environmental science research for everyone
Mangrove forests have been feeling the pressure of climate change. With heat waves and low rainfall, many mangroves along a 1000 km stretch of coastline in northern Australia have been wiped out. However, the dead trees are living on by contributing large methane emissions which has consequences to global mangrove carbon stores and climate change. Read on to find out how the living dead remain active methane emitters.
Read moreShifting baseline syndrome is perpetuated when each new generation perceives the environmental conditions in which they grew up as ‘normal’. It also describes how people’s standards for acceptable environmental conditions are steadily declining.
Read moreMature trees serve as important habitats for a variety of species including insects and birds. Birds use trees for many purposes including nesting, perching, and foraging. Conservationists are exploring strategies to maintain bird populations in areas where mature trees are being lost due to agricultural expansion, wood production, and increased urbanization. In a recent study, scientists in Australia measured how utility poles and erected dead trees impacted the number and abundance of bird species in urbanized regions. The results suggest that artificial structures can offset some, but not all, of the bird loss due to deforestation.
Read moreDelta smelt, a small free-swimming fish native to the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta in California, have been portrayed as the catalyst for failing agriculture in the delta region. As an Endangered Species Act-listed species, delta smelt require increased water allocation to maintain low salinity in an already water-starved area, leaving less water for farmers and their crops. In reality, only a small percentage of freshwater outflow to the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta is being used for fish protection. Through improper management and general disregard for delta smelt recovery, the species is near extinction.
Read moreIn the most recent IPCC report, scientists have concluded that global warming is likely to reach 1.5o C between 2030 and 2052, if it continues to increase at the current rate. To curb this warming, and the host of environmental plagues with it, we must completely halt our carbon emissions by 2050. That’s 30 years. But who is actually on the front-lines of climate change? And why do some people draw parallels between climate change and inequality? Is the key to all of this solving both at the same time?
Read moreHow does a living fish have a radiocarbon age of ~9,000 years BC? A recent study revealed that very old carbon from ancient groundwater actually provides a life-sustaining source of energy to the contemporary food web of wetlands in dry (“arid”) climates.
Read moreWhat are small artificial waterbodies and should we care about their greenhouse gas impact? Recent research in Australia demonstrates to us why we need to start paying attention to farm dam emissions.
Read moreArtículo escrito por Ashley Riane Booth, Febrero 15, 2019. Artículo traducido por Maria Loza Correa. Fueron 40 minutos en taxi
Read more