Laranjeiro
•  &  Ricardo Beiras

Analyzing vegetation health dynamics across seasons and regions through NDVI and climatic variables

• Kaleem Mehmood
• , Shoaib Ahmad Anees
•  &  Waseem Razzaq Khan

Modeling maize growth and nitrogen dynamics using CERES-Maize (DSSAT) under diverse nitrogen management options in a conservation agriculture-based maize-wheat system

• Kamlesh Kumar
• , C. M. Parihar
•  &  M. K. Gathala

Effective fabrication and characterization of eco-friendly nano particles composite for adsorption Cd (II) and Cu (II) ions from aqueous solutions using modelling studies

• Mohammed Taha Moustafa Hussien Hamad
•  &  Sabah Ibrahim

Climate change impact on groundwater resources in sandbar aquifers in southern Baltic coast

• Anna Gumuła-Kawęcka
• , Beata Jaworska-Szulc
•  &  Maciej Jefimow

Article 22 May 2024 | Open Access

Let there be Skyglow—light pollution from a large outdoor music festival (Lollapalooza Berlin 2016)

• Andreas Jechow

Spatial distribution characteristics and influencing factors of traditional villages based on geodetector: Jiarong Tibetan in Western Sichuan, China

• Yunzhang Li
• , Wenling Fan
•  &  Jingya Li

The impact of elevated sulfur and nitrogen levels on cadmium tolerance in Euglena species

• Victoria Kennedy
• , Emma Kaszecki
•  &  Barry J. Saville

Transformation of heavy metals from contaminated water to soil, fodder and animals

• Hina Kanwal
•  &  Fatima Rasool

Article 21 May 2024 | Open Access

Adsorption properties of Pb(II) and Cd(II) in acid mine drainage by oyster shell loaded lignite composite in different morphologies

• , Yifan Liu
•  &  Junzhen Di

Impact of LaZnFe 2 O 4 supported NiWO 4 @D 400 -MMT@CMS/MMA nanocomposites as a catalytic system in remediation of dyes from wastewater

• Safaa. R. Fouda
•  &  Salah A. Hassan

Multi-proxy record of the Austrian Upper Triassic Polzberg Konservat-Lagerstätte in light of the Carnian Pluvial Episode

• Alexander Lukeneder
• , Petra Lukeneder
•  &  Manuel Rigo

The parents’ internet use and children’s extracurricular tutoring class participation

• Kunpeng Zhang
• , Tongyang Liu
•  &  Maishou Li

Assessment of the coupling coordination relationship between the green financial system and the sustainable development system across China

• Chenggang Li
• , Youhui Bao
•  &  Tingzhang Yang

Dynamic characteristics of coal gangue subgrade filler under traffic load based on the hysteretic curves

• Lian-Zhi Zhang
• , Cun-Bo Kang
•  &  Zong-Tang Zhang

Spatial utilization of historical topographic map and its application in land reconstruction of ancient Chinese urban land use

•  &  Hongqi Wu

Envirotype-based delineation of environmental effects and genotype × environment interactions in Indian soybean ( Glycine max , L.)

• Vennampally Nataraj
• , Sanjay Gupta
•  &  Savita Kolhe

Optimizing multi-spectral ore sorting incorporating wavelength selection utilizing neighborhood component analysis for effective arsenic mineral detection

• Natsuo Okada
• , Hiromasa Nozaki
•  &  Youhei Kawamura

PVDF-HFP-based polymer inclusion membrane functionalized with D2EHPA for the selective extraction of bismuth(III) from sulfate media

• Davood Kazemi
•  &  Mohammad Reza Yaftian

Insights from modelling sixteen years of climatic and fumonisin patterns in maize in South Africa

• Sefater Gbashi
• , Oluwasola Abayomi Adelusi
•  &  Patrick Berka Njobeh

Article 20 May 2024 | Open Access

Successful cultivation of edible fungi on textile waste offers a new avenue for bioremediation and potential food production

• Liberty Hazelgrove
•  &  Suzy Clare Moody

Liming potential and characteristics of biochar produced from woody and non-woody biomass at different pyrolysis temperatures

• Ghulam Murtaza
• , Muhammad Usman
•  &  Omar A. A. I. Al-Elwany

Predictive modeling of molds effective elimination by external inactivation sources

