Environmental science
The latest chemistry news and research on environmental science, including atmosphere, climate, water and space, from the Royal Society of Chemistry's magazine, Chemistry World
-
NewsCalifornia finds no significant risk to human health from synthetic turf fields
After years of conflicting safety findings, the head of the state’s environmental hazard assessment office says this new study should ‘ease concerns’
-
ResearchSunlight-driven process upcycles polystyrene waste and elemental sulfur into valuable organic compounds
Products could be used as building blocks for semiconductor materials
-
BusinessSyngenta to close UK paraquat herbicide factory
90 jobs will be cut when Huddersfield plant stops making chemical that is banned in EU
-
BusinessClean hydrogen project cancellations point to narrower future
Plants actually being built tend to use hydrogen as feedstock, not fuel
-
NewsOver 80% of US adults want more done to ensure that chemicals are safe
In recent survey, 84% of American respondents say the government and industry must do more to identify, regulate harmful chemicals in products
-
NewsOcean carbon storage boosted by alkalinity enhancement, finds open-water trial
Pilot project in Gulf of Maine assessing ocean geoengineering approach, finds it boosts carbon dioxide uptake
-
NewsWhy I’m leading an expedition in search of ‘dark oxygen’
Chemistry World spoke to Andrew Sweetman, the biogeochemist leading the upcoming excursion to the Clarion Clipperton Zone in the Pacific
-
NewsHow will repealing the ‘endangerment finding’ hit US action on climate?
Without 2009 ruling emissions regulations on everything from cars and power stations to blast furnaces could collapse
-
ResearchRising carbon dioxide levels leave conifer forests struggling to get enough nitrogen
Discovery implies boreal forests will grow slower and sequester less carbon
-
NewsPFAS waxes found on skis and snowboards lead to three Olympic disqualifications
Athletes excluded for first time for materials doping with ‘forever chemicals’ since the prohibition took effect three years ago
-
ResearchHeat waves that push up atmospheric nanoparticle levels might explain higher death tolls
Counter-intuitive finding suggests particle formation from natural and anthropogenic organic compounds might increase during extreme heat events
-
NewsEPA moves to eliminate basis of greenhouse gas regulations
Legal challenges predicted as US environmental protection agency rescinds long-standing ‘endangerment finding’
-
OpinionWhen we ate whales for breakfast
A reminder that technological developments aren’t sufficient to solve environmental problems
-
OpinionWhy everyone wants to ramp up rare earths production
Rare earth elements have become instruments of geopolitical power
-
PodcastAlphaGenome & the RNA world hypothesis
In this episode, we discuss Google DeepMind’s latest deep learning model AlphaGenome, dissect the origins of life from chemicals to complex lifeforms, and hear the latest headlines.
-
BusinessControversial weedkiller dicamba reapproved in the US
Regulator says new label restrictions will prevent damage of nearby crops
-
OpinionProbing PFAS policies in the UK and EU
The UK has set out its approach to regulating fluorochemicals, and the EU has projected the savings from a proposed ban
-
NewsUK government sets out plan to tackle PFAS threat
Report accepts that regulation is needed, but warns transition away from PFAS will take time
-
ResearchCovid pandemic’s disruption of industrial activity drove surge in methane in early 2020s
Levels of methane-degrading radicals decreased as a knock-on effect of the pandemic
-
ResearchEmbodying polymer chemistry with a purpose by upcycling plastics and trapping PFAS
For Frank Leibfarth, focussing on reactivity and selectivity helps him bridge the gap between fundamental and applied research