Plastic may not always float where we expect it. The ocean’s surface might look clean in some places, but far beneath the waves, a different story is unfolding. 



In the southeastern Mediterranean, the deep seafloor is turning into a massive storage ground for plastic packaging, especially bags. A new study shows how this <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/large-retailers-are-replacing-plastic-bags-with-eco-friendly-paper-bags/">waste</a> ends up thousands of feet below the surface, and the answer isn’t as simple as trash just “sinking.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-plastic-in-the-deep-sea">Plastic in the deep sea</h2>



Plastic debris has entered every corner of the ocean, but previously, most of the research has concentrated on floating plastic or beach trash. That changed with this latest study, which took a closer look at what is occurring on the ocean floor. 



Scientists discovered that the Levant Basin - a deep section of the eastern <a href="https://www.earth.com/image/two-continents-meet-along-the-mediterranean-coastline/">Mediterranean</a> off the coasts of Israel, Egypt, and Turkey - is among the world's most contaminated deep-sea areas.



“We used trawls to survey the seafloor and we mainly found plastic bags and packaging that dominate the debris,” said Xing-Yu Li from the <a href="https://www.haifa.ac.il/?lang=en">University of Haifa</a>, the study’s lead author.



This raised a question: how does something so light - something meant to float - end up nearly a mile underwater?



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-forensic-approach-to-trash">A forensic approach to trash</h2>



To answer that, the team decided to treat each plastic item like a crime scene. Every piece of debris was carefully examined using a method called multi-marker analysis. 



This approach looks at everything about the plastic - size, shape, color, material, surface features, and even what kinds of things are stuck to it, like tar or <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/marine-organisms-may-adapt-to-climate-change-but-with-hidden-costs/">marine organisms</a>.



“In the multi-marker approach anything that is found on a piece of plastic is an evidence,” said Xing-yu. “We extracted as many evidence as possible from every piece of waste, more than many previous studies, to build a fuller, more detailed view of the bottom waste.”



Instead of just counting how much trash was found, this method helped researchers understand how it got there, why it sank, and where it might have come from.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-some-plastic-doesn-t-sink">Why some plastic doesn’t sink</h2>



Most of the plastics found were <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/everyday-kitchen-tool-that-could-be-leaching-toxins-into-your-food-polypropylene-cutting-board/">polyethylene</a> - the same material used in grocery bags. Normally, this kind of plastic floats. But when additives like calcium carbonate (CaCO₃) are mixed in during manufacturing, the plastic becomes heavier. 



Those with CaCO₃ sank closer to the shore. Others, without these additives, drifted farther out before eventually settling on the seafloor.



The study also revealed that the deep basin at over 3,000 feet deep acts like a trap. Pressure and fine sediments help keep the plastic down. 



<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/biofilms-could-change-the-way-we-track-plastic-pollution/">Biofilms</a>, which are slimy layers formed by microbes, usually help weigh plastics down too, but they don’t grow well in this part of the sea. Instead, things like tar, sand, and tiny shells helped plastics stay put.



The scientists noted that these plastic films - while thin and lightweight - are ending up where they can do the most long-term damage. 



Even more troubling, the team found that some of this plastic could become buoyant again if disturbed, but because of how the deep sea works, that rarely happens. Once the plastic settles, it stays.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-where-the-trash-is-coming-from">Where the trash is coming from</h2>



The plastic pollution isn’t only from local beaches. According to the research, land-based sources from Egypt, Israel, and Turkey are a big part of the problem. 



Shipping also plays a role, especially in deeper waters. Surprisingly, fishing was not a major contributor - possibly due to strict Israeli regulations.



For years, scientists noticed high levels of plastic at the seafloor, but they didn’t fully understand why. 



“For years in our monitoring reports we have reported a high concentration of plastic debris in this area. It was an unsolved mystery as we know that <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ocean-floor-harbors-up-to-11-million-tons-of-plastic-debris/">plastic debris</a> should remain floating on the sea surface. Now we have a deep understanding of how it happens,” said Dr. Yael Segal from Israel Oceanographic and Limnological Research (IOLR). 



“The Eastern Mediterranean is the most polluted area in the world, and we must take action for the sake of the next generation.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-long-term-risks-to-marine-life">Long-term risks to marine life</h2>



<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/grapevines-could-offer-a-breakthrough-alternative-to-plastic-packaging/">Plastic packaging</a> is cheap, easy to produce, and used globally - but it doesn’t go away. It breaks into smaller pieces and can remain in the environment for hundreds of years. 



Deep-sea habitats are already fragile, and adding plastic into the mix could disrupt food webs, introduce toxins, and harm species that haven’t even been fully studied yet.



“As the head of the national monitoring program, I see firsthand how plastic pollution is impacting the entire sea environment: beaches, water, sea bottom, and even local turtle populations,” said Dr. Segal.



Professor Revital Bookman said that the discovery is fascinating in the worst possible way. 



"The eastern Mediterranean is quietly turning into a deep-sea landfill. Plastics that we use for only a few minutes are ending up trapped for centuries, threatening deep marine ecosystems we barely understand," noted Professor Bookman. 



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-needs-to-happen-next">What needs to happen next</h2>



According to the researchers, this study changes how we should think about ocean pollution. Plastic doesn’t just float around until it hits a beach. It travels far, interacts with other pollutants like tar, and ends up in hidden places. 



“This previously overlooked dynamic necessitates a broader perspective on pollution processes in marine environments,” said Professor Bookman. 



“Without systematic deep-sea accounting, we risk underestimating the true environmental footprint of plastic pollution and misallocating mitigation efforts by neglecting offshore and deep-sea sinks.”



To deal with this, the experts call for coordinated efforts across the region. Countries that share the sea need to work together on monitoring, cleanup, and prevention. 



Without a shared strategy, plastics will continue piling up, silently choking one of the planet’s most mysterious ecosystems.



The full study was published in the journal <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0025326X25009671?via%3Dihub" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Marine Pollution Bulletin</a>.



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Hidden plastic graveyard uncovered in the deep Mediterranean Sea

Plastic may not always float where we expect it. The ocean’s surface might look clean in some places, but far beneath the waves, a different story is unfolding. In the southeastern Mediterranean, the deep seafloor is turning into a massive storage ground for plastic packaging, especially bags. A new study shows how this waste ends up thousands of feet below the surface, and the answer isn’t as simple as trash just “sinking.” Plastic in the deep sea Plastic debris has entered every corner of the ocean, but...

I recently spent a night at Gordon Hirabayashi Campground in the Coronado National Forest located outside of Tucson, Arizona.  The campground is lovely, nestled into an oak and juniper dry scrubland that puts into mind of parts of the Colorado Plateau far north of there.  Rather, Gordon Hirabayashi is part of a sky island in the form of Mount Lemmon that rises from the <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/cacti-birds-sonoran-desert/">Sonoran Desert</a>. The campground is located just off the 800+ mile Arizona Trail with a few other trails nearby as well.  Streams were flowing everywhere through the arid landscape of canyons and cliffs. The day was cool when my fiance Erin and I hiked along the Arizona Trail with our dogs, the air full of bird noise. 

The place certainly was lovely, but something bothered me.  I knew who Gordon Hirabayashi was but it would’ve been pretty easy to ignore the one small sign near the campground that told a short story about him.  According to the <a href="https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/coronado/recarea/?recid=25648">US Forest Service website</a>, Hirabayashi was a senior studying at the University of Washington in 1942. Hirabayashi boldly challenged the constitutionality of Japanese internment camps and was sentenced to serve in the so-called Federal Honor Camp where the campground of his name sake is now.  Of course, Hirabayashi was but a small part of a much greater tragedy. Following Pearl Harbor, 120,000 people of Japanese ancestry were forcibly removed from their homes on the west coast, given only short notice to tend their affairs. Some lost their houses permanently and never returned.  For years, these people were kept imprisoned like Hirabayashi. 

Eventually, Hirabayashi’s case was overturned and it was found unconstitutional to imprison someone on the basis of race or ancestry. But it was too late to help the Japanese Americans that were imprisoned during World War II. At the campground, there is little to suggest much of this.  There are the decaying remains of concrete and stone structures, many with indeterminate functions, hidden under leaves, bound by tree roots. No interpretive sign tells what these structures, almost certainly built by prisoners, really are. The camp also held conscientious objectors and before Hirabayashi, criminals, and little of this history is told at the actual location.  

To be fair, there are other locations in the US where the federal government tells this disturbing chapter of our nation’s history.  <a href="https://www.nps.gov/manz/index.htm">Manzanar National Historic Site</a> in California is an old Japanese Internment camp maintained by the National Park Service.  In Washington DC, as part of the <a href="https://www.nps.gov/places/japanese-american-memorial-to-patriotism-during-world-war-ii.htm">National Mall and Memorial Parks</a> also maintained by the National Park Service, there is a memorial statue of a crane tangled in barbed wire to represent the struggles of interned Japanese Americans.  For an instance that involved a gross overreach of federal power and the unjust imprisonment of 120,000 men, women and children, it’s still an easy event to forget in America.  Other tragedies perpetrated in the US are even easier to ignore.

<a href="https://www.wilderness.org/articles/article/13-parks-and-monuments-celebrate-black-history">Wilderness.org</a> lists 13 parks and monuments that celebrate black history.  Tellingly, only one of the monuments, <a href="https://www.nps.gov/hart/index.htm">Harriet Tubman National Historic Park</a> in New York, celebrates and tells the courageous story of the Underground Railroad leader who shuttled so many slaves to freedom in the North.  Two other monuments indirectly talk about slavery – <a href="https://www.nps.gov/afbg/index.htm">African Burial Ground National Monument</a> is a 17th century graveyard of Africans, freed and slaves in New York, only recently discovered during construction in 1991.  <a href="https://www.nps.gov/reer/index.htm">Reconstruction Era National Monument</a> in South Carolina tells the history of African Americans recently freed and trying to make a new life from themselves in a devastated south, the monument includes a historic school building for recently freed children. Tellingly, all of these places were declared National Monuments under president Obama.  The rest of the parks and monuments on the wilderness list include monuments to the civil rights struggle and the achievements of a few African Americans and some parks not dedicated specifically to African American history at all but including it. Many of the parks dedicated to the civil rights struggle were also declared by president Obama.  There are no national monuments dedicated specifically to the history of slavery itself; meaning no plantation homes, nowhere to see auction blocks where men, women, children were torn apart, humiliated and abused for greed justified by racist views. Americans are much more comfortable with memorials for Martin Luther King than seeing the horror at the root of the African American experience.

Parks that don’t have to confront the history of slavery usually don’t. A handful of public lands are dedicated to issues connected to slavery but others talk of slave owners, ignoring the plight of their slaves or even their existence.      