• , Filip Přeučil
•  &  Mária Domonkos

Design optimization of groundwater circulation well based on numerical simulation and machine learning

•  &  Zhiguo Liu

Article 19 May 2024 | Open Access

Multi-disciplinary strategy to optimize irrigation efficiency in irrigated agriculture

• Ayman Batisha

Article 18 May 2024 | Open Access

Assessment of groundwater quality for human consumption and its health risks in the Middle Magdalena Valley, Colombia

• Boris Lora-Ariza
• , Adriana Piña
•  &  Leonardo David Donado

Evaluation method for ecology-agriculture-urban spaces based on deep learning

• , Zhenkai Zhang
•  &  Yuanmin Liu

Monitoring warning criterion of acoustic emission active waveguide system based on loess deformation and failure

• , Liang Wang
•  &  Guoqiang Meng

Land scale division and multifunctional evaluation for Fuping County, China, based on DEM-based watershed analysis

• , Shutao Wang
•  &  Hao Xu

Assessing the influence of landscape conservation and protected areas on social wellbeing using random forest machine learning

• Joshua Fisher
• , Summer Allen
•  &  Linda Pistolesi

Ecological risk and spatial distribution, sources of heavy metals in typical purple soils, southwest China

• , Licheng Quan
•  &  Zhixiang Zhang

Effect of harvest timing and plant parts on the nutritional and chemical profile of five potential fodder plants found in eastern coast of United Arab Emirates

• François Mitterand Tsombou
• , Aishah Saeed Sulaiman Jemei Al Dhanhani
•  &  Fouad Lamghari Ridouane

Drivers of dune formation control ecosystem function and response to disturbance in a barrier island system

• Alexander B. Sabo
• , Michael R. Cornish
•  &  Julie C. Zinnert

Article 17 May 2024 | Open Access

Synthesis and utilization of titanium dioxide nano particle (TiO 2 NPs) for photocatalytic degradation of organics

• M. G. Kholief
• , Abd El-Latif Hesham
•  &  F. M. Mohamed

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Research Topics & Ideas: Environment

100+ Environmental Science Research Topics & Ideas

Finding and choosing a strong research topic is the critical first step when it comes to crafting a high-quality dissertation, thesis or research project. Here, we’ll explore a variety research ideas and topic thought-starters related to various environmental science disciplines, including ecology, oceanography, hydrology, geology, soil science, environmental chemistry, environmental economics, and environmental ethics.

NB – This is just the start…

The topic ideation and evaluation process has multiple steps . In this post, we’ll kickstart the process by sharing some research topic ideas within the environmental sciences. This is the starting point though. To develop a well-defined research topic, you’ll need to identify a clear and convincing research gap , along with a well-justified plan of action to fill that gap.

If you’re new to the oftentimes perplexing world of research, or if this is your first time undertaking a formal academic research project, be sure to check out our free dissertation mini-course. Also be sure to also sign up for our free webinar that explores how to develop a high-quality research topic from scratch.

Overview: Environmental Topics

• Ecology /ecological science
• Atmospheric science
• Oceanography
• Soil science
• Environmental chemistry
• Environmental economics
• Environmental ethics
• Examples  of dissertations and theses

Topics & Ideas: Ecological Science

• The impact of land-use change on species diversity and ecosystem functioning in agricultural landscapes
• The role of disturbances such as fire and drought in shaping arid ecosystems
• The impact of climate change on the distribution of migratory marine species
• Investigating the role of mutualistic plant-insect relationships in maintaining ecosystem stability
• The effects of invasive plant species on ecosystem structure and function
• The impact of habitat fragmentation caused by road construction on species diversity and population dynamics in the tropics
• The role of ecosystem services in urban areas and their economic value to a developing nation
• The effectiveness of different grassland restoration techniques in degraded ecosystems
• The impact of land-use change through agriculture and urbanisation on soil microbial communities in a temperate environment
• The role of microbial diversity in ecosystem health and nutrient cycling in an African savannah

