A calculation method enabling energy benchmarking in the pulp and paper industry: Adopting a methodology that bridge the research-policy implementation gap The pulp and paper industry consumes large amounts of energy. But despite stricter EU requirements for efficiency improvements, there has been no way to measure and compare energy consumption between different companies in a fair way. In collaboration with the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency, researchers at Linköping University, Sweden, now present a solution that has great potential to be used…
Community-managed forests in Guatemala support wildlife as well as protected areas, but subtle human impacts still shape where species roam PULLMAN, Wash. — Deep in Guatemala’s Maya rainforest, a team led by Washington State University researchers captured more than just photos of jaguars, tapirs and ocelots. They also captured a rare success story: a way for humans and wildlife to share a forest without destroying it. In a new study published in Conservation Biology, scientists from WSU and the Wildlife Conservation Society…
Understanding people’s attitudes to interactions with sharks could help halt the global decline of shark numbers, according to new research carried out on Ascension Island. In 2017, there were two non-fatal shark attacks at Ascension – a UK territory in the South Atlantic with a population of about 800 people. Large numbers of sharks – mostly silky and Galapagos sharks – have affected the island’s recreational fishers, who often lose tackle and hooked fish before they can be landed. The…
SAN DIEGO (Oct. 1, 2025) – Recent studies led by an international consortium of researchers, including scientists from the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance and the Museo de Historia Natural de la Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos, unveiled groundbreaking findings in biodiversity conservation through in situ DNA barcoding in the Peruvian Amazon. Measuring the earth’s biological richness in one of its most remote and biodiverse regions is no small task. The Peruvian Amazon is in imminent danger of losing species…
New research reveals “unprecedented” conservation results of community-based management of protected areas in the Amazon – as many face a future in which they may become increasingly degraded due to low enforcement of regulations, growing external encroachment and competition for resources. The study describes a powerful new mechanism for increasing the extent of effective area-based protection by piggybacking on community management of natural resources. Tropical protected areas are typically understaffed, underfunded and underequipped and it remains unclear how existing ones…
STUTTGART/MELBOURNE, 8 September 2025 — A joint research team from the University of Stuttgart (Germany) and the University of Melbourne (Australia) has developed a simple, affordable method for detecting nanoplastics in environmental samples. Using only a standard optical microscope and a specially designed test strip—the “optical sieve”—scientists can now visualize and analyze particles that were previously invisible without expensive, high-tech equipment. The breakthrough has been published in Nature Photonics (doi: 10.1038/s41566-025-01733-x). “The test strip can serve as a simple analysis…
WASHINGTON, Sept. 3, 2025 — Detecting microplastics in the environment could soon become faster and more affordable thanks to a new biosensor developed by scientists and published today in ACS Sensors. The living sensor, built from a safe laboratory strain of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, attaches to plastic and glows green under fluorescence, making even tiny plastic fragments visible in water samples. Tackling the Microplastics Problem Microplastics—tiny fragments of plastic often invisible to the naked eye—are now found in air, soil, and…
Study reveals nearly 1.5 times higher risk of high-severity wildfires on industrial private lands Forests managed by timber companies are significantly more prone to destructive wildfires than publicly owned forests, according to new research led by the University of Utah, University of California, Berkeley, and the United States Forest Service. Industrial forests face higher wildfire risk The study found that the odds of high-severity wildfire were nearly one-and-a-half times higher on industrial private land than on public land. Industrially managed…
RIVERSIDE, Calif. — August 20, 2025 — Planting trees can help cool the climate and reduce wildfires, but the benefits are greatest in the tropics, according to a new study from the University of California, Riverside (UCR). Published in npj Climate and Atmospheric Science, the study shows that while tree planting has a net positive effect on the climate worldwide, local temperature impacts vary by region. In higher latitudes, tree planting can sometimes produce a slight warming effect, whereas tropical…
Historically, lakes have been perceived as contributors to carbon dioxide emissions; however, recent research indicates they may function as carbon sinks. Research conducted by Uppsala University indicates that lake shorelines sequester more carbon than previously estimated, underscoring the necessity of including these littoral zones in assessments of the continental carbon balance. The littoral zones of lakes are typically bordered by aquatic plants, which are among the fastest-growing flora globally. They absorb significant quantities of carbon from the atmosphere, while substantial…
According to new research, large ocean species can be protected in large Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) for a large portion of their lifecycles. The Chagos Archipelago MPA is a 640,000 km² protected area in the Indian Ocean where the study monitored the migrations of seabirds, manta rays, and sea turtles. Findings revealed that 95% of all recorded tracking locations for these wide-ranging species fell within the MPA boundaries — highlighting its effectiveness in protecting highly mobile marine wildlife. Comparing Large…
Substantial surface waves generated by powerboats are essential for recreational watersports. A recent study from the University of Minnesota Twin Cities indicates that underlying factors, including propeller thrust and various wave types, might affect fragile lakebed ecosystems. Researchers at the University of Minnesota’s St. Anthony Falls Laboratory expanded on earlier studies to investigate powerboat impacts on lake ecosystems during the 2022 and 2023 field seasons. The lake bottom and the water column are two different places and depths where the…
Trees can offer up to 30 degrees of shade relief from the blistering desert sun, but don’t cool the city’s air temperature as much as trees in less dry environments. Earth is hotter than it has been in 125,000 years, scientists say, and Las Vegas continues to break temperature records. The extreme heat claimed more than 500 lives in southern Nevada last year alone, and scientists and city officials are clamoring for solutions. Planting and preserving the city’s street trees…
The decrease growed in magnitude over time, with no evidence of the rates rebounding Among the biggest culprits of plastic pollution in the ocean and along shorelines are thin plastic shopping bags, which have low recycling rates and often become litter when they blow away in the wind. Once there, they can entangle animals and break down into harmful microplastics. As awareness of this problem has grown, more than 100 countries have instituted bans or fees on plastic bags. But…
Field tests in Florida identify best available treatment to combat coral disease without need for antibiotics Scientists with the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History have discovered that a bacterial probiotic helps slow the spread of stony coral tissue loss disease (SCTLD) in already infected wild corals in Florida. The findings, published today in the journal Frontiers in Marine Science, reveal that applying the probiotic treatment across entire coral colonies helped prevent tissue loss. The new treatment provides a viable alternative…
Researchers from the Federal University of São Paulo used oysters and mussels as sentinel organisms to assess the presence of these pollutants. The results show that even the most restrictive sites for human presence have significant contamination. Despite being considered sanctuaries for biodiversity, Brazil’s marine protected areas (MPAs) are not immune to microplastic contamination. A recent study has shown that even MPAs classified as integral protection areas (APIs), which are the most restrictive to human intervention, are contaminated by this…
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