usa

PFAS, the “forever chemicals” that have been raising health concerns across the country, are not just a problem in drinking water. As these chemicals leach out of failing septic systems and landfills and wash off airport runways and farm fields, they can end up in streams that ultimately discharge into ocean ecosystems where fish, dolphins, manatees, sharks and other marine species live. We study the risks from these persistent pollutants in coastal environments as environmental analytical chemists at Florida International University’s Institute of the Environment. Because PFAS can enter the food chain and accumulate in marine plants and animals, including fish that humans eat, the spread of these chemicals has ecological and human health implications. Biscayne Bay and nearby coastal areas are teeming with fish, including many varieties that people eat. NPS image by Shaun Wolfe I...

During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Detroit residents got a break from water shut-offs. In March 2020, just after the coronavirus made hand-washing a matter of public health, the City of Detroit announced a plan that kept water services on for residents for US$25 a month, with the first payment covered by the state. Although all Detroiters had access to water during the pandemic, they continued to be billed at the higher standard rates. In early 2023, Detroit resumed water shut-offs for bill nonpayment. Approximately 60,000, or 27% of Detroit’s 220,000 residential customers, had past-due bills last summer, according to the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department. The average customer owes $700, but some owe as much as $10,000 due to years of unpaid bills. Although a variety of factors contribute to large past-due balances, water services in Detroit are expensive for many households, and the costs are rising. We are geographers and policy analysts with an intere...

Many people encounter chlorine in their daily lives, whether it’s as an ingredient in household bleach or an additive that sanitizes water in swimming pools. Chlorine is also used as an antiseptic, a bleaching agent in the production of paper and cloth, and to kill microorganisms in drinking water. But this familiar chemical is also extremely toxic. And because it’s ubiquitous in many industries across the U.S., it often is released in chemical accidents and spills. As a pharmaceutical scientist, I study ways in which chemicals and other materials affect the human body. Currently, I am working to develop therapies to counteract chlorine gas exposure and to understand the mechanism by which chlorine harms people. One promising therapy that we are developing is inhalable nanoparticles that counteract lung damage following chlorine gas exposure. A common and dangerous chemical Chlorine is an extremely toxic and widely used chemical. In the U.S., it is one of the top...

When this year’s United Nations Climate Change Conference begins in late November 2023, it will be a moment for course correction. Seven years ago, nearly every country worldwide signed onto the Paris climate agreement. They agreed to goals of limiting global warming – including key targets to be met by 2030, seven years from now. A primary aim of this year’s conference, known as COP28, is to evaluate countries’ progress halfway to the 2030 deadlines. Reports show that the world isn’t on track. At the same time, energy security concerns and disputes over how to compensate countries for loss and damage from climate change are making agreements on cutting emissions tougher to reach. But as energy and environmental policy researchers, we also see signs of progress. Global stocktake raises alarms A cornerstone of COP28 is the conclusion of the global stocktake, a review underway of the world’s efforts to address climate change. It is designed...

Climate change is threatening the survival of plants and animals around the globe as temperatures rise and habitats change. Some species have been able to meet the challenge with rapid evolutionary adaptation and other changes in behavior or physiology. Dark-colored dragonflies are getting paler in order to reduce the amount of heat they absorb from the sun. Mustard plants are flowering earlier to take advantage of earlier snowmelt. Lizards are becoming more cold-tolerant to handle the extreme variability of our new climate. However, scientific studies show that climate change is occurring much faster than species are changing. Zebrafish have evolved to thrive in water a degree or so warmer than normal, but they struggle to survive at higher temperatures. isoft/E+ Getty Images What is evolutionary adaptation? The word “adaptation” is used in many ways by climate scientists, but it has a...