Topics & Ideas: Atmospheric Science

• The impact of climate change on atmospheric circulation patterns above tropical rainforests
• The role of atmospheric aerosols in cloud formation and precipitation above cities with high pollution levels
• The impact of agricultural land-use change on global atmospheric composition
• Investigating the role of atmospheric convection in severe weather events in the tropics
• The impact of urbanisation on regional and global atmospheric ozone levels
• The impact of sea surface temperature on atmospheric circulation and tropical cyclones
• The impact of solar flares on the Earth’s atmospheric composition
• The impact of climate change on atmospheric turbulence and air transportation safety
• The impact of stratospheric ozone depletion on atmospheric circulation and climate change
• The role of atmospheric rivers in global water supply and sea-ice formation

Topics & Ideas: Oceanography

• The impact of ocean acidification on kelp forests and biogeochemical cycles
• The role of ocean currents in distributing heat and regulating desert rain
• The impact of carbon monoxide pollution on ocean chemistry and biogeochemical cycles
• Investigating the role of ocean mixing in regulating coastal climates
• The impact of sea level rise on the resource availability of low-income coastal communities
• The impact of ocean warming on the distribution and migration patterns of marine mammals
• The impact of ocean deoxygenation on biogeochemical cycles in the arctic
• The role of ocean-atmosphere interactions in regulating rainfall in arid regions
• The impact of ocean eddies on global ocean circulation and plankton distribution
• The role of ocean-ice interactions in regulating the Earth’s climate and sea level

Tops & Ideas: Hydrology

• The impact of agricultural land-use change on water resources and hydrologic cycles in temperate regions
• The impact of agricultural groundwater availability on irrigation practices in the global south
• The impact of rising sea-surface temperatures on global precipitation patterns and water availability
• Investigating the role of wetlands in regulating water resources for riparian forests
• The impact of tropical ranches on river and stream ecosystems and water quality
• The impact of urbanisation on regional and local hydrologic cycles and water resources for agriculture
• The role of snow cover and mountain hydrology in regulating regional agricultural water resources
• The impact of drought on food security in arid and semi-arid regions
• The role of groundwater recharge in sustaining water resources in arid and semi-arid environments
• The impact of sea level rise on coastal hydrology and the quality of water resources

Topics & Ideas: Geology

• The impact of tectonic activity on the East African rift valley
• The role of mineral deposits in shaping ancient human societies
• The impact of sea-level rise on coastal geomorphology and shoreline evolution
• Investigating the role of erosion in shaping the landscape and impacting desertification
• The impact of mining on soil stability and landslide potential
• The impact of volcanic activity on incoming solar radiation and climate
• The role of geothermal energy in decarbonising the energy mix of megacities
• The impact of Earth’s magnetic field on geological processes and solar wind
• The impact of plate tectonics on the evolution of mammals
• The role of the distribution of mineral resources in shaping human societies and economies, with emphasis on sustainability

Topics & Ideas: Soil Science

• The impact of dam building on soil quality and fertility
• The role of soil organic matter in regulating nutrient cycles in agricultural land
• The impact of climate change on soil erosion and soil organic carbon storage in peatlands
• Investigating the role of above-below-ground interactions in nutrient cycling and soil health
• The impact of deforestation on soil degradation and soil fertility
• The role of soil texture and structure in regulating water and nutrient availability in boreal forests
• The impact of sustainable land management practices on soil health and soil organic matter
• The impact of wetland modification on soil structure and function
• The role of soil-atmosphere exchange and carbon sequestration in regulating regional and global climate
• The impact of salinization on soil health and crop productivity in coastal communities

Topics & Ideas: Environmental Chemistry

• The impact of cobalt mining on water quality and the fate of contaminants in the environment
• The role of atmospheric chemistry in shaping air quality and climate change
• The impact of soil chemistry on nutrient availability and plant growth in wheat monoculture
• Investigating the fate and transport of heavy metal contaminants in the environment
• The impact of climate change on biochemical cycling in tropical rainforests
• The impact of various types of land-use change on biochemical cycling
• The role of soil microbes in mediating contaminant degradation in the environment
• The impact of chemical and oil spills on freshwater and soil chemistry
• The role of atmospheric nitrogen deposition in shaping water and soil chemistry
• The impact of over-irrigation on the cycling and fate of persistent organic pollutants in the environment