Obviously, the history is a dark one that should be approached with respect, but it’s a reality that every American should come to terms with, whatever their race.  

<a href="https://www.nps.gov/sand/index.htm">Sand Creek Massacre National Historic Park</a> in Colorado, is the first park in the United States to contain the word ‘massacre’.  The park is a small first towards recognizing the systematic attempted genocide and cultural destruction of Native Americans.  The park is dedicated to one instance in 1864 when peaceful Southern Cheyenne and Arapaho, mainly women and children, were butchered by Colonel John Chivington’s Colorado volunteers, <a href="https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/sand-creek-massacre">History</a> reports.  At the time, the event was celebrated in Denver, scalps paraded through town, coin purses made from Native American scrotums to memorialize the ‘battle’.  Much of the real ignoble history of the massacre of peaceful natives by American soldiers was suppressed by official silence and forced indoctrination by ‘education’ in schools for Native Americans.

We have a few official national monuments dedicated to remembering and learning from our dark past, but we need more.  We have no hauntingly complete and present Auschwitz to visit and smell the smoke of the terrible fires of hatred.                                        

--

By <a href="mailto:zachfitzner@yahoo.com">Zach Fitzner</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Contributing Writer

Memorializing tragedy and the darker side of American history

I recently spent a night at Gordon Hirabayashi Campground in...

Ticks do not necessarily flock to an unmowed lawn. When researchers discussed the solution of less frequent lawn mowing to improve the habitat for native bees, concerns were immediately raised about how this may allow ticks to thrive. The team set out to test the common assumption that <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/ticks-trapped-amber/">ticks</a> prefer long grass.

“The first thing people said was that letting the grass get longer would invite ticks,” said Susannah Lerman, a research ecologist with the <a href="https://www.fs.fed.us/">USDA Forest Service</a> Northern Research Station. “It was clear that before we could make the case for promoting lawns as bee habitat, we had to understand the tick risk.”

The study was designed to evaluate whether less frequent lawn mowing in residential lawns across Springfield, Massachusetts, could promote floral resources to provide viable habitats for native bees. The experts surveyed for bees and blacklegged ticks, also known as deer ticks, every three weeks. Ticks do not necessarily flock to an unmowed lawn

In 16 suburban lawns over the course of two summers, the team documented 111 bee species, which represents about one-quarter of all known bees in Massachusetts. However, a total of 144 tick drags in lawns of various lawn mowing frequencies and grass heights produced not a single tick.

“There are obvious limitations to this study in terms of establishing the risk of ticks,” said Lerman. “We sampled for a single species of tick, and our study was limited to 16 residential lawns in a single city. Still, our study has two significant takeaways: you do not necessarily invite ticks if you mow the lawn every other week instead of every week, and common assumptions about nature are always worth investigating; scientists may be surprised by what we find.”

Blacklegged ticks are known to carry Lyme disease, a tick-borne infection that is prevalent in the Northeast. Study co-author and research entomologist Vince D'Amico said that while blacklegged ticks are undoubtedly present in residential lawns, the grassy part of a property is probably too dry for the tick. 

“This species needs near 100 percent humidity for at least part of the day,” said D'Amico. “Where we have leaf litter, the ticks do very well.”

In the United States, an estimated 40 million acres of residential lawns managed in both public and private have the potential to become viable habitats for native bee species.

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/">PLOS ONE</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Ticks do not necessarily flock to an unmowed lawn

Ticks do not necessarily flock to an unmowed lawn. When...

On the Hawaiian island of <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/endangered-birds-found-oahu/">Oahu</a>, native birds have nearly been replaced by invasive bird species. A new study has revealed that local plants now depend almost entirely on invasive birds to disperse their seeds.

The findings suggest that ecological communities dominated by non-native species can be as dynamic and stable as native communities, and that invasive species are taking on important roles in these complex ecosystems. 

Previous studies have shown that interactions between plants and animals are extremely sensitive to invasive species or extinctions. Many of these networks, however, have only been investigated in native-dominated communities where invasive species are not present. The studies may have also failed to account for the coevolved interactions between plants and animals that have formed over long time spans.

[caption id="attachment_1870783" align="aligncenter" width="650"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/Native-plants-on-Oahu-depend-on-non-native-birds-for-survival-.jpg"><img class="wp-image-1870783" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/Native-plants-on-Oahu-depend-on-non-native-birds-for-survival-.jpg" alt="" width="650" height="434" /></a> Oahu[/caption]

As human activities drive more and more species invasions and extinctions worldwide, the new ecological communities that are emerging are not well understood. Scientists do not know how these modified ecosystems compare to native communities.

To investigate, a research team led by Jefferson Vizentin-Bugoni analyzed the bird-based seed dispersal networks on Oahu Hawaii, where invasive bird species are now dominant. The scientists identified over 100,000 seeds collected from bird feces across Oahu and found that native plants are almost entirely dependent on invasive birds for seed dispersal. 

Furthermore, the researchers discovered that the newly developed networks on Oahu strongly resemble the stable structure of networks that are still dominated by native species across the globe. According to the experts, this indicates that ecological communities can arise over a short period of time, and can do so independently of the species involved. 

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.sciencemag.org/">Science</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Main Image Credit: Jeferson Vizentin-Bugoni

Native plants on Oahu depend on non-native birds for survival

On the Hawaiian island of Oahu, native birds have nearly...

President Trump stirred up controversy after making a bizarre statement against wind turbines during the <a href="https://www.c-span.org/video/?459408-1/president-trump-remarks-national-republican-congressional-committee-dinner">National Republican Congressional Committee Dinner</a> on Tuesday night.

“If you have a windmill anywhere near your house, congratulations, your house just went down 75% in value,” Trump said during a speech. “And they say the noise causes cancer. You tell me that one, OK?” 

The president’s claims are not true, and they caught the attention of Republican Senator Charles Grassley, who is a huge advocate for wind energy and the wind energy tax credit. 

On Wednesday, responding to reporters, the Iowa senator said that the comment was “idiotic,” according to the <a href="https://www.desmoinesregister.com/">Des Moines Register</a>. 

Grassley was also one of 19 senators to sign a bipartisan appeal for more federal wind energy funding. 

In the appeal, Grassley along with Senator Jeff Merkley hailed wind energy as an “American Success Story.” Currently, wind energy employs more than 100,000 people, and Iowa has a leader in wind energy in the US. 

According to the <a href="https://www.iaenvironment.org/our-work/clean-energy/wind-energy">Iowa Environmental Council</a>, Iowa was the first state to generate over 30 percent of electricity through wind energy. 

“Pretty simple. I wish his staff would tell him I’m the father and now the grandfather of wind energy tax credits. I don’t think he knows it, or I don’t think he’d make those comments that aren’t quite appropriate,” Grassley said.

While studies have shown that the sound disturbances from wind turbines can be a source of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/can-living-near-wind-turbines-have-an-effect-your-health/">annoyance and stress </a>to residents who live nearby, there have not been any proven links between cancer or headaches.

Wind turbines do pose a risk to migrating birds and<a href="https://www.earth.com/search-results/?search=wind+turbine"> bird populations</a>, and research into these impacts, including possible links to human health impacts are crucial to the advancement of renewables in the United States. 

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette,</a> <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Paid for by <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a>

Republican senator calls out Trump’s “idiotic” remarks on wind turbines

President Trump stirred up controversy after making a bizarre statement...

So far, 2019 has been a good year for an abundance of wildflowers.  So-called 'super blooms' have been reported in the hostile climates of <a href="https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/03/160302-death-valley-super-bloom-wildflowers-weather/">Death Valley</a>, <a href="https://www.desertusa.com/wildflo/az.html">Phoenix</a>, and elsewhere.  According to the <a href="https://www.desertusa.com/wildflo/az.html">Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum</a>, there are some critical factors involved in how many wildflowers will bloom in any given spring.  

Desert wildflowers germinate in the fall.  A rain during the germination period is important for wildflowers in the spring.  This initial trigger rain is followed by an unusually wet winter season for a ‘super bloom’ to occur.  Spectacular blooms occur in the Sonoran and Mojave deserts about once every 10 years. Of course, perennial desert plants often flower with less rain the pickier perennials dependent on rain for germination.  Southern California has been the heart of this particular super bloom, much of the landscape being covered in a veritable sea of golden poppies.

Lake Elsinore, a Southern California town located on the shores of a lake by the same name, has been a popular destination for visitors.  Lake Elsinore is in an area long inhabited by Native Americans and until recently been a small town, now grown to a population of over <a href="https://factfinder.census.gov/faces/nav/jsf/pages/community_facts.xhtml?src=bkmk">60,000</a>.  News and social media have made this part of California especially popular.  Not only super blooms of wild flowers but also large numbers of <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/orange-butterflies-southern-california/">painted lady butterflies</a> (Vanessa cardui) are being attracted by the flowers.  The butterfly migrates from Mexico into California in one generation and further north in the next, the generation after starting a southern migration.  In 2005, during a year of exceptionally good blooms, it was estimated that there were billions of butterflies flying over Southern California, according to <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/southern-california-skies-fill-butterflies-thanks-painted-lady-migration-n982551">NBC News</a>.  Now, the city of Lake Elsinore is being crowded even more by people.  

[caption id="attachment_1870745" align="aligncenter" width="650"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/Lake-Elsinore-California-USA.-March-21-2019.jpg"><img class="wp-image-1870745" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/Lake-Elsinore-California-USA.-March-21-2019.jpg" alt="" width="650" height="351" /></a> Super bloom in Lake Elsinore, California on March 21, 2019[/caption]

According to <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/california-superbloom-poppies-2632104685.html">Ecowatch</a>, as many as 50,000 tourists visited Lake Elsinore to see the fields of poppies, nearly doubling the population.  Traffic leading to the best places to view the super blooms has been congested and slow. People trampled the flowers to get the best selfies in the fields of blooms.  Quickly, elation over natural beauty turned to discomfort caused by the massive influx of tourists. Photos captioned #superbloom by tourists were quickly followed by photos tagged #poppynightmare on social media.  The city of Lake Elsinore itself has taken to bemoaning the influx of visitors on its FaceBook page.

<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/mar/18/super-bloom-lake-elsinore-poppies-flowers">The Guardian</a> reports that the situation got so bad that Walker Canyon, one of the more popular places to visit the poppy super bloom, was closed temporarily.  In the midst of the swarms of people, not only is the city becoming crowded and the roadways congested, the poppies themselves are being loved to death.  In the frenzy to see and photograph the super bloom, people are actually trampling the flowers under foot. The problem is spread across Southern California, not just Lake Elsinore.

