research about environmental issues

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Environmental sciences articles from across Nature Portfolio

Environmental science is the multidisciplinary study of all aspects of the Earth’s physical and biological environments. It encompasses environmental chemistry, soil science, ecology, climatology, vegetation cover, marine and freshwater systems, as well as environmental remediation and preservation, and agriculture and land use.

Greening hydropower in Africa

Hydropower dams offer a pathway for low-carbon energy supply in Africa, yet unchecked dam expansion can harm the environment. A study shows how the integration of different dam environmental concerns into energy system planning can lead to sustainable hydropower development.

• Mohammed Basheer

Climate change and geohazards

Long-term monitoring is required to determine whether climate change is having an impact on shallow geohazard frequency and magnitude; however, these records rarely exist. An innovative approach, using tree damage as evidence, suggests climate change has shifted the seasonality of alpine rockfalls as well as increasing their frequency and volume.

• Anna Harrison
• Claire Dashwood

A sustainable protein ratio

Circularity principles and tipping the ratio of animal- to plant-based proteins towards plant-based diets could largely reduce greenhouse gas emissions and land-use change impacts in the EU28, while avoiding micronutrient losses associated with lower animal-based protein intake.

• Jon Sampedro

Related Subjects

• Environmental chemistry
• Environmental impact

Latest Research and Reviews

Higher exposure to 1,3-butadiene is associated with more severe hearing loss

• Sang-Yoon Han
• Sang-Yeon Lee
• Moo Kyun Park

Light painting photography makes particulate matter air pollution visible

A long-exposure photography technique combined with air pollution monitoring can be used to create light paintings to highlight air pollution and create a broader public discourse on how to improve it, suggests the environmental community project “Air of the Anthropocene”.

• Francis D. Pope
• Robin Price
• Faye Wilder

Zinc and nitrogen mediate the regulation of growth, leading to the upregulation of antioxidant aptitude, physio-biochemical traits, and yield in wheat plants

• Nimra Shehzadi
• Athar Mahmood
• Atiqa Ishtiaq

RhizoNet segments plant roots to assess biomass and growth for enabling self-driving labs

• Zineb Sordo
• Peter Andeer
• Daniela Ushizima

Minimally destructive hDNA extraction method for retrospective genetics of pinned historical Lepidoptera specimens

• Enrique Rayo
• Gabriel F. Ulrich
• Martin C. Fischer

Photocatalytic, antimicrobial and antibiofilm activities of MgFe 2 O 4 magnetic nanoparticles

• Ahmed M. El-Khawaga
• Mohamed Ayman
• Rasha E. Shalaby

News and Comment

Pj zeon award for outstanding papers in polymer journal 2023.

• Keiji Tanaka

How we talk about harmful chemicals in the environment

Environmental contamination is in the news more than ever. Shira Joudan introduces key concepts to talk about what happens to chemicals in the environment and what chemists should consider in their day-to-day lives, both at work and at home.

• Shira Joudan

The urgent need for designing greener drugs

The pervasive contamination of ecosystems with active pharmaceutical ingredients poses a serious threat to biodiversity, ecosystem services and public health. Urgent action is needed to design greener drugs that maintain efficacy but also minimize environmental impact.

• Tomas Brodin
• Michael G. Bertram
• Gorka Orive

Mega engineering projects won’t stop a repeat of the devastating southern Brazil floods

• Luiz Roberto Malabarba
• Fernando Gertum Becker
• Márcio Borges-Martins

Organic product legislation ignores agricultural plastic use — that must change

• Andrea M. Alma
• Micaela Buteler

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Environmental Issues News

Top headlines, latest headlines.

• Mapping the Seafloor Sediment Superhighway
• How Massive Glaciers Flow: Microscopic Defects
• Increasing Threat from Invasive Alien Species
• Thawing Permafrost: Not A Tipping Point
• More and More Greenhouses: Climate Change
• Fjords Are Effective Carbon Traps
• Fish in Mine-Polluted Rivers Genetically ...
• New Coral Disease Forecasting System
• Post-Disaster Pollution Levels
• Antibiotic Pollution, Gut Microbiome and Snails

Earlier Headlines

Tuesday, june 4, 2024.