Topics & Ideas: Environmental Economics

• The impact of climate change on the economies of developing nations
• The role of market-based mechanisms in promoting sustainable use of forest resources
• The impact of environmental regulations on economic growth and competitiveness
• Investigating the economic benefits and costs of ecosystem services for African countries
• The impact of renewable energy policies on regional and global energy markets
• The role of water markets in promoting sustainable water use in southern Africa
• The impact of land-use change in rural areas on regional and global economies
• The impact of environmental disasters on local and national economies
• The role of green technologies and innovation in shaping the zero-carbon transition and the knock-on effects for local economies
• The impact of environmental and natural resource policies on income distribution and poverty of rural communities

Topics & Ideas: Environmental Ethics

• The ethical foundations of environmentalism and the environmental movement regarding renewable energy
• The role of values and ethics in shaping environmental policy and decision-making in the mining industry
• The impact of cultural and religious beliefs on environmental attitudes and behaviours in first world countries
• Investigating the ethics of biodiversity conservation and the protection of endangered species in palm oil plantations
• The ethical implications of sea-level rise for future generations and vulnerable coastal populations
• The role of ethical considerations in shaping sustainable use of natural forest resources
• The impact of environmental justice on marginalized communities and environmental policies in Asia
• The ethical implications of environmental risks and decision-making under uncertainty
• The role of ethics in shaping the transition to a low-carbon, sustainable future for the construction industry
• The impact of environmental values on consumer behaviour and the marketplace: a case study of the ‘bring your own shopping bag’ policy

Examples: Real Dissertation & Thesis Topics

While the ideas we’ve presented above are a decent starting point for finding a research topic, they are fairly generic and non-specific. So, it helps to look at actual dissertations and theses to see how this all comes together.

Below, we’ve included a selection of research projects from various environmental science-related degree programs to help refine your thinking. These are actual dissertations and theses, written as part of Master’s and PhD-level programs, so they can provide some useful insight as to what a research topic looks like in practice.

• The physiology of microorganisms in enhanced biological phosphorous removal (Saunders, 2014)
• The influence of the coastal front on heavy rainfall events along the east coast (Henson, 2019)
• Forage production and diversification for climate-smart tropical and temperate silvopastures (Dibala, 2019)
• Advancing spectral induced polarization for near surface geophysical characterization (Wang, 2021)
• Assessment of Chromophoric Dissolved Organic Matter and Thamnocephalus platyurus as Tools to Monitor Cyanobacterial Bloom Development and Toxicity (Hipsher, 2019)
• Evaluating the Removal of Microcystin Variants with Powdered Activated Carbon (Juang, 2020)
• The effect of hydrological restoration on nutrient concentrations, macroinvertebrate communities, and amphibian populations in Lake Erie coastal wetlands (Berg, 2019)
• Utilizing hydrologic soil grouping to estimate corn nitrogen rate recommendations (Bean, 2019)
• Fungal Function in House Dust and Dust from the International Space Station (Bope, 2021)
• Assessing Vulnerability and the Potential for Ecosystem-based Adaptation (EbA) in Sudan’s Blue Nile Basin (Mohamed, 2022)
• A Microbial Water Quality Analysis of the Recreational Zones in the Los Angeles River of Elysian Valley, CA (Nguyen, 2019)
• Dry Season Water Quality Study on Three Recreational Sites in the San Gabriel Mountains (Vallejo, 2019)
• Wastewater Treatment Plan for Unix Packaging Adjustment of the Potential Hydrogen (PH) Evaluation of Enzymatic Activity After the Addition of Cycle Disgestase Enzyme (Miessi, 2020)
• Laying the Genetic Foundation for the Conservation of Longhorn Fairy Shrimp (Kyle, 2021).

Looking at these titles, you can probably pick up that the research topics here are quite specific and narrowly-focused , compared to the generic ones presented earlier. To create a top-notch research topic, you will need to be precise and target a specific context with specific variables of interest . In other words, you’ll need to identify a clear, well-justified research gap.

Need more help?

If you’re still feeling a bit unsure about how to find a research topic for your environmental science dissertation or research project, be sure to check out our private coaching services below, as well as our Research Topic Kickstarter .

Need a helping hand?

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10 Comments

research topics on climate change and environment

I wish to learn things in a more advanced but simple way and with the hopes that I am in the right place.