<a href="http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=627">Antelope Valley Poppy Reserve</a>, a California State natural reserve, is another popular place to view the super bloom.  The official website encourages visitors to come and enjoy the fields blanketed in flowers but advises those that do to stay on official trails, not bring dogs and to not pick the flowers.  Commercial or student film and photography also requires a permit. What the rules don’t explicitly say is to not land a helicopter in a poppy field.

[caption id="attachment_1870746" align="aligncenter" width="650"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/super-bloom-in-death-valley.jpg"><img class="wp-image-1870746" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/super-bloom-in-death-valley.jpg" alt="" width="650" height="373" /></a> Super bloom in Death Valley[/caption]

Recently, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/mar/27/helicopter-lands-super-bloom-california">The Guardian</a> reports, a couple did just that.  A helicopter landed in an open field of poppies and a man and woman got out and started walking around, crushing even more of the flowers than their helicopter did.  As law enforcement officials approached, the two jumped into the helicopter and quickly flew away. This act, although not described in the rules on the official reserve website, is illegal and is now being investigated.  Officials are also on the lookout for people entering the reserve illegally by ducking through barbed wire fences. With the number of visitors now, it’s easy to worry about the poppies being trampled. All this havoc is despite early preparations in California.  

At Lake Elsinore, officials knew of the possibility of crowding and damage from tourists.  In 2017, tourists arrived in large groups to view that years stunning super bloom. Observing the weather over the winter, city officials tried to prepare, reports <a href="https://www.pe.com/2019/03/01/two-years-after-stunning-wildflower-superbloom-stopped-traffic-lake-elsinore-takes-precautions/">The Press-Enterprise</a>. More law enforcement officers were made to be present and more signs were put up to warn people off the poppy fields, yet the mess seemed almost unavoidable given the power of social media.  Walker Canyon is managed for wildlife and native plants, with a few trails, so the focus isn’t on tourism or recreation but conservation, which makes managing the huge number of visitors a challenge.  

Not only the plants and wildlife suffer, but the tourists endangered themselves and others as well.  People were pulling onto the shoulder of roads to illegally take selfies. Rattlesnakes come out of hibernation around this time and at least one super bloom visitor was bitten by a snake, another was injured scrambling over rocks to flee a snake.  Unfortunately, beautiful places often suffer from people ‘loving them to death’. 

California is a huge tourist destination and many popular hiking and camping destinations there and across the west are increasingly crowded, sometimes with people unaware of proper outdoor etiquette.  Huge numbers of visitors combine with other challenges to conservation, such as climate change which may be affecting iconic plants in places such as Joshua Tree National Park and <a href="https://www.nps.gov/sagu/index.htm">Saguaro National Park</a>.  The poppies and other flowering plants part of the super bloom may be affected as well.  It may seem to some like this recent super bloom repudiates the idea of a trend towards hotter drier weather, as but <a href="https://www.desertsun.com/story/desert-magazine/2017/05/05/dont-let-super-bloom-fool-you-climate-shifts-changing-local-landscape/310810001/">Desert Sun</a> reports, it’s just an anomaly.

Fewer young Joshua Trees are growing in <a href="https://www.nps.gov/jotr/index.htm">Joshua Tree National Park</a>, one of the places to see the spectacular super bloom, despite this year’s especially wet conditions.  Annual flowers are one thing; quickly growing plants depending on only one season of good moisture to thrive – for a year.  Joshua Trees and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/decline-saguaro/">cacti</a> are another thing – slow growing plants that can establish themselves in dry hot conditions but may have a hard time when young as the climate becomes increasingly hotter.  Fewer super blooms seem likely in the future as well, despite this one and the tourists will make it harder for the flowers to continue to bloom even in the rare conditions when they can in such numbers.   

--

By <a href="mailto:zachfitzner@yahoo.com">Zach Fitzner</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Contributing Writer

As stunning super blooms spring up, tourists often get carried away

So far, 2019 has been a good year for an...

While many people are ramping up their efforts to <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/students-protest-climate-change-inaction/">combat climate change</a>, there’s only so much that can be done at an individual level, especially when few incentives exist at the city, state, and national levels to encourage sustainability and lower greenhouse gas emissions. 

Businesses and communities have expressed interest in trying to lower emissions or prepare for the predicted <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/economic-impact-climate-change/">impacts of climate change</a>, but some remain unsure of the best places to start. 

To help remedy this gap between climate change studies and action, in 2016 a federal advisory committee formed under President Obama began working on ways to make the National Climate Assessment more accessible for communities. 

The <a href="https://nca2014.globalchange.gov/">National Climate Assessment</a> is an interagency group that summarizes and reports on climate science and the impacts of climate change.

In 2017, the climate change panel was disbanded by President Trump, but the committee has now regrouped. 

The newly established Independent Advisory Committee on Applied Climate Assessment recently published a report detailing recommendations for how communities should proceed in preparing for climate change. 

The report was published in the journal Weather, Climate and Society which is backed by the <a href="https://www.ametsoc.org/index.cfm/ams/">American Meteorological Society</a>, a key supporter of the new committee. 

“We live in an era of climate change, and yet many of our systems, codes, and standards have not caught up,” said Daniel Zarrilli, New York City's chief climate policy advisor. “Integrating climate science into everyday decisions is not just smart planning, it's an urgent necessity," 

New York City is one of only a few cities that has a climate change panel, and this new report provides a helpful framework that cities and towns can use in establishing their own policy advisory committee and panel. 

“The point is to take what we know, make it usable for the communities, and increase their confidence in weighing the tradeoffs and opportunities that come with different strategies for adaptation and mitigation,” said Richard Moss, a visiting senior research scientist at Columbia's Earth Institute and chairman of the Independent Advisory Committee.

The panel helped launch a new network called the Science to Climate Action Network which includes experts from state, local and tribal settings. 

Having resources like the Science to Climate Action Network, local governments will have a better idea of where to turn for guidance on how to help mitigate the impacts of climate change such as sea level rise or wildfires. These impacts are being felt in increasing severity worldwide. 

The network will also help provide a platform where experts and communities can work together and collaborate, share projects in progress and weigh the pros and cons of enacting certain policies. 

“Many of the ideas come from decision-makers, community-based organizations, and climate experts who help users apply knowledge,” said Moss. “We're trying to produce something that adds value for those on the front lines of preparing their communities for climate change.”

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>,<a href="https://www.earth.com/"> Earth.com</a> Staff Writer 

Paid for by <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a>

Federal climate panel disbanded by Trump has now regrouped

While many people are ramping up their efforts to combat...

Dating tree rings, also known as dendrochronology, has helped researchers understand past climates, precipitation, and other environmental factors that have <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/earths-tropical-belt-shifting/">impacted tree growth</a> through the years.

But now in a new study, researchers from the <a href="https://www.shh.mpg.de/en">Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History</a> have used tree ring data to study early human activity and forest management practices in pre-colonial Brazil 400 years ago. 

It’s long been thought that forests in the Amazon Basin were “pristine” and that humans only sparsely inhabited the area until Europeans arrived in the 16th century. 

But archeological evidence provides proof to the contrary showing that before the arrival of Europeans, pre-Columbian societies were involved in widespread plant domestication, forest management, and landscape alteration. 

Today, the Amazon is home to many key tree species, but these forests are threatened due to climate change and human activities.

By studying these early instances of forest management, we have a better chance of preserving and managing our forests in the future considering the drastic changes that the world’s forests have undergone with the rise of industrialization. 

For the study, published in the journal <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0214128">PLOS ONE</a>, the researchers focused on a neotropical tree species, the Brazil nut tree, to show how human activities 400 years ago influenced tree growth and forest biodiversity. 

“The results of this study demonstrate that Brazil nut tree growth reflects human occupation intensity and management,” said Victor Caetano Andrade, the lead author of the study. “This is one more step to understanding the crucial interactions that led the Amazon forest to be the dynamic, humanized landscape it is today.” 

The team collected tree samples using a non-destructive method of removing small samples starting from the bark to the center of the tree in Central Amazonia near Manaus. 

The area surveyed has a rich density of Brazil nut trees, and the researchers analyzed tree ring data from the cores of 67 trees in total. 

After collecting the tree rings, the researchers compared the core data to historical data on human activity in the area dating back 400 years ago. 

What the tree ring data showed was that there was a distinct change in the forest region between pre- and post-colonization. After the Portuguese colonized the area, populations of the Mura indigenous people who had practiced forest management declined. 

This decline resulted in no new trees being planted in the area, and the researchers say this indicates a disruption in forest management.

[caption id="attachment_1870741" align="aligncenter" width="650"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/brazil-nut-fruit-and-tree-in-the-background.jpg"><img class="wp-image-1870741" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/brazil-nut-fruit-and-tree-in-the-background.jpg" alt="" width="650" height="823" /></a> Brazil nut fruit and tree in the background. Image Credit: Victor L. Caetano Andrade[/caption]

The tree ring data shows a later period of renewed tree growth and the establishment of new trees after this pause which matches modern forest management practices in the 19th and 20th century. 

Not only does the study show that pre-colonial indigenous populations domesticated Brazil nut trees and managed forests and agricultural, but also that tree rings are like time capsules that can help researchers create clear pictures of past climates, weather extremes, and human activities. 

“Our findings shed light on how past histories of human-forest interactions can be revealed by the growth rings of trees in Amazonia,” said Caetano Andrade. “Future interdisciplinary analysis of these trees, including the use of genetics and isotopes, should enable more detailed investigations into how human forest management has changed in this part of the world, through pre-colonial, colonial, and industrial periods of human activity, with potential implications for conservation.”

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Tree rings reveal pre-colonial forest management in the Amazon

Dating tree rings, also known as dendrochronology, has helped researchers...

A new study from the <a href="https://www.coralcoe.org.au/">ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies at James Cook University</a> has assessed the damage across the <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/australia-save-great-barrier-reef/">Great Barrier Reef</a> (GBR) that was caused by global warming in recent years. The team found that the heat-induced stress has compromised the ability of the corals to recover.

“Dead corals don't make babies,” said study lead author Professor Terry Hughes. “The number of new corals settling on the Great Barrier Reef declined by 89 percent following the unprecedented loss of adult corals from global warming in 2016 and 2017.”

The researchers measured how many adult corals survived along the length of the GBR, and how many new corals were produced to replenish the reef in 2018. The loss of adult corals resulted in a crash in coral replenishment.

“The number of coral larvae that are produced each year, and where they travel to before settling on a reef, are vital components of the resilience of the Great Barrier Reef,” said study co-author Professor Andrew Baird. “Our study shows that reef resilience is now severely compromised by global warming.”

“The biggest decline in replenishment, a 93% drop compared to previous years, occurred in the dominant branching and table coral, Acropora. As adults these corals provide most of the three-dimensional coral habitat that support thousands of other species.”

