Snowfall in the nation’s snowiest large city - Syracuse, N.Y. - has added up to less than half of its average mid-January total and temperatures in the usually wintry Northeast are expected to rise into the 50s again before January is over. As portions of the United States experience an unusually mild start to the winter, with higher-than-normal temperatures and less-than-average snowfall, questions are raised about the weather’s effect on the environment.
A U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) scientist has discovered what may be an effective tool for cleaning up soils and waterways in parts of California's San Joaquin Valley: a drought-tolerant cactus.
EPA, working with the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection and three New Jersey school districts, has successfully lowered lead in drinking water at elementary schools to below EPA-recommended levels.
In 2012, the U.S. Geological Survey’s Hawaiian Volcano Observatory celebrates its 100th anniversary of studying the volcanoes’ workings and disseminating cutting-edge volcano science throughout the world. Many public events are planned to celebrate the centennial of HVO, the first volcano observatory in the United States.
Research into biofuel crops, such as switchgrass and Miscanthus, has focused mainly on how to grow these crops and convert them into fuels. But many steps lead from the farm to the biorefinery, and each could help or hinder the growth of this new industry.
MIT study finds potential for significant energy savings through user-controlled efficient lighting systems.
A $2 million award to the Center for Environmental Research and Technology at the University of California, Riverside's Bourns College of Engineering will fund a new project focused on powering electric vehicles from sunlight.
Scientists now have a way to more accurately compare how efficiently plants and photovoltaic cells convert sunlight into energy, thanks to findings by a research consortium that included a USDA scientist.
Researchers have found that Marabú – a type of hard wood shrub that has invaded more than 1.5 million hectares of land in Cuba – can be used to produce highly valuable activated carbon.
An international research study published in the journal Atmospheric Environment has found that re-suspended roadside soil dust is a major source of atmospheric lead in old inner city areas.
Four tips to encourage sustainable behavior among employees both in and away from the workplace.
Nitrogen is both an essential nutrient and a pollutant, a byproduct of fossil fuel combustion and a fertilizer that feeds billions, a benefit and a hazard, depending on form, location, and quantity.
High levels of the anti-inflammatory substance diclofenac are released from wastewater plants, according to a study from IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute and Umeå University that was commissioned by the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency (Swedish EPA).
Indonesia has the potential to realize major reductions in national greenhouse gas emissions from deforestation, and simultaneously earn significant new income for national and regional governments, if policies to Reduce Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+) are developed with strong and specific economic incentives, said scientists in a new paper published in the leading scientific journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Ambitious solar initiative at Natick, Mass., schools and buildings will reduce energy consumption and provide educational and learning opportunities.
New research has found that individuals and the private sector have an important role to play in the provision of public policies to help society adapt to the impacts of climate change.
Researchers at the Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI) at the University of York (York) have played a key role in a new study that shows that implementing 14 key air pollution control measures could slow the pace of global warming, save millions of lives and boost agricultural production.
Consumers will see added momentum in California’s groundbreaking push for safer alternatives to toxic chemicals in everyday products following the signing of a landmark agreement today by the California Department of Toxic Substances Control and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
The world’s fastest vegetable oil-fueled vehicle – conceived, built and driven by a team of Boise State University undergraduate students dubbed Greenspeed – will be on display Jan. 26-Feb. 5 at the Washington Auto Show in Washington, D.C.
Preserving diverse plant life will be crucial to buffer the negative effects of climate change and desertification in in the world's drylands, according to a new landmark study.