Thank so much for the research topics. It really helped

the guides were really helpful

Research topics on environmental geology

Thanks for the research topics….I need a research topic on Geography

hi I need research questions ideas

I want the research on environmental planning and management

I want a topic on environmental sustainability

It good coaching

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Open all abstracts , in this tab

Ben Clarke et al 2022 Environ. Res.: Climate 1 012001

Extreme event attribution aims to elucidate the link between global climate change, extreme weather events, and the harms experienced on the ground by people, property, and nature. It therefore allows the disentangling of different drivers of extreme weather from human-induced climate change and hence provides valuable information to adapt to climate change and to assess loss and damage. However, providing such assessments systematically is currently out of reach. This is due to limitations in attribution science, including the capacity for studying different types of events, as well as the geographical heterogeneity of both climate and impact data availability. Here, we review current knowledge of the influences of climate change on five different extreme weather hazards (extreme temperatures, heavy rainfall, drought, wildfire, tropical cyclones), the impacts of recent extreme weather events of each type, and thus the degree to which various impacts are attributable to climate change. For instance, heat extremes have increased in likelihood and intensity worldwide due to climate change, with tens of thousands of deaths directly attributable. This is likely a significant underestimate due to the limited availability of impact information in lower- and middle-income countries. Meanwhile, tropical cyclone rainfall and storm surge height have increased for individual events and across all basins. In the North Atlantic basin, climate change amplified the rainfall of events that, combined, caused half a trillion USD in damages. At the same time, severe droughts in many parts of the world are not attributable to climate change. To advance our understanding of present-day extreme weather impacts due to climate change developments on several levels are required. These include improving the recording of extreme weather impacts around the world, improving the coverage of attribution studies across different events and regions, and using attribution studies to explore the contributions of both climate and non-climate drivers of impacts.

Friederike E L Otto et al 2023 Environ. Res.: Climate 2 025001

As a direct consequence of extreme monsoon rainfall throughout the summer 2022 season Pakistan experienced the worst flooding in its history. We employ a probabilistic event attribution methodology as well as a detailed assessment of the dynamics to understand the role of climate change in this event. Many of the available state-of-the-art climate models struggle to simulate these rainfall characteristics. Those that pass our evaluation test generally show a much smaller change in likelihood and intensity of extreme rainfall than the trend we found in the observations. This discrepancy suggests that long-term variability, or processes that our evaluation may not capture, can play an important role, rendering it infeasible to quantify the overall role of human-induced climate change. However, the majority of models and observations we have analysed show that intense rainfall has become heavier as Pakistan has warmed. Some of these models suggest climate change could have increased the rainfall intensity up to 50%. The devastating impacts were also driven by the proximity of human settlements, infrastructure (homes, buildings, bridges), and agricultural land to flood plains, inadequate infrastructure, limited ex-ante risk reduction capacity, an outdated river management system, underlying vulnerabilities driven by high poverty rates and socioeconomic factors (e.g. gender, age, income, and education), and ongoing political and economic instability. Both current conditions and the potential further increase in extreme peaks in rainfall over Pakistan in light of anthropogenic climate change, highlight the urgent need to reduce vulnerability to extreme weather in Pakistan.

Uzoma C Nworgu et al 2024 Environ. Res.: Climate 3 035002

The South Atlantic Ocean Dipole (SAOD) exerts strong influence on climate variability in parts of Africa and South America. Here we assess the ability of an ensemble of 35 state-of-the-art coupled global climate models to simulate the SAOD impacts on regional rainfall for the historical period (1950–2014), and their future projections (2015–2079). For both periods we consider the peak phase of the dipole in austral winter. Observational analysis reveals four regions with spatially coherent SAOD impacts on rainfall; Northern Amazon, Guinea Coast, Central Africa, and Southeast Brazil. The observed rainfall response to the SAOD over Northern Amazon (0.31 mm d −1 ), Guinea Coast (0.38 mm d −1 ), and Southeast Brazil (0.12 mm d −1 ) are significantly underestimated by the modeled ensemble-mean response of 0.10 ± 0.15 mm d −1 , 0.05 ± 0.15 mm d −1 , −0.01 ± 0.04 mm d −1 , respectively. A too southerly rain belt in the ensemble, associated with warmer-than-observed Atlantic cold tongue, leads to better performance of models over Central Africa (46% simulate observations-consistent SAOD-rainfall correlations) and poor performance over the Guinea Coast (only 5.7% simulate observations-consistent SAOD-rainfall correlations). We also find divergent responses among the projections of ensemble members precluding a categorical statement on the future strength of the SAOD-rainfall relationship in a high-emissions scenario. Our results highlight key uncertainties that must be addressed to enhance the value of SAOD-rainfall projections for the affected African and South American countries.