[caption id="attachment_1870716" align="aligncenter" width="650"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/Great-Barrier-Reef-is-struggling-to-recover-from-extreme-heat-stress.jpg"><img class="wp-image-1870716" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/Great-Barrier-Reef-is-struggling-to-recover-from-extreme-heat-stress.jpg" alt="Image Credit: ARC CoE for Coral Reef Studies/ Gergely Torda" width="650" height="446" /></a> Recruitment tiles were deployed at 15 reefs along the Great Barrier Reef, Image Credit: ARC CoE for Coral Reef Studies/ Gergely Torda[/caption]

Professor Baird explained that the mix of baby coral species has shifted, which will affect the mix of adults during a slow recovery over the next decade or more.

“The decline in coral recruitment matches the extent of mortality of the adult broodstock in different parts of the Reef,” said Professor Hughes. “Areas that lost the most corals had the greatest declines in replenishment.”

“We expect coral recruitment will gradually recover over the next five to ten years, as surviving corals grow and more of them reach sexual maturity, assuming of course that we don't see another mass bleaching event in the coming decade.”


Global warming has triggered four mass bleaching events across the Great Barrier Reef in 1998, 2002, 2016, and 2017. Experts are warning that the gap between coral bleaching events will continue to shrink as climate change intensifies.

“It's highly unlikely that we could escape a fifth or sixth event in the coming decade,” said co-author Professor Morgan Pratchett. “We used to think that the Great Barrier Reef was too big to fail - until now.”

“For example, when one part was damaged by a cyclone, the surrounding reefs provided the larvae for recovery. But now, the scale of severe damage from heat extremes in 2016 and 2017 was nearly 1500 km - vastly larger than a cyclone track.”

Professor Hughes concluded that the only way to fix this problem is “to tackle the root cause of global heating by reducing net greenhouse gas emissions to zero as quickly as possible.”

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/">Nature</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Paid for by <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a>

The Great Barrier Reef is struggling to recover from extreme heat stress

A new study from the ARC Centre of Excellence for...

The remains of six humans recovered from a cave in France are providing new clues into the lives of <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/neanderthals-upright-posture-modern-humans/">Neanderthals</a> who lived in the region 120,000 years ago. Human teeth marks found on the bones indicate that climate change forced the Neanderthals to resort to cannibalism. 

According to researchers at the <a href="https://www.cnrs.fr/en/aboutcnrs/overview.htm">French National Centre for Scientific Research</a> (CNRS), global warming would have made the large animals hunted by Neanderthals scarce. The planet was in the midst of a major transition from an ice age to a much warmer climate.

The remains, which were initially found 20 years ago in the Moula-Guercy cave in France, showed signs that instruments were used to break open the bones to expose marrow. The skulls had also been smashed open, most likely for access to the brains. 

The analysis of the teeth collected for the study revealed that the hominids were suffering from prolonged periods of malnutrition. The study authors said their findings provide the “best evidence” of cannibalism at this time.

[caption id="attachment_1870728" align="aligncenter" width="631"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/bones-reveal-signs-of-cannibalism.jpg"><img class="wp-image-1870728 size-full" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/bones-reveal-signs-of-cannibalism.jpg" alt="" width="631" height="697" /></a> Recovered bones reveal signs of cannibalism, Image Credit: Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences[/caption]

“The work at the Moula-Guercy cave allows us for the first time to demonstrate the existence of the practice of cannibalism by European Neanderthals,” said Dr. Alban Defleur.

The researchers believe that the six humans, including two adults, two teenagers, and two children, were killed out of necessity to feed the starving population.

“Cut marks are spread over 50 percent of the human remains and distributed over the entire skeleton from the cranium, jaws, and bones in the hand,” wrote the researchers. “Percussion marks are visible on all the skulls, all the long bones and other bones of adults and children.”

The experts theorize that the bodies were first dismembered and then stripped of their meat. There is also evidence on four of the bones that they had been used by the Neanderthals as tools.

The study is published in the <a href="https://www.journals.elsevier.com/journal-of-archaeological-science">Journal of Archaeological Science</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Paid for by <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a>

Climate change may have forced Neanderthals to resort to cannibalism

The remains of six humans recovered from a cave in...

According to a new study released by the <a href="https://www.aaas.org/">American Association for the Advancement of Science</a>, children who live close to protected areas designated by the <a href="https://www.iucn.org/ru">International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)</a> often live in healthier and wealthier households. 

The study, completed by Robin Naidoo, from the <a href="https://www.worldwildlife.org/pages/robin-naidoo-ph-d">World Wildlife Fund’s Conservation Science Program</a>, and colleagues, suggests that <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/national-parks-endangered-species/">conservation zones</a> could not only help wildlife but also global poverty and poor health.

Naidoo and his colleagues analyzed the environmental and socioeconomic conditions of over 87,000 children in 34 developing countries. 

They found that children who live within 10 kilometers of a protected zone with connected tourism attractions had 17% higher wealth levels and a 16% lower likelihood of poverty compared to children living in similar households but farther away from protected areas.

Furthermore, children aged 5 and under who lived near multiple-use protected areas — areas in which natural resources can be sustainably harvested — with associated tourism were often 10% taller than children living farther away from conservation zones, and were also 13% less likely to experience stunted growth.

The study could not find any negative aspects of children living near protected zones. Therefore, protecting more wildlife areas could benefit both humans, flora, and fauna.

--

By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Children who live near protected areas live in healthier homes

According to a new study released by the American Association...

Previous <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/green-spaces-lower-mental-illness/">research has shown</a> how spending more time out in nature helps boost mental health and wellbeing. But now, a new study has found that areas with more trees and greenspace spend less money Medicare costs.

While the research does not prove a direct cause and effect between lower healthcare spending and greenspace, but the findings further emphasize the positive impact of living in areas with ample access to nature. 

The study was conducted by researchers from the <a href="https://illinois.edu/">University of Illinois</a> and published in the journal Urban Forestry and Urban Greening. 

“Previous studies have looked at any health outcomes people think might be linked to nature: depression, cardiovascular disease, physical activity levels, even recovery from surgery,” said Douglas Becker, University of Illinois graduate student and leader of the research. “But there is also a lot of work – including experimental work, which we consider to be the strongest – showing a link between exposure to green space and beneficial health effects.” 

For the study, Becker and colleagues reviewed and analyzed environmental and health data from 3,806 counties in the continental U.S. 

To assess the volume and type of greenspace present in each county, data was collected from the <a href="https://www.mrlc.gov/">National Land Cover Database</a> which shows how much forest, open space, grassland, and urban developed space cover a 30-meter square plot in a county. 

The researchers then took these plots and matched them to Medicare spending data for that county. 

“We took the average of different types of land cover and the per capita Medicare spending in a county and compared these two while controlling for several socioeconomic and demographic factors like age, sex, race, median household income, health care access, and health behaviors,” said Becker. 

For each county, one percent of forest land cover was linked to $4.32 in Medicare savings per person, per year, and this held true even when accounting for different factors the researchers found. 

“If you multiply that by the number of Medicare fee-for-service users in a county and by the average forest cover and by the number of counties in the U.S., it amounts to about $6 billion in reduced Medicare spending every year nationally,” said Becker. 

Forest and shrub cover had the most positive impact, and the researchers did not identify any links between lower Medicare costs and other types of agricultural or open space land cover. 

Becker will continue to research this relationship and next plans to focus and individual and health and environmental data. 

--

By<a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com"> Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer 

Paid for by <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a>

Areas with more trees and greenspace spend less money on Medicare costs

Previous research has shown how spending more time out in...

Plastic straw bans have been popping up in cities and restaurants throughout the United States. These bans seek to address the plastic pollution crisis currently plaguing our oceans but the bans have been subject to considerable criticism.

Big companies such as Starbucks have announced plans to <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/starbucks-plastic-straws/#.XKDtpOtKjOQ">phase out plastic straws</a> and California recently banned restaurants from automatically giving out plastic straws.

Critics of bans such as these often cite concerns that banning plastic straws will do little to address plastic pollution as a whole. While plastic straws are ubiquitous in our everyday life, they are not the most common pollutant of our oceans.

During an international coastal cleanup event, plastic straws were the<a href="https://oceanconservancy.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/FINAL-2018-ICC-REPORT.pdf"> seventh most common item</a> collected. In the United States, plastic straws make up<a href="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5522e85be4b0b65a7c78ac96/t/5aa0618a8165f553aa68b8b8/1520631281665/5+Gyres+BAN+List2.pdf"> 7.5%</a> of plastic litter. It seems reasonable then to wonder if we should be addressing more prevalent pollutants.

But this criticism fails to consider that plastic straw bans are a jumping off point to begin changing consumers’ behaviors more widely. Plastic straws are an easy item to ban because plastic straws are non-essential and there are currently alternatives people can use.

"We look at straws as one of the gateway issues to help people start thinking about the global plastic pollution problem," Plastic Pollution Coalition CEO Dianna Cohen explained to<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/plastic-straw-ban-why-are-there-so-many-2018-7"> Business Insider</a>.

If people find it is easy to use non-plastic alternatives to straws, the reasoning goes, they may reevaluate their use of other plastic products.

Plastic straws are also targeted because many plastic straws never make it through the recycling process despite being a recyclable product.

“Most plastic straws are too lightweight to make it through the mechanical recycling sorter. They drop through sorting screens and mix with other materials and are too small to separate, contaminating recycling loads or getting disposed as garbage,” For a Strawless Ocean says on their<a href="https://www.strawlessocean.org/faq"> website</a>.

Critics also argue that plastic straw bans take away consumer choice. Disability rights advocates have spoken out against plastic straw bans by pointing out that plastic straws are an important drinking tool for people with disabilities. The plastic straw bans in Seattle and California do allow consumers to use plastic straws upon request.

Conservatives have also cited plastic straw bans as an example of government overreach encroaching on consumer choice. Conservatives even made a<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/aug/03/plastic-straws-became-the-latest-victim-in-the-us-culture-wars"> social media trend</a> out of posting photos of themselves drinking out of plastic straws and a Florida Republican state representative<a href="https://www.nbcmiami.com/news/local/Florida-State-Rep-Introduces-Bill-to-Stop-Cities-From-Banning-Plastic-Straws-505297951.html"> introduced a bill</a> to prohibit cities from banning plastic straws.