• Rocky Shores of Pacific Northwest Show Low Resilience to Changes in Climate

Thursday, May 30, 2024

• People Are Altering Decomposition Rates in Waterways
• Historic Iceberg Surges Offer Insights on Modern Climate Change

Wednesday, May 29, 2024

• A Drying Salton Sea Pollutes Neighboring Communities
• What Makes Some Plant Groups So Successful?
• Aerosol Pollution, Greenhouse Gases Must Be Reduced Simultaneously to Keep Forest Fires in Check
• Health Risk from Global Warming Predictor of City Climate Action During COVID-19, Study Finds
• A Novel Multifunctional Catalyst Turns Methane Into Valuable Hydrocarbons

Tuesday, May 28, 2024

• Improved Refrigeration Could Save Nearly Half of the 1.3 Billion Tons of Food Wasted Each Year Globally
• Prenatal Exposure to Air Pollution Associated With Increased Mental Health Risks
• Study Suggests 'biodegradable' Teabags Don't Readily Deteriorate in the Environment and Can Adversely Affect Terrestrial Species
• Simple Food Swaps Could Cut Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Household Groceries by a Quarter
• Global Activity of Seafloor Biodiversity Mapped

Monday, May 27, 2024

• Secrets of Sargassum: Scientists Advance Knowledge of Seaweed Causing Chaos in the Caribbean and West Africa

Thursday, May 23, 2024

• Shedding Light on the Chemical Enigma of Sulfur Trioxide in the Atmosphere
• The Global Clean Water Crisis Looms Large
• Effectiveness of GBGI Infrastructure in Mitigating Urban Heat, Proposing Nine-Stage Framework for Development of a Sustainable City
• Sexual Parasitism Helped Anglerfish Invade the Deep Sea During a Time of Global Warming
• Rising Temperatures Will Significantly Reduce Streamflow in the Upper Colorado River Basin as Groundwater Levels Fall

Wednesday, May 22, 2024

• Chemist Developing Method to Recycle More Plastics
• New Insights Into the Degradation Dynamics of Organic Material in the Seafloor

Tuesday, May 21, 2024

• Conservation of Nature's Strongholds Needed to Halt Biodiversity Loss
• Recycling Carbon Dioxide Into Household Chemicals
• Warming Climate Intensifies Flash Droughts Worldwide

Monday, May 20, 2024

• Electric School Buses May Yield Significant Health and Climate Benefits, Cost Savings
• The Impacts of Climate Change on Food Production
• Digging Up Good News for Microbial Studies
• Decarbonization Dynamics: New Analysis Unveils Shifting Trends in the Voluntary Carbon Offset Market

Friday, May 17, 2024

• Scientists Develop New Geochemical 'fingerprint' To Trace Contaminants in Fertilizer
• Scale Matters in Determining Vulnerability of Freshwater Fish to Climate Changes
• How Heatwaves Are Affecting Arctic Phytoplankton
• Differing Values of Nature Can Still Lead to Joined Up Goals for Sustainability
• Can We Revolutionize the Chemical Industry and Create a Circular Economy? Yes, With the Help of Catalysts

Thursday, May 16, 2024

• Wind Farms Can Offset Their Emissions Within Two Years

Wednesday, May 15, 2024

• Climate Change Likely to Aggravate Brain Conditions
• Copper Can't Be Mined Fast Enough to Electrify the US
• Scientists Want to Know How the Smells of Nature Benefit Our Health
• Summers Warm Up Faster Than Winters, Fossil Shells from Antwerp Show
• Climate Change Is Most Prominent Threat to Pollinators

Tuesday, May 14, 2024

• 90% of Floridians Believe Climate Change Is Happening
• How Wildfires Change Soil Chemistry
• Young Whale's Journey Highlights Threats Facing Ocean Animals
• 2023 Was the Hottest Summer in Two Thousand Years

Monday, May 13, 2024

• Today's World: Fastest Rate of Carbon Dioxide Rise Over the Last 50,000 Years
• The Price Tag of Phasing-out Coal

Friday, May 10, 2024

• New Light Shed on Carboxysomes in Key Discovery That Could Boost Photosynthesis

Thursday, May 9, 2024

• New 'forever Chemical' Cleanup Strategy Discovered
• How Climate Change Will Affect Malaria Transmission
• Improved Wildfire Smoke Model Identifies Areas for Public Health Intervention
• Liberals and Conservatives Differ on Climate Change Beliefs -- But Are Relatively United in Taking Action
• Net Zero Plans Show Limited Climate Ambition on 'residual' Emissions
• Getting Dirty to Clean Up the Chemical Industry's Environmental Impact