Miranda Yeen Morgan et al 2024 Environ. Res.: Climate 3 023001

Women's leadership is increasingly considered critical for achieving climate-resilient agrifood systems. Numerous initiatives and policies highlight the business case for women's leadership to deliver a range of positive social, economic and environmental outcomes. In this Perspective , we examine the business case, finding uneven evidence linking women's leadership to increased resilience to climate change. We problematize the ways women's leadership is typically understood in this area and argue that, despite the value and utility of understanding the pathways through which women's leadership can strengthen climate-resilient agrifood systems, support for increasing women's leadership should not be contingent on proving the business case or its instrumental value. Rather, increasing the leadership of women in all their diversity in climate action is a moral imperative and non-negotiable due to women's human right to have meaningful influence in the decisions that affect their lives. Finally, we propose ways to reframe the debate on women's leadership in climate and agrifood systems and suggest priorities for future research in this area.

Sylvia Dee et al 2023 Environ. Res.: Climate 2 022002

The hydrologic cycle is a fundamental component of the climate system with critical societal and ecological relevance. Yet gaps persist in our understanding of water fluxes and their response to increased greenhouse gas forcing. The stable isotope ratios of oxygen and hydrogen in water provide a unique opportunity to evaluate hydrological processes and investigate their role in the variability of the climate system and its sensitivity to change. Water isotopes also form the basis of many paleoclimate proxies in a variety of archives, including ice cores, lake and marine sediments, corals, and speleothems. These records hold most of the available information about past hydrologic variability prior to instrumental observations. Water isotopes thus provide a 'common currency' that links paleoclimate archives to modern observations, allowing us to evaluate hydrologic processes and their effects on climate variability on a wide range of time and length scales. Building on previous literature summarizing advancements in water isotopic measurements and modeling and describe water isotopic applications for understanding hydrological processes, this topical review reflects on new insights about climate variability from isotopic studies. We highlight new work and opportunities to enhance our understanding and predictive skill and offer a set of recommendations to advance observational and model-based tools for climate research. Finally, we highlight opportunities to better constrain climate sensitivity and identify anthropogenically-driven hydrologic changes within the inherently noisy background of natural climate variability.

A J Pitman et al 2022 Environ. Res.: Climate 1 025002

Efforts to assess risks to the financial system associated with climate change are growing. These commonly combine the use of integrated assessment models to obtain possible changes in global mean temperature (GMT) and then use coupled climate models to map those changes onto finer spatial scales to estimate changes in other variables. Other methods use data mined from 'ensembles of opportunity' such as the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP). Several challenges with current approaches have been identified. Here, we focus on demonstrating the issues inherent in applying global 'top-down' climate scenarios to explore financial risks at geographical scales of relevance to financial institutions (e.g. city-scale). We use data mined from the CMIP to determine the degree to which estimates of GMT can be used to estimate changes in the annual extremes of temperature and rainfall, two compound events (heatwaves and drought, and extreme rain and strong winds), and whether the emission scenario provides insights into the change in the 20, 50 and 100 year return values for temperature and rainfall. We show that GMT provides little insight on how acute risks likely material to the financial sector ('material extremes') will change at a city-scale. We conclude that 'top-down' approaches are likely to be flawed when applied at a granular scale, and that there are risks in employing the approaches used by, for example, the Network of Central Banks and Supervisors for Greening the Financial System. Most fundamental, uncertainty associated with projections of future climate extremes must be propagated through to estimating risk. We strongly encourage a review of existing top-down approaches before they develop into de facto standards and note that existing approaches that use a 'bottom-up' strategy (e.g. catastrophe modelling and storylines) are more likely to enable a robust assessment of material risk.