Despite the criticism over plastic straw bans, the initiatives are proving to be successful. A<a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Travis_Wagner/publication/329119275_ASSESSING_THE_USE_OF_DEFAULT_CHOICE_MODIFICATION_TO_REDUCE_CONSUMPTION_OF_PLASTIC_STRAWS/links/5c115874a6fdcc494ff01853/ASSESSING-THE-USE-OF-DEFAULT-CHOICE-MODIFICATION-TO-RE"> study</a> examining the impact of a plastic straw ordinance found that the use of plastic straws decreased up to 40 percent at local businesses. Additionally, an<a href="https://www.ipsos.com/en-us/news-polls/Attitudes-Toward-Plastic-Straws"> Ipsos poll</a> shows that over 40 percent of people have used fewer straws as a result of the recent attention on plastic straw pollution.

Plastic straw bans serve a greater purpose than simply tackling a small source of a big problem. These bans pave the way for greater change in the fight against the plastic pollution crisis.

--

By <a href="mailto:brianna.grant134@gmail.com">Brianna Lynne</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Contributing Writer

Why are plastic straws banned when they’re only a small part of plastic use?

Plastic straw bans have been popping up in cities and...

<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lHHxOej4QfE
</div><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Researchers found a correlation between Alzheimer's disease and traffic pollution.</figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-invisible-threat-in-urban-air">Invisible threat in urban air</h2>



City dwellers face an unseen danger with every breath. New findings from Emory University researchers suggest that fine particulate matter from <a href="http://earth.com/news/traffic-related-air-pollution-might-increase-alzheimers-risk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">vehicle emissions may significantly elevate the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease</a>. The study examined brain tissue samples from 224 individuals who had confirmed diagnoses and volunteered their brains for scientific research.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-disturbing-connections-emerge">Disturbing connections emerge</h2>



Scientists analyzed neuritic plaques — protein clusters that characterize Alzheimer's — while mapping each participant's exposure to PM2.5 particles based on residential location and surrounding traffic density. The correlation proved more alarming than anticipated. Individuals experiencing higher pollution exposure showed nearly double the likelihood of elevated plaque accumulation in brain tissue.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-timing-matters">Timing matters</h2>



The research team discovered that pollution exposure during the final year before death demonstrated the strongest association with brain changes. This timeline suggests relatively rapid impacts from environmental toxins on neural health. The connection remained robust even after accounting for various demographic and health factors.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-genetic-vulnerability-patterns">Genetic vulnerability patterns</h2>



Perhaps most concerning, people lacking the APOE gene—which naturally predisposes individuals to Alzheimer's — exhibited more than twice the susceptibility to pollution-related brain damage. Study author Dr. Anke Huels noted this indicates environmental elements like air contamination could trigger the disease in cases where hereditary factors don't explain.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-public-health-implications">Public health implications</h2>



These findings, published in <a href="https://www.neurology.org/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Neurology</a>, underscore the critical importance of air quality regulations in urban planning. The research suggests that implementing stricter emission controls and promoting alternative transportation could serve as powerful tools in Alzheimer's prevention.



As cities worldwide grapple with growing traffic congestion and aging populations, this study highlights an urgent need for comprehensive approaches to environmental health that protect both our lungs and our minds.



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Traffic fumes may trigger Alzheimer's

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lHHxOej4QfE Researchers found a correlation between Alzheimer's disease and traffic...

<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2E0mn5mTvhQ
</div><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">'Death Star' moon Mimas conceals a 15-million-year-old ocean that scientists never expected.</figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-hidden-waters-beneath-ancient-craters">Hidden waters beneath ancient craters</h2>



Scientists have made a startling discovery that challenges everything we thought we knew about <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/saturn-moon-mimas-has-remarkably-young-ocean/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Saturn's moon Mimas</a>. Beneath the heavily cratered surface that earned it the nickname "Death Star" lies a global ocean that formed just 5 to 15 million years ago—a remarkably young age by cosmic standards.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-cassini-data-reveals-orbital-secrets">Cassini data reveals orbital secrets</h2>



The discovery, led by Dr. Valéry Lainey of the <a href="https://observatoiredeparis.psl.eu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Observatoire de Paris</a>, emerged from careful analysis of <a href="https://www.nasa.gov" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">NASA</a>'s Cassini spacecraft data. By studying subtle irregularities in Mimas's orbit around Saturn, researchers detected the gravitational signature of liquid water hidden 20 to 30 kilometers beneath the moon's icy shell.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-an-unlikely-ocean-world">An unlikely ocean world</h2>



At only 400 kilometers in diameter, Mimas seemed like the least likely candidate to harbor a subsurface ocean. Unlike other ocean moons such as Europa and Enceladus, which show clear surface signs of internal activity, Mimas displays no obvious hints of the liquid water beneath its ancient, crater-scarred exterior.



"Mimas is a small moon, and its heavily cratered surface gave no hint of the hidden ocean beneath," explained Dr. Nick Cooper from <a href="https://www.qmul.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Queen Mary University of London</a>, a study co-author.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-implications-for-astrobiology">Implications for astrobiology</h2>



The ocean's recent formation makes Mimas a prime target for studying how oceans develop and potentially support life. This discovery adds another member to the exclusive club of ocean worlds in our solar system, each offering unique insights into the conditions necessary for habitability.



The research, published in <a href="https://www.nature.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nature</a> journal, demonstrates how advanced orbital analysis can reveal hidden features of celestial bodies, opening new possibilities for understanding ocean formation throughout the cosmos.



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Scientists discover unexpected young ocean on Saturn's cratered moon Mimas

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2E0mn5mTvhQ 'Death Star' moon Mimas conceals a 15-million-year-old ocean that...

<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K0DuSr87SHY
</div><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">57 million-year ice age mystery solved by Australian scientists.</figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-when-earth-became-a-frozen-wasteland">When Earth became a frozen wasteland</h2>



Imagine Earth as a giant snowball, frozen solid from the North Pole to the equator. This wasn't the plot of a science fiction movie – it was our planet's reality 700 million years ago during an extreme ice age that has puzzled scientists for decades.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-discovery">The discovery</h2>



Australian researchers from the <a href="https://www.sydney.edu.au/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Sydney</a> have finally cracked one of geology's greatest mysteries: what caused the Sturtian glaciation and why it persisted for an unprecedented 57 million years. This period occurred long before dinosaurs roamed the Earth, when no complex plants or multicellular animals existed.



Dr. Adriana Dutkiewicz, the study's lead author, describes a world completely unlike today's climate. "Imagine the Earth almost completely frozen over," she explained. "The planet was blanketed in ice from poles to equator, and temperatures plunged."



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-combination-of-climate-factors">The combination of climate factors</h2>



The research team discovered that this massive freeze resulted from a "double whammy" of geological events. First, plate tectonic activity reduced volcanic carbon dioxide emissions to historically low levels. Volcanic activity typically releases CO2 into the atmosphere, creating a greenhouse effect that keeps Earth warm.



Simultaneously, weathering of volcanic rocks in what is now Canada actively absorbed atmospheric CO2, further reducing greenhouse gas concentrations. When atmospheric carbon dioxide levels dropped below 200 parts per million – less than half of today's levels – glaciation engulfed the entire planet.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-modern-climate-implications">Modern climate implications</h2>



Published in the journal <a href="https://pubs.geoscienceworld.org/geology" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Geology</a>, this research provides crucial insights into Earth's climate system. While geological climate changes occur over millions of years, the study emphasizes that human-induced climate change is happening at a pace ten times faster than previously observed natural changes, highlighting the urgent need to understand our planet's delicate climate balance.



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What caused the planet's longest ice age

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K0DuSr87SHY 57 million-year ice age mystery solved by Australian scientists....

<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXXGGiynIjs
</div><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Greenland is not sinking. In fact, it is the opposite.</figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-contrasting-climate-response">A contrasting climate response</h2>



Most coastal towns are <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/sinking-land-will-intensify-the-effects-of-rising-sea-levels/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">preparing for higher sea levels</a>, but <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/greenland-no-longer-has-to-worry-about-rising-sea-levels/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Greenland presents</a> a different scenario during climate change. The ground there is rising at a remarkable rate. Over the past decade, some areas have lifted about 20 centimeters, which translates to roughly 2 meters per century. This rate significantly exceeds current projections for sea level rise.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-geological-rebound-process-through-climate-change">Geological rebound process through climate change</h2>



The mechanism behind this phenomenon is straightforward. As the ice sheet melts, the immense weight is removed from the bedrock, causing the land to rebound upward. This process resembles the way compressed material springs back when pressure is released.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-scientific-monitoring-networks">Scientific monitoring networks</h2>



Researchers at the <a href="https://www.dtu.dk/english/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Technical University of Denmark</a> are documenting this uplift using the GNET network, consisting of 61 GPS stations positioned around Greenland's coast. These sensors can detect movement with millimeter precision, providing detailed measurements of the ongoing changes.



The data reveal that current uplift rates exceed the gradual rebound occurring since the last ice age ended approximately 12,000 years ago. This acceleration corresponds directly with increased ice sheet melting rates.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-coastal-transformation">Coastal Transformation</h2>



This uplift is actively reshaping Greenland's coastline. New islands and rocky formations, called "skerries," are emerging as previously submerged land surfaces rise above the water level. This represents a notable contrast to global concerns about rising seas.



The study, published in Geophysical Research Letters, demonstrates the varied regional impacts of climate change. While many locations face rising water levels, Greenland's bedrock is literally rising above the surrounding seas.



The full study was recently published in <a href="https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1029/2023GL104851" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Geophysical Research Letters</a>.



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Greenland's ground rises while coasts worldwide face higher seas

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXXGGiynIjs Greenland is not sinking. In fact, it is the...

<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSM3EVeGHJU
</div><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Companies like MindStudio help companies train their employees to implement the latest AI Agent building platform.</figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ai-agent-training-transforms-the-workplace-fear-factor-into-a-competitive-advantage">AI agent training transforms the workplace 'fear factor' into a competitive advantage</h2>



Organizations that offer comprehensive artificial intelligence training to their workers find remarkable value that extends well beyond basic <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/mind-wandering-might-be-more-productive-than-you-think/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">productivity improvements</a>. Emerging research demonstrates that carefully crafted AI training programs <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ai-does-not-replace-human-creativity-but-enhances-it/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">enhance</a> corporate performance, lower operational costs, and dramatically improve employee psychological well-being by turning workplace uncertainty into professional empowerment.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-addressing-the-widespread-ai-anxiety-crisis-among-us">Addressing the widespread 'AI anxiety' crisis among us</h2>



A staggering 53% of employees expressed concern that the use of AI tools to automate work tasks could make them appear disposable to their employers, according to <a href="https://www.microsoft.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Microsoft</a>'s 2024 workplace survey. Such pervasive worry about being substituted by machines has caused what researchers have termed "AI technostress" – a psychological state that can result in occupational burnout and poorer mental well-being.



