Microbes dictate regime shifts causing anoxia in lakes and seas – “Hysteresis loops and tipping points are a common feature of oxic-anoxic transitions, causing rapid drops in oxygen levels that are not easily reversed”

6 October 2017 (UvA News) – Gradual environmental changes due to eutrophication and global warming can cause a rapid depletion of oxygen levels in lakes and coastal waters. A new study led by professors Jef Huisman and Gerard Muyzer of the University of Amsterdam (UvA) shows that microorganisms play a key role in these disastrous […]

In Iraq, the environment itself has once again become a weapon of war

By  Brad Plumer6 November 2016 (Vox) – The scene looks apocalyptic from space — thick plumes of black and white smoke obscuring the landscape of northern Iraq near Mosul, the central battleground in the war against the Islamic State. That white plume was captured by NASA satellites on October 22, shortly after ISIS militants set […]

UNICEF: Almost one in seven children breathing heavily toxic air –‘Air pollution will become the leading cause of environment-related child death by 2050’

Recent estimates indicate that urban outdoor air pollution has risen by 8 per cent globally between 2008 and 2013.6 Urbanization, which is often associated with rising air pollution, is increasing too – by 2050, up to two thirds of the global population is expected to live in urban areas. Unless action is taken to control […]

92 percent of world population lives where air quality levels exceed safety limits: World Health Organization

GENEVA , 27 September 2016 (WHO) – A new WHO air quality model confirms that 92% of the world’s population lives in places where air quality levels exceed WHO limits*. Information is presented via interactive maps, highlighting areas within countries that exceed WHO limits. “The new WHO model shows countries where the air pollution danger […]

Poor Pennsylvania communities bear greatest burden from fracking – ‘This trend is not one we’re surprised by, we see this in a lot of industries’

By Brian Bienkowski6 May 2015 (Scientific America) – Fracking wells in Pennsylvania’s Marcellus Shale region are disproportionately located in poor rural communities, which bear the brunt of associated pollution, according to a new study. The study bolsters concerns that poor people are more likely to deal with hydraulic fracturing in their community and raises concerns […]

Estimated disruptions to Earth’s great elemental cycles

23 March 2016 (Desdemona Despair) – Back in 2011, Desdemona was asked by a local church to give a presentation on the condition of the world’s oceans (State of the Oceans 2011 video; pdf slide deck; PowerPoint). As part of the talk, Des wanted estimates for human disturbances to the great cycles of elements on […]

Photo gallery: Bangalore’s lake of toxic foam

By Debasish Ghosh1 October 2015 (The Guardian) – IT professional Debasish Ghosh has been documenting toxic foam in the Indian city’s polluted lake system. The snowy froth, a cocktail of chemicals and sewage, has a pungent odour and causes irritation on contact with the skin. Bangalore was once known for its interconnected lake systems which […]

Dirty air sends millions to early grave: study – Without regulation, yearly deaths will increase to 6.6 million by 2050

By Noah Seelam17 September 2015 (AFP) – Outdoor air pollution from sources as varied as cooking fires in India, traffic in the United States and fertiliser use in Russia, claim some 3.3 million lives globally every year, researchers said Wednesday. The vast majority of victims — nearly 75 percent — died from strokes and heart […]

Study links China air pollution to 1.6 million deaths per year, roughly 17 percent of all deaths in China

By Dan Levin 13 August 2015 BEIJING (The New York Times) – Outdoor air pollution contributes to the deaths of an estimated 1.6 million people in China every year, or about 4,400 people a day, according to a newly released scientific paper [pdf]. The paper maps the geographic sources of China’s toxic air and concludes […]

Inner Mongolia’s coal-powered rare earth mine – ‘Stretching into the distance lies an artificial lake filled with a black, barely-liquid, toxic sludge’

By Tim Maughan2 April 2015 (BBC) – From where I’m standing, the city-sized Baogang Steel and Rare Earth complex dominates the horizon, its endless cooling towers and chimneys reaching up into grey, washed-out sky. Between it and me, stretching into the distance, lies an artificial lake filled with a black, barely-liquid, toxic sludge. Dozens of […]

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