Kevin A Reed and Michael F Wehner 2023 Environ. Res.: Climate 2 043001

As the Earth continues to warm due to human greenhouse gas emissions, there is a growing need to efficiently communicate the effect that global warming has on individual extreme weather events. Using a storyline approach, we present a rapid attribution of the increase in rainfall over Florida during Hurricane Ian in 2022 due to climate change as a case study. We find that extreme accumulated rainfall amounts associated with Hurricane Ian increased by 18%, far in excess of what would be expected by Clausius–Clapeyron scaling. The study offers a blueprint for rapid operational climate change attribution statements about extreme storms and other very rare weather events.

Kevin E Trenberth and Lijing Cheng 2022 Environ. Res.: Climate 1 013001

Shirin Ermis et al 2024 Environ. Res.: Climate 3 035001

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Environmental and economic analysis of the transformation of paper mill sludge treatment technologies in China

• Research Article
• Published: 27 May 2024

Cite this article

• Yanfei Lin 1 ,
• Guoxia Wei 2 ,
• Hanqiao Liu 1 ,
• Yuwen Zhu   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-2759-0656 1 ,
• Qianlong Han 1 ,
• Yunzhen Yang 1 &
• Yi Lian 3  

Paper mill sludge (PMS) is featured with a high content of cellulose and hemicellulose, and using its characteristics to make paperboard can achieve a high-value utilization of PMS, which has attracted growing interest. In this study, currently prevalent landfill, incineration technologies (generating heat and electricity by incineration), and three paperboard technologies (medium density fiberboard, pulp board, and corrugated paper) were evaluated and compared via life cycle assessment (LCA) and life cycle costing (LCC) methods. LCA results show that the PMS-to-pulp board outperforms others with an energy conservation and emission reduction (ECER) value of − 2.86 × 10 −8 , while the landfill exhibits the highest overall environmental impact with an ECER value of 4.80 × 10 −9 . LCC results reveal that the PMS-to-pulp board delivers the highest economic profit with $257.357, while the landfill is the lowest with $ − 35.63. The PMS paperboard technologies are more economically friendly than the incineration technologies due to additional electricity/steam consumption during the PMS pre-drying process in incineration. In addition, different scenarios were set up to explore national GHG emission reduction potential by increasing paperboard technologies application rate and reducing the proportion of landfill and incineration. The scenario analysis suggests that replacing 90% of landfill and incineration ratio with PMS paperboard technologies could tremendously improve the overall emission reduction performance with − 9.08 × 10 10 kg CO 2 eq. This result indicates that the PMS treatment technology transformation has a significant favorable impact on the achievement of the “carbon neutrality” target.

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Data availability

The data that supports the findings of this study are available in the Supplementary Information.

Abbreviations

• Paper mill sludge

Medium density fiberboard

• Life cycle assessment
• Life cycle costing

Life cycle inventory

Chinese life cycle database

Energy conservation and emission reduction

Greenhouse gas

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The authors would like to acknowledge the foundation of Tianjin Research Innovation Projects for Postgraduate Students (Grant no. 2022SKYZ208 and Grant no. 2022SKYZ180).

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College of Energy and Safety Engineering, Tianjin Chengjian University, Tianjin, 300384, China

Yanfei Lin, Hanqiao Liu, Kai Li, Yuwen Zhu, Qianlong Han & Yunzhen Yang

College of Science, Tianjin Chengjian University, Tianjin, 300384, China

Tianjin Urban Planning and Design Institute Co, Ltd, Tianjin, 300000, China

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Contributions

Yanfei Lin: conceptualization, methodology, data curation, writing—original draft. Guoxia Wei: writing—review and editing. Hanqiao Liu: conceptualization, methodology, writing—review and editing. Kai Li: methodology and editing. Yuwen Zhu: conceptualization, writing—review and editing. Qianlong Han: conceptualization, methodology, writing—review and editing. Yunzhen Yang: writing—review and editing. Yi Lian: writing—review and editing.

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Correspondence to Yuwen Zhu .

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Lin, Y., Wei, G., Liu, H. et al. Environmental and economic analysis of the transformation of paper mill sludge treatment technologies in China. Environ Sci Pollut Res (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-024-33708-w

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Received : 07 January 2024

Accepted : 13 May 2024

Published : 27 May 2024

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-024-33708-w

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