Data published in <a href="https://www.nature.com/palcomms/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Humanities and Social Sciences Communications</a> showed that belief in AI learning ability was a moderator in the link between technology adoption and work pressure, and higher confidence significantly lowered negative psychological responses. Workers provided ample training to become competent with AI software have significantly lower stress.



Companies like <a href="https://www.mindstudio.ai/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">MindStudio</a> have platforms for building what are known as "AI Agents". In essence, AI Agents are simply tools that employees can build for themselves or their teams quickly and inexpensively. MindStudio will even train entire companies, from the CEO on down, at no cost. By letting MindStudio empower employees, companies avoid hiring more IT staff, buying more software, and implementing solutions to problems that do not exist.



MindStudio even has partners locally for companies, like <a href="http://www.dominnus.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Dominnus</a> with offices in the Carolinas, California, and Denver, to help build AI Agents and support employees as they become resident AI experts for their organization. The training provided by MindStudio is applicable across other AI Agent building platforms as well.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-revolutionary-productivity-through-focused-learning">Revolutionary productivity through focused learning</h2>



Organizations that implement large-scale AI training programs achieve dramatic outcomes. Employees performed tasks significantly better when they utilized AI support compared to when they didn't, according to <a href="https://www.nngroup.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nielsen Norman Group</a> research findings. Their study documented productivity increases of 66% for a variety of professional tasks.



Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis research finds workers record 33% higher productivity in time working with generative AI tools. The benefit is equivalent to 5.4% of work time savings for AI users – around 2.2 hours per week for full-time workers.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-psychological-well-being-benefits-through-ai-competence">Psychological well-being benefits through AI competence</h2>



The emotional transformation when employees are provided with proper technology training is a fundamental transformation from fear to professional confidence. A survey of 600 employees across industries, carried out by ScienceDirect, proved that AI capabilities strengthen work environment commitment and improve job satisfaction.



A <a href="https://www.lut.fi/en" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">LUT University</a> study discovered that AI adoption has no direct effect on workers' well-being but does so indirectly through working conditions like task optimization and safety protocols. Strategically deployed AI that involves correct training can actually increase workplace mental well-being.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-from-replacement-anxiety-to-partnership-confidence">From 'replacement anxiety' to 'partnership confidence'</h2>



Although 35% of those interviewed in recent McKinsey studies were concerned about workforce displacement, firms with large-scale training initiatives witness such fears dissipate quickly. The World Economic Forum found that two out of three respondents believe AI competencies will enhance their career prospects and job marketability.



This shift from fear to trust has measurable implications for job satisfaction. Applied Sciences research indicates AI can create tailored wellness programs based on individual employee requirements.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-financial-benefits-of-increased-retention">Financial benefits of increased retention</h2>



The mental health advantages of AI learning have a direct impact on organizational bottom lines in the form of a positive feedback cycle with high retention of employees. Recent ROI research validates that artificial intelligence learning has a beneficial impact on employee turnover and satisfaction levels.



PriceWaterhouseCoopers' research documents 20% to 30% improvements in productivity, market speed, and revenue in organizations that attempt systematic AI adoption through comprehensive training.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-environmental-advantages-of-ai-enabled-teams">Environmental advantages of AI-enabled teams</h2>



AI training has unforeseen environmental benefits as it makes the work environment more efficient. According to a study in Scientific Reports, the carbon footprint in writing and illustrating work is significantly lower when AI performs it compared to humans. AI software produces 130 to 1,500 times less CO2 equivalent per page of text created than human authors.



In addition, AI-driven remote work functionality significantly reduces environmental impact. Research by Cornell University and Microsoft indicates that remote workers reduce greenhouse gas emissions by up to 54% by not commuting daily to offices. Hybrid workers working remotely two to four days a week can reduce their carbon footprint by 11% to 29%.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-cumulative-organizational-advantages">Cumulative organizational advantages</h2>



The compounding gains of better mental well-being, reduced turnover, increased productivity, and environmental benefits flow to enterprises from the pairing. McKinsey analysis estimates the long-term AI potential at $4.4 trillion in incremental productivity growth opportunity from business use cases.



As of now, 75% of knowledge workers globally utilize generative AI, mirroring widespread adoption patterns. Organizations that provide organized training and assistance see the most favorable results in productivity, worker satisfaction, and ecological sustainability.



The research overwhelmingly indicates that companies that invest in proper AI education, like that offered through <a href="https://www.mindstudio.ai" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">MindStudio</a>, establish win-win scenarios where employees are both more empowered and less stressed, and companies enjoy the gains of increased productivity, reduced turnover, and improved mental health outcomes throughout their workforce.



For more on MindStudio's free AI training for companies, visit the website's of MindStudio and Dominnus from the links below.



The research was published across a variety of peer-reviewed journals, including <a href="https://www.nature.com/palcomms/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Humanities and Social Sciences Communications</a>, <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/artificial-intelligence" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Frontiers in Artificial Intelligence</a>, and <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/journal/applsci">Applied Sciences</a>.



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MindStudio.AI: <a href="https://www.mindstudio.ai" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://www.mindstudio.ai</a>



Dominnus: <a href="https://www.dominnus.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://www.dominnus.com</a>

AI agent training boosts mental health and profits

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSM3EVeGHJU Companies like MindStudio help companies train their employees to...

<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0HDXqTGEmi4
</div><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Scientists give plants superpowers against bacterial disease</figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-natural-solution-to-disease-through-crop-modification">A natural solution to disease through crop modification.</h2>



The agricultural industry stands at a crossroads between productivity and environmental responsibility, and crop modification often carries a negative connotation. While chemical pesticides have long been the go-to solution for crop protection, their harmful effects on ecosystems and human health have prompted scientists to seek alternatives. The recent breakthrough by <a href="https://www.southampton.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Southampton</a> researchers offers a promising path forward through the precise manipulation of plant-associated microbial communities.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-science-behind-microbial-partnerships">The science behind microbial partnerships</h2>



Plants naturally harbor diverse ecosystems of bacteria, fungi, and other microorganisms that function as biological allies. These microscopic partners contribute to disease resistance, nutrient absorption, and stress tolerance. However, until now, scientists lacked the tools to deliberately reshape these communities to enhance crop protection.



The Southampton team's approach centered on <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/engineered-plant-microbiomes-the-future-of-crop-protection/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">modifying lignin biosynthesis genes in rice plants</a>. This strategic intervention altered the plant's metabolic output, creating conditions that favored beneficial bacterial populations while suppressing harmful ones. The result was a living defense system embedded within the plant itself.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-implications-for-global-food-security">Implications for global food security</h2>



The successful demonstration against Xanthomonas oryzae, the pathogen responsible for bacterial blight in rice, represents more than a laboratory achievement. Rice feeds nearly half the world's population, and bacterial blight causes devastating crop losses annually. Traditional control methods rely heavily on pesticides that contaminate soil and water systems.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-looking-beyond-disease-resistance">Looking Beyond Disease Resistance</h2>



While disease protection represents the immediate application, the research framework opens doors to broader agricultural improvements. Future developments could engineer microbiomes to enhance nutrient uptake, reducing dependence on synthetic fertilizers. This dual benefit addresses both crop productivity and environmental sustainability.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-path-forward">The path forward</h2>



As this technology advances from laboratory to field applications, it promises to reshape sustainable agriculture. The ability to program plants with their own biological defense systems could herald a new era where crops protect themselves naturally, reducing chemical inputs while maintaining yields necessary for global food security.



The study is published in the journal&nbsp;<a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-44335-3" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nature Communications</a>.



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Revolutionizing agriculture through microbiome engineering

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0HDXqTGEmi4 Scientists give plants superpowers against bacterial disease A natural...

<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=prrq8Ql81zk
</div><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Acid rain and a crisis solved.</figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-don-t-we-ever-hear-about-acid-rain-anymore-the-environmental-crisis-that-was-solved">Why don't we ever hear about "acid rain" anymore? The environmental crisis that was solved</h2>



Remember the 1980s when acid rain dominated headlines? Dire warnings about rain eating buildings, killing fish, and destroying forests filled every news cycle. Then, almost like magic, acid rain vanished from public discourse. What happened? Did we actually solve one of the late 20th century's most pressing environmental challenges?



The answer might surprise you. Unlike many environmental issues that drag on indefinitely, acid rain represents one of modern history's most successful ecological recovery stories. It's a tale of science, politics, and technology working together to tackle what seemed impossible.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">What was acid rain?</h2>



Acid rain isn't regular rain having a bad day – it's precipitation that became significantly more acidic due to air pollution. When power plants, factories, and vehicles burn fossil fuels, they release sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) into the atmosphere.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">The science behind it</h2>



Think of acid rain as nature's chemistry experiment gone wrong. These compounds react with water, oxygen, and other chemicals to form sulfuric and nitric acids. When mixed with water vapor in clouds, they create precipitation with dangerously low pH levels.



While clean rain has a pH of about 5.6, acid rain could drop as low as 4.2 to 4.4 – roughly as acidic as tomato juice or coffee. According to US Geological Survey documentation, Scottish chemist Angus Smith first coined "acid rain" in 1872, but it didn't become a household phrase until the 1960s and 1970s when Swedish scientist Svante Odén documented its devastating effects on Scandinavian lakes and European forests.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">The crisis at its peak</h2>



During the height of public concern, environmental damage was both widespread and visible. This wasn't some abstract future threat – people could see destruction happening in real-time.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Environmental devastation</h2>



The most dramatic impacts were impossible to ignore. Research documented by the Adirondack Lakes Survey Corporation and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation shows that in the Adirondack Mountains, more than 200 lakes became so acidic they couldn't support fish life. The Adirondack Council reports that 409 lakes once supported brook trout, but many lost their fish populations due to acid rain.



By 1976, when scientists cataloged all acidified lakes in the Adirondack Park, researchers found that half of the lakes over 2,000 feet above sea level had no fish, according to studies published in environmental journals. The acidification process worked like a slow-motion disaster. As acid rain fell into watersheds, it gradually lowered pH levels. Fish couldn't survive in acidic water, and their food sources died off too.



Trees at high elevations showed stress directly linked to acid rain. It weakened them by leaching nutrients and making them susceptible to disease. Historical records show Germany's Black Forest saw nearly half its trees damaged by the mid-1980s.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Economic impact</h2>



Acid rain wasn't just environmental – it was expensive. Acidic precipitation corroded infrastructure, buildings, and monuments. Historic stone structures deteriorated at accelerated rates. Tourism suffered as lakes became fishless and forests declined. EPA economic analyses from the period documented repair costs mounting into billions annually.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">The solution: government action and technology</h2>



Transformation from crisis to success required unprecedented cooperation between governments, industries, and environmental groups.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">The Clean Air Act of 1990</h2>



The turning point came with the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990, signed by President George H.W. Bush. This represented a fundamentally new approach to environmental regulation, as documented in EPA historical records.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Cap-and-trade success</h2>



Instead of mandating specific technologies, the 1990 amendments introduced something revolutionary: a cap-and-trade system for sulfur dioxide emissions. EPA program documentation shows this market-based approach set overall limits but allowed companies to trade emission allowances.



