Category Archives: Environment

Energy Destinies – Part 1: Power Needs and Sources – Balancing Barrels

Satyajit Das provides a series on the energy transition, starting with the historical role of energy and supply and demand patterns.

As Wildfire Smoke Clears, Scientists Warn Air Quality Impacts Aren’t Over

As bad air becomes a new normal, advanced economies grapple with impact of sooty wildfire smoke on top of existing pollutants.

The EU Looks to “Jungle” Sacrifice Zones to Help It Out of Energy Crisis

Low wages and dirty energy make the Balkans and North Africa attractive options for the EU to keep the “garden” green and profitable.

Is Russia’s Least Bad Option Now the Maximalist Stance of Taking Control of Western Ukraine?

Is Russia moving towards the perceived necessity of subduing western Ukraine? And how might that work?

Catastrophic Breach of Nova Kakhovka Dam Floods Lower Dnieper, Cuts Crimea Water Supplies; Ukraine Attacks in Bakhmut, South Donetsk [Updated]

Those unhappy about the lack of drama in the Ukraine war of late have gotten what they wanted with the breach of the Kakhovka dam

Where the ‘Wood-Wide Web’ Narrative Went Wrong

The three of us have studied forest fungi for our whole careers, and even we were surprised by some of the more extraordinary claims surfacing in the media about the wood-wide web. Thinking

The Grid Needs A $20 Trillion Upgrade To Support Energy Transition

Inadequate grid capacity all over the globe raises doubts about the viability of green energy plans, at least at scale.

Amid Global Debate, UN Plastics Treaty at Risk of Falling Short

The war on plastics has put recycling in its crosshairs.

Our Disappearing Shoreline

A brief look at the process of shoreline erosion.

The Decline In Coal Appears To Have Been Exaggerated

Carbon reduction promises get thrown out the window as countries like the UK, Australia, and China embrace king coal.

Capturing Carbon With Machines Is a Failure—So Why Are We Subsidizing It?

licymakers are funding techno-fixes like carbon capture, when studies indicate nature-based solutions are all-around more effective.

Ice Melt In the Pipeline

The IPCC has been soft-pedaling realistic, as in alarming, prospects for rapid ice melt and near-term ocean rises.

As Water Levels Drop, the Risk of Arsenic Poisoning Rises

Dangerous levels of arsenic in well water is another symptom of falling water tables and depleted aquifers.