pollution

It may not make your list of must-have camping gear, but a new sheet that detects mercury levels in water may prove useful to those who live or work downstream from industrial and mining sites (such as gold mines and coal-fired powered plants) and want to drink the local water.

When dipped in water for five minutes, the sheet, manufactured by chemists at the University of Burgos in Spain, signals the presence of mercury by turning red -- a process that can be seen with the naked eye.

Take a picture of that sheet with a digital camera, and you can learn the specific concentration of the mercury, a metal that is liquid at room temperature and has been found to cause long-term neurological issues after accumulating in the brain.… Read more

In the midst of this year's particularly bad flu season, we're reminded just how many nasty little particles roam the air we breathe -- from bacteria and viruses to allergens and diesel exhaust particulates.

But a new device that recently protected immunocompromised mice from these particulates has the potential to be both effective and safe for human use as well, according to researchers behind a new study published in the journal Applied and Environmental Microbiology.

"Small particles are difficult to remove, and our device overcomes that barrier," says Pratim Biswas, who chairs the Department of Energy, Environmental & Chemical Engineering at Washington University. In fact, the device not only traps the particles, it even inactivates them -- and that includes bioterror agents, Biswas says.… Read more

With its many pedestrians and subway users, New York seems like one of the greener cities in the U.S. But it still produced a gob-smacking mountain of carbon emissions in 2010.

In the vid below from graphics firm Carbon Visuals, the 54 million tons of CO2 is illustrated as a mass of spheres that tower over the city, engulfing its buildings.

Some 75 percent of the pollution came from buildings, with the bulk of the rest from transport, according to the firm, which used city data. … Read more

Oscar Lhermitte wants to give city dwellers back their stars.

With his project "Urban Stargazing," the London-based product designer and graduate of the Royal College of Art has craftily used LEDs, fiber optics, nylon line, and giant slingshots to beat back light pollution and reconnect people with the aeons-old mysteries of the night sky. His "triangulated structures" stand in for the constellations that have fired human imagination for so long but that are now so often drowned out in metropolitan areas.… Read more

Apple will participate in a jointly monitored audit with the Institute of Public and Environment Affairs to look into the pollution controls at factories owned by an Apple supply partner in China.

The Financial Times reported on Sunday that Apple appears to be taking more interest in addressing environmental concerns in its supply chain and has agreed to subject its partner--a maker of printed circuit boards--to an inspection of the latter's operations in the "next few weeks."

Ma Jun, a director at the China-based institute, told the news agency that Apple's agreeing to the audit was … Read more

Chinese environmental groups have accused Apple of turning a blind eye as its suppliers pollute the country, the latest criticism of the technology company's environmental record.

Toxic discharges from "suspected Apple suppliers" have been encroaching on local communities and environments, a coalition of environmental organizations said today in a 46-page report alleging efforts to conceal pollution.

Widespread environmental degradation has accompanied China's breakneck economic growth, and the government has been criticized for failing to take steps to curb pollution.

"The large volume of discharge in Apple's supply chain greatly endangers the public's health and safety," said the report, issued on the Web site of the Beijing-based Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs.

The report alleges that 27 suspected Apple suppliers had severe pollution problems, from toxic gases to heavy metal sludge. In one case, the report said, a nearby village experienced a "phenomenal rise in cases of cancer."

Apple has decided to "take advantage of loopholes" in developing countries' environmental management systems to "grab super profits," it said. … Read more

The Obama administration scaled back on demands for heavy industrial boilers to cut toxic air emissions, a sign it may be willing to compromise with businesses and Republicans on future air pollution rules.

The Environmental Protection Agency today issued final regulations on cutting air pollutants such as mercury and soot at boilers, which are basically on-site power plants at factories, and incinerators.

The EPA said the move would cost companies $1.8 billion to cut pollution, about half the amount that would have resulted from rules proposed last year.

While the rules are only a minor part of the EPA'… Read more

WASHINGTON--U.S. environmental regulators released a plan on Thursday for the nation's power plants and refineries to cut greenhouse gas emissions, pressing ahead with the Obama administration's strategy of tackling the pollution in the absence of federal climate legislation.

The Environmental Protection Agency said it would propose so-called performance standards on greenhouse gas emissions on both new and existing plants beginning in July for power plants and for oil refineries by December. The fossil fuel plants emit about 40 percent of U.S. greenhouse gases.

The plan resulted from an agreement with states, including California and New York, … Read more

Gone are the days of having to rely on carefully chosen statistics doled out by a government agency or news reporter in the event of a crisis.

Readily available satellite data and visualization tools online have made it possible for anyone to observe massive changes happening on a global scale. Of course, that data is only available insofar as government agencies with satellites have made their data available.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the USDA Forest Service provide information for interested people looking to see the latest on U.S. wildfires.

Now the European Space Agency is … Read more