The genius was harnessing market forces to find cost-effective pollution reduction. Companies reducing emissions cheaply could sell excess allowances to those facing higher costs. Research published in environmental economics journals and EPA progress reports shows this resulted in dramatic SO2 reduction at a fraction of projected costs.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Technology advances</h2>



Policy provided the framework, but technology made reductions possible. Studies in atmospheric science journals document the widespread adoption of flue gas desulfurization systems ("scrubbers") that removed sulfur dioxide before it reached the atmosphere. By the 2000s, new installations could remove over 95% of SO2 emissions, according to EPA technical reports.



The push coincided with cleaner energy development. Natural gas produces fewer sulfur compounds than coal. Wind and solar, emerging in the 1990s, captured growing market share, reducing reliance on high-sulfur coal.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-we-don-t-hear-about-it-today">Why we don't hear about it today</h2>



Why did acid rain disappear from headlines? Simple: the problem was largely solved.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Success doesn't make news</h2>



There's an old journalism saying: "If it bleeds, it leads." Environmental success stories don't generate urgency like crisis reporting. Media attention shifted to other challenges: climate change, plastic pollution, and biodiversity loss. There's only so much environmental anxiety the public can absorb, and newer concerns replaced acid rain.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Mission accomplished</h2>



The primary reason is beautifully simple: interventions worked. EPA monitoring data shows sulfur dioxide emissions dropped over 90% since 1990. Academic research published in environmental science journals confirms pH levels in formerly affected areas returned closer to normal. This represents one of history's most dramatic environmental recoveries. Studies by the Adirondack Lakes Survey Corporation show fishless lakes now support healthy populations. Forests recovered, and building damage slowed dramatically.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-is-it-really-gone">Is it really gone?</h2>



The crisis is largely resolved, but monitoring data shows the problem isn't completely eliminated – it's managed to acceptable levels. Some areas still experience occasional events during high pollution periods. International environmental research indicates that rapidly industrializing Asian countries face similar problems to what we experienced decades ago, though they're implementing successful strategies.



EPA research shows nitrogen oxide emissions proved more challenging than sulfur dioxide, coming from vehicles and mobile sources. Climate science studies suggest changing weather patterns add complexity to how acid rain forms and falls.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">What this teaches us</h2>



The acid rain experience proves that seemingly intractable environmental problems can be solved with scientific understanding, political will, and technological innovation. Environmental monitoring data shows recovery speed was remarkable – within a decade, measurable improvements appeared in air quality and ecosystem health.



Success came from bipartisan support across party lines. Policy analysis studies show the market-based approach appealed to those preferring economic incentives while achieving environmental goals. This support created lasting policy surviving political changes.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Conclusion</h2>



Acid rain's disappearance from public consciousness represents environmental science's greatest success stories. Through effective regulation, technological innovation, and international cooperation, we transformed an overwhelming crisis into a manageable challenge.



Today's silence isn't because we forgot – it's because we solved it. The 1990 Clean Air Act, combined with technology and energy market changes, reduced acid rain emissions over 90%, according to comprehensive EPA data analysis.



This success offers hope for current challenges. It proves complex problems can be solved when science, policy, and technology work together. As we face climate change and plastic pollution, acid rain reminds us that dramatic positive change is possible.



Next time someone asks whether environmental regulations work, remember acid rain. It's proof that sometimes, we get it right.



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/>



Sources: This article draws from EPA official documentation and progress reports, peer-reviewed research published in environmental and atmospheric science journals, historical data from the Adirondack Lakes Survey Corporation, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation records, US Geological Survey publications, policy analysis studies, and environmental monitoring data collected over three decades.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Frequently Asked Questions</h2>



1. Is acid rain completely gone? No, but EPA monitoring shows it's reduced to manageable levels. US sulfur dioxide emissions dropped over 90% since 1990, making acid rain much less severe than the 1980s crisis.



2. How long did solving take? Environmental monitoring data shows significant improvements began within 5-10 years of 1990s emission controls. Full ecosystem recovery took longer – some areas need 20-30 years for complete recovery.



3. What made the solution successful? Clear scientific understanding, visible damage motivating action, bipartisan support, available technology, and innovative market-based policies like cap-and-trade.



4. Do other countries have acid rain problems? Yes, particularly rapidly industrializing Asian countries. However, international environmental research shows many implement similar successful control strategies.



5. Could acid rain return? Potentially, if regulations weaken or we return to high-sulfur coal without controls, though effects would take years to become severe according to environmental projections.



6. Can you recommend any teaching tools on the subject of "acid rain"? The United States Environmental Protection Agency produced a wonderful teacher's guide for ages 14 and under that you can find on the EPA website here: <a href="https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2017-03/documents/teachersguide.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2017-03/documents/teachersguide.pdf</a>



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The environmental problem we actually solved

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=prrq8Ql81zk Acid rain and a crisis solved. Why don't we...

Green,Ecoduct,Over,An,Empty,Highway,During,Sunset.

<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://youtu.be/XYgiPzmNBTU?si=eFYY7gPHU1JznLvU
</div></figure>



A new long-term study in Monkton, Vermont, reveals that wildlife tunnels significantly reduce amphibian road mortality during seasonal migrations. 



Frogs and salamanders often cross roads to reach breeding ponds each spring, but many are killed by vehicles. 



Researchers from the <a href="https://www.uvm.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Vermont</a>, in collaboration with local citizens and the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources, installed two underpass tunnels in 2015. 



Over a 12-year monitoring period, they observed an 80.2% reduction in amphibian deaths, and up to 94% for non-climbing species like salamanders. 



The study used a before-after-control-impact design and documented more than 5,200 amphibians, highlighting the tunnels’ effectiveness even in nearby buffer zones.



Funded at $342,397 - far cheaper than wildlife crossings for large mammals - the project showcased the power of community-led conservation.



Local groups initiated the effort after observing mass amphibian deaths. Wildlife cameras later captured over 2,200 amphibians using a tunnel in just one spring, along with other species like raccoons and bobcats, indicating wider ecosystem benefits.



This marks the first peer-reviewed, long-term data set in the northeastern U.S. confirming amphibian-specific underpasses work. 



The study urges transportation departments to incorporate these designs into road planning and highlights how community action, thoughtful infrastructure, and persistence can make a real difference for biodiversity.



The full study was published in the <a href="https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S1617138125000780" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Journal for Nature Conservation</a>.



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Wildlife tunnels save millions of amphibians

https://youtu.be/XYgiPzmNBTU?si=eFYY7gPHU1JznLvU A new long-term study in Monkton, Vermont, reveals that...

Scientists are transforming chocolate into a functional food by infusing it with probiotics and prebiotics, aiming to create a treat that satisfies cravings while supporting gut health. 



The challenge lies in maintaining chocolate's beloved texture and flavor while adding health benefits.



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Probiotics - beneficial microbes that balance gut bacteria and aid digestion - are typically fragile and can be destroyed by stomach acid or processing. 



Prebiotics act as food for these microbes, helping them thrive. Together, they form "synbiotics," a powerful health combination.



Researchers Smriti Gaur and Shubhi Singh from India's Jaypee Institute of Information Technology took an innovative approach, using natural prebiotics like corn and honey instead of complex processing methods. 



They created five chocolate varieties: a control and four synbiotic versions containing different combinations of prebiotics, probiotics (Lactobacillus strains), and flavor enhancers (cinnamon or orange).



Laboratory simulations of human digestion showed the probiotics remained viable for over five hours, suggesting they could survive long enough to benefit gut health.



Taste tests were positive, with researchers particularly enjoying the orange-flavored variety, describing it as having "vibrant citrus notes" complementing the "rich cocoa" with a "luxurious" texture.



This research represents just the beginning. With further refinement of strains, textures, and flavors, chocolate could evolve beyond mere indulgence to become a functional food that nourishes while it delights.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acsfoodscitech.4c00741" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ACS Food Science &amp; Technology</a>.

Is chocolate the next nutritional powerhouse?

Scientists are transforming chocolate into a functional food by infusing...

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Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.igb.illinois.edu/">Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology</a> reveals how scientists can modify common crops like soybean, rice, and wheat to protect them from heat stress.



“We need to double crop production by 2050 to feed a growing global population, and not only are we not on track to do that, but climate change is further complicating things,” said Amanda Cavanagh, a lecturer at the University of Essex. 



The study is part of Realizing Increased Photosynthetic Efficiency (RIPE), an international research project that aims to develop food crops that turn the sun’s energy into food more efficiently.



“Using an engineering approach we designed multiple alternative metabolic pathways to photorespiration. Testing them in the field showed increases in productivity which led Amanda to significantly move the project forward by showing our engineered plants can withstand pretty extreme temperature stress,” said study co-author and RIPE researcher Paul South.&nbsp;



“As the climate changes and temperature stresses increase the pressure on our global food supply, farmers will need every tool available including engineering approaches like the synthetic biology used here to maintain safe and productive harvests.”



The experts tested plants modified to have more efficient photorespiration to see if they were better adapted to warmer temperatures.&nbsp;



The team found that the engineered plants produced 26 percent more biomass than the wild-type plants exposed to the same temperatures, and had 15 percent less yield loss under the higher temperatures.



Video Credit: Amanda Nguyen/University of Illinois



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



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Designing crops that can beat the heat

[sendtonews key="QGPzYnXEtN-1712599-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from Carl...

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Today's Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> describes the first comprehensive estimate of carbon density in the Saharan, Sahel, and Sudanian zones of Africa. In an effort to measure the amount of carbon stored across these drylands, a team of scientists used high-resolution satellite images and artificial intelligence to map nearly 10 billion individual trees. 



"The high spatial resolution (50 cm) combined with AI and field measurements used in this study is key to improving tree inventories in drylands," said Pierre Hiernaux, a French researcher working for NASA. "The ever-increasing availability of very high-resolution satellite imagery will make it possible to assess carbon pools and their dynamics at the individual tree level on a global scale."



"This study is exceptional because it is pioneering a type of approach that will revolutionize the monitoring of trees and forests on a global scale: in the short term, it will be possible to map the world's trees from the centre of the Amazon to our schoolyards," said <a href="https://www.inrae.fr/en">INRAE</a> researcher Jean-Pierre Wigneron.



"Many fields of application will become much more efficient and accurate, such as tracking carbon stocks, biodiversity, monitoring logging and protection against illegal forest degradation, in near real time.”



