Earth Wise

The changing climate is having a marked effect on forests in this country.  In particular, trees along the U.S. eastern seaboard are changing their range as they slowly seek to escape rising temperatures. As the temperature of the eastern U.S. rose by about .3 degrees Fahrenheit over the past 30 years, trees have migrated both […]

Researchers in Belgium have engineered a device that uses sunlight to purify polluted air and, in the process, produces hydrogen gas that can be stored and used for power.  Two teams of researchers separately investigating processes for air purification and hydrogen production combined their efforts to create the new device. At the University of Antwerp, […]

There are an estimated 84,000 dams in the United States which impound 600,000 miles of river, or about 17% of the rivers in the country.  Within the next 15 years, more than 90% of the world’s rivers will be fragmented by at least one dam. Dams have a huge impact on the environment.  They interrupt […]

The amount of solar energy striking the surface of the earth in two hours is enough to supply all of humankind’s needs for an entire year.   For this reason, it is widely thought that solar energy should be our primary source of electricity.  If this is to happen, however, there must be cost-effective ways to […]

The problems caused by plastics in the environment continue to mount.  Major companies around the world are endorsing and promoting efforts to combat the problem including the New Plastics Economy Initiative which aims to have 70% of plastic packaging reused and recycled globally, which is five times more than the current percentage. Among the major […]

Borneo is the third-largest island in the world, home to part of Indonesia, part of Malaysia, and the small sultanate of Brunei.   It is also home to the oldest forest on earth – 130 million years old – which is more than twice as old as the Amazon rain forest. Fifty percent of the lowland […]

China and India have 36% of the world’s population and produce about 35% of global CO2 emissions, ranking first and third respectively in that category.  The United States, with a little over 4% of the world’s population, produces about 16% of global CO2 emissions, good for second place.  Regardless of these statistics, there has been a […]

The frozen landscape of Antarctica is getting greener.  Researchers drilling into layers of moss that have been accumulating in Antarctica over the last 150 years have found that the growth rate of the moss has been speeding up over the past 50 years. The source of the invigorated moss growth is warmer global temperatures.   As […]

The battery industry is currently dominated by lithium-ion batteries.  We have them in our phones and computers. They power electric cars.  And they are increasingly being used to store energy generated by solar panels and other renewable energy sources. Lithium-ion batteries continue to get cheaper and their performance continues to improve.  However, in many ways […]

Poor air quality is a problem all around the world.  Exposure to air pollution is linked to the premature deaths of an estimated 6.5 million people every year, making it the fourth largest threat to human health, trailing only high blood pressure, dietary risks, and smoking.  Dangerous air particles are released from vehicles, by industry, […]