Wednesday, May 8, 2024

• Heavy Snowfall and Rain May Contribute to Some Earthquakes
• Climate Resilience Strategies in Urban, Rural Areas
• Limited Adaptability Makes Freshwater Bacteria Vulnerable to Climate Change

Tuesday, May 7, 2024

• Millions in Costs Due to Discharge of Scrubber Water Into the Baltic Sea

Monday, May 6, 2024

• The Clues for Cleaner Water

Friday, May 3, 2024

• Quantifying U.S. Health Impacts from Gas Stoves
• 'Gap' In Carbon Removal: Countries' Plans to Remove CO2 Not Enough

Thursday, May 2, 2024

• Oil Palm Plantations Are Driving Massive Downstream Impact to Watershed
• To Bend the Curve of Biodiversity Loss, Nature Recovery Must Be Integrated Across All Sectors

Tuesday, April 30, 2024

• Activity in a Room Stirs Up Nanoparticles Left Over from Consumer Sprays
• Climate Change and Mercury Pollution Stressed Plants for Millions of Years
• Methane Emissions from Landfill Could Be Turned Into Sustainable Jet Fuel in Plasma Chemistry Leap

Monday, April 29, 2024

• Fading Lights: Multiple Threats to North America's Firefly Populations

Thursday, April 25, 2024

• Voluntary Corporate Emissions Targets Not Enough to Create Real Climate Action
• Estimating Emissions Potential of Decommissioned Gas Wells from Shale Samples
• The Longer Spilled Oil Lingers in Freshwater, the More Persistent Compounds It Produces
• Warming Arctic Reduces Dust Levels in Parts of the Planet

Wednesday, April 24, 2024

• Human Activities Have an Intense Impact on Earth's Deep Subsurface Fluid Flow
• Can Climate Change Accelerate Transmission of Malaria? Pioneering Research Sheds Light on Impacts of Temperature
• Diversity and Productivity Go Branch-in-Branch
• Modeling Broader Effects of Wildfires in Siberia

Tuesday, April 23, 2024

• Frog Species Evolved Rapidly in Response to Road Salts
• Asian Monsoon Lofts Ozone-Depleting Substances to Stratosphere
• Warming Climate Is Putting More Metals Into Colorado's Mountain Streams
• Laser-Treated Cork Absorbs Oil for Carbon-Neutral Ocean Cleanup
• Tropical Fish Are Invading Australian Ocean Water
• No Bull: How Creating Less-Gassy Cows Could Help Fight Climate Change

Friday, April 19, 2024

• Climate Change Will Increase Value of Residential Rooftop Solar Panels Across US, Study Shows
• Warming of Antarctic Deep-Sea Waters Contribute to Sea Level Rise in North Atlantic, Study Finds

Saturday, April 20, 2024

• Invasive Species Sound Off About Impending Ecosystem Changes

Thursday, April 18, 2024

• Coal Train Pollution Increases Health Risks and Disparities
• Fourteen Years After the Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill, Endemic Fishes Face an Uncertain Future
• Marine Microbial Populations: Potential Sensors of the Global Change in the Ocean
• More Sustainability in Global Agricultural Trade

Wednesday, April 17, 2024

• Global Study Reveals Health Impacts of Airborne Trace Elements
• Ice Age Climate Analysis Reduces Worst-Case Warming Expected from Rising CO2
• East Coast Mussel Shells Are Becoming More Porous in Warming Waters
• 38 Trillion Dollars in Damages Each Year: World Economy Already Committed to Income Reduction of 19 % Due to Climate Change
• Understanding Climate Warming Impacts on Carbon Release from the Tundra
• Substantial Global Cost of Climate Inaction
• Exposure to Air Pollution During the First Two Years of Life Is Associated With Worse Attention Capacity in Children
• How Soil Microbes Survive in Harsh Desert Environments
• Unique Field Study Shows How Climate Change Affects Fire-Impacted Forests
• Paradox of Extreme Cold Events in a Warming World

Tuesday, April 16, 2024

• Scientists Develop Framework to Measure Plastic Emissions and Bolster U.N. Efforts to Reduce Pollution
• Researchers Shine Light on Rapid Changes in Arctic and Boreal Ecosystems
• CO2 Worsens Wildfires by Helping Plants Grow
• Study Reveals How Humanity Could Unite to Address Global Challenges
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