Video Credit: NASA Goddard&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



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Remote sensing will revolutionize the way we monitor trees

[sendtonews key="EjmSP20gQK-2593093-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from NASA...

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Lesotho: Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky" Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features northwest Lesotho in South Africa.



According to ESA, Lesotho is the only nation in the world that lies completely above 1,000 m in elevation. The country is famous for its tall mountains and narrow valleys, and is known as Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky."



Out of a population of around two million people, about 80 percent live in rural areas. More than 75 percent of these people are engaged in <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/climate-change-will-have-a-global-impact-on-agriculture/">agriculture</a>, including rainfed cereal production and animal grazing.&nbsp;



ESA reports that the country’s agricultural system faces a growing number of issues, with climate-related vulnerabilities such as drought, floods and extreme temperatures occurring more frequently. 



Diamonds are amongst the minerals found in the mountains. Indeed, Lesotho can truly be called the Kingdom in the Sky. Beautiful, culturally rich, safe, affordable, and easily accessible from Durban and Johannesburg, mountainous Lesotho is a vastly underrated travel destination. the Kingdom of Lesotho (Sotho: 'Muso oa Lesotho) is an enclaved country in southern Africa. It is just over 30,000 km2 (11,583 sq mi) in size and has a population of around 2 million.



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer 



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Lesotho: Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky"

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Today's Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> features a visual dataset of.methane emissions from wetlands across the globe. Atmospheric methane levels have reached record highs in recent years, and wetlands are a major source of these emissions.&nbsp;



"Methane is an important greenhouse gas that contributes substantially to global warming. On a molecule by molecule basis, methane is much more efficient at trapping heat than carbon dioxide, the main driver of warming," says NASA.



"Though human activities, including agriculture, oil and natural gas production and use, and waste disposal, collectively contribute the majority of methane to the atmosphere, about a third of total methane emissions comes from wetlands."&nbsp;



According to NASA, understanding methane emissions from wetlands and other natural sources is critically important for scientists and policymakers who are working to combat climate change by reducing emissions from human activities.



Video Credit: NASA Goddard



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



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Wetlands are a major source of methane emissions

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Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/">NASA Earth Observatory</a> reveals the evolution of the Columbia Glacier in southeastern Alaska. Columbia is among the fastest shrinking glaciers in the world, and the video documents its rapid retreat over the years.&nbsp;



Columbia Glacier is a large, multi-branched calving glacier that flows out of the Chugach Mountains to the Prince William Sound.&nbsp;



According to USGS, Columbia had a long history of stability prior to 1980, with a length 41 miles, and small, short-lived advances or retreats.



In the years since 1980, however, satellite images have captured Columbia’s alarming retreat. By using false-color images, scientists can distinguish between snow and ice, open water, vegetation, and rocky debris on the glacier’s surface.



The series of false-color images featured in today's video were acquired over the span of 35 years. You can see that by 2021, the glacier’s main branch had retreated about 15 miles from its initial position.



The Columbia Glacier has also lost more than 50 percent of its volume, mostly due to calving. <a href="https://www.earth.com/video/nasa-reveals-3d-visual-of-an-atmospheric-river/">NASA</a> reports that while climate change likely started the retreat, mechanical processes kept the disintegration going.



The NASA images are provided by Jesse Allen, Robert Simmon, Joshua Stevens, and Lauren Dauphin using data from Landsat satellites, from the U.S. Geological Survey, and data from MODIS on NASA’s Terra satellite. The structure of Columbia’s moraine played a large role in the stability of the glacier before 1980. 



Like other tidewater glaciers, the Columbia built up a moraine over time, and the mixture of ice and rock functioned like a dam keeping out the sea. It was supported on one end by the shoreline and by the underwater terminal moraine at the other.



Video Credit: NASA Earth Observatory/&nbsp; NASA’s Scientific Visualization Studio



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



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The rapid retreat of the Columbia Glacier

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Today's Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> describes how record-breaking heat expressed itself around the world in 2022.



Scientists have determined that 2022 was the 5th warmest year since 1880. Furthermore, the last nine consecutive years have been the warmest on record.



From devastating floods and wildfires to natural disasters like Hurricane Ian, 2022 showed us yet again how a warming climate affects people across the globe.&nbsp;



"As we look back at 20:22 and years past, we see that each year we better understand the challenges we face and how important it is to meet them," says NASA.



Video/ Image Credit: NASA Goddard



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



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2022 illustrated the consequences of a warming climate

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Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> describes Earth’s interconnected systems, and how this network is affected by rising temperatures.&nbsp;



During 2020, average global temperatures matched the hottest year on record. The hurricane season was also record-breaking, with many of the storms intensifying at extraordinary speeds. Hot water in the ocean is fuel for hurricanes. The satellite data shows that it's all one interconnected system showing how Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected.



According to NASA, dust swept up from Northern Africa plays a major role in the formation of hurricanes, and is also a key source of fertilization in the Amazon rainforest. As a result of<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/seagrass-wasting-disease-is-fueled-by-climate-change/"> climate</a> change, dust plumes are expected to decline, which will have an effect on vegetation far away.&nbsp;



Images from Earth-observing satellites show how the world’s plant life is affected by natural disasters, fires, and deforestation. Satellites also reveal how widespread changes in vegetation impact waterways,&nbsp; the climate, air quality. Satellites communicate by using radio waves to send signals to the antennas on the Earth. "Earth From Space" is a groundbreaking two-hour special that reveals a spectacular new space-based vision of our planet. 



Video Credit: NASA Goddard&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



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Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected

[sendtonews key="JbW4VsY53O-1632195-12187" type="single"] Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected...

Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://welcome.miami.edu/">University of Miami</a> Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science explores how changes in water temperatures have affected tiger shark habitats and movements in the North Atlantic Ocean. The study reveals that rising temperatures have caused the sharks to shift toward the poles over the past 40 years.



“Tiger shark annual migrations have expanded poleward, paralleling rising water temperatures,” explained study lead author Neil Hammerschlag. “These results have consequences for tiger shark conservation, since shifts in their movements outside of marine protected areas may leave them more vulnerable to commercial fishing.”



The researchers analyzed nine years of tracking data from satellite-tagged tiger sharks, combined with four decades of conventional tag and recapture data provided by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Cooperative Shark Tagging Program.



The experts found that during the last decade of record heat, for every one-degree Celsius increase in water temperatures, tiger sharks migrated further poleward by over 400 kilometers. They also migrated two weeks earlier than usual to waters off the northeastern coast of the United States.



“Given their role as apex predators, these changes to tiger shark movements may alter predator-prey interactions, leading to ecological imbalances, and more frequent encounters with humans,” concluded Professor Hammerschlag.



Video Credit: University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



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Tiger sharks are shifting poleward as temperatures rise

Today’s Video of the Day from the University of Miami...

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> is focused on the melt ponds that emerge during the spring and summer on the Greenland Ice Sheet, which is the largest ice mass in the northern hemisphere.



"Melt ponds are vast pools of open water that form on both sea ice and ice sheets and are visible as turquoise-blue pools of water in this Copernicus Sentinel-2 image," says ESA.



"When snow and ice melts atop glaciers, water flows in channels and streams and collects in depressions on the surface. These melt ponds can speed up the melting of the surrounding ice since they greatly reduce the ice’s ability to reflect sunlight."



"This can create a positive feedback where an increasing number of melt ponds absorb more heat which causes ice cover to melt even faster."



According to ESA, Greenland has been hit with a late-season heatwave that began in early September. This caused the type of melt event that usually occurs in the middle of summer.



"In a recent paper published in Nature Climate Change, scientists found that major sea-level rise from the melting of the Greenland ice cap is now ‘inevitable’ even if the burning of fossil fuels were to halt overnight," says ESA. "Using satellite observations of Greenland ice loss and ice cap from 2000 to 2019, the team found the losses will lead to a minimum rise of 27 cm regardless of climate change."



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



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Melt ponds on the Greenland Ice Sheet

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> describes how Earth is unique in our solar system for its ability to sustain liquid water on its surface. But now, the water cycle is shifting as the climate warms, and scientists must find ways to predict how these changes will affect water availability.



Overall, 96 percent of Earth's water is saltwater, and nearly all of freshwater is found in ice and groundwater. These sources of water are linked as it passes through solid, liquid and gas phases.



In a warmer climate, the water cycle will be transformed. It will be easier for water to evaporate and form clouds, and storms will become more frequent and intense. Some regions will get too much water, while others will be left without enough water. In addition, soil moisture will be lost - which threatens food security.



Scientists are using satellite data from over the last 40 years to track changes that are happening in the water cycle. This will ultimately help us prepare for extreme events and better manage our water resources, according to ESA.



Video Credit: ESA



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



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Tracking changes in Earth's water cycle

[sendtonews key="fxH3eJHEkQ-2010196-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

Saturn,-,High,Resolution,3d,Images,Presents,Planets,Of,The

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Today's Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard Space Flight Center</a> features images of Saturn from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope. The photographs capture the start of the mysterious "spoke season" on Saturn - when unexplained features appear on its rings. 



According to NASA, both the cause of the spokes and their seasonal variability have yet to be fully explained by planetary scientists.



"Like Earth, Saturn is tilted on its axis and therefore has four seasons, though because of Saturn's much larger orbit, each season lasts approximately seven Earth years. Equinox occurs when the rings are tilted edge-on to the Sun," explains NASA.



"The spokes disappear when it is near summer or winter solstice on Saturn. (When the Sun appears to reach either its highest or lowest latitude in the northern or southern hemisphere of a planet.) As the autumnal equinox of Saturn's northern hemisphere on May 6, 2025, draws near, the spokes are expected to become increasingly prominent and observable."



Experts believe that the spokes may be a product of the planet's variable magnetic field. When magnetic fields interact with solar wind, an electrically charged environment is created. This phenomenon is visible on Earth as the northern lights.&nbsp;



"Scientists think that the smallest, dust-sized icy ring particles can become charged as well, which temporarily levitates those particles above the rest of the larger icy particles and boulders in the rings," says NASA.



The spokes were first observed in the early 1980s by NASA's Voyager mission. Depending on the angle of the rings, the spokes can appear dark or light.



"Thanks to Hubble's OPAL program, which is building an archive of data on the outer solar system planets, we will have longer dedicated time to study Saturn’s spokes this season than ever before," said NASA senior planetary scientist Amy Simon, head of the Hubble Outer Planet Atmospheres Legacy (OPAL) program.



"Despite years of excellent observations by the Cassini mission, the precise beginning and duration of the spoke season is still unpredictable, rather like predicting the first storm during hurricane season."



Video Credit: NASA Goddard&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Mysterious "spoke season" captured on Saturn

[sendtonews key="Ccjk8KEMzv-2550719-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from NASA...

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