Extreme temperatures and humidity levels (excessive rain or drought) projected for the Amazon in the context of climate change may increase the volume of methane-producing microorganisms in flooded areas and reduce potential uptake of this greenhouse gas in upland forests by 70%, with global impacts, according to a study conducted by researchers at the University of São Paulo (USP) in Brazil. An article reporting their findings is published in the journal Environmental Microbiome.

A collaborative research team involving Texas A&M University geologist Dr. Franco Marcantonio has examined the source of lead contamination in a Tibetan glacier, concluding that human activities have introduced the pollutant metal in some of the most remote regions of the world.

MIT researchers have some good environmental news: Mercury emissions from human activity have been declining over the past two decades, despite global emissions inventories that indicate otherwise.

Plastic pollution – tiny bits of plastic, smaller than a grain of sand – is everywhere, a fact of life that applies even to newborn rodents, according to a Rutgers Health study published in the journal Science of the Total Environment.

Utilizing one of the longest-running ecosystem experiments in the Arctic, a Colorado State University-led team of researchers have developed a better understanding of the interplay among plants, microbes and soil nutrients — findings that offer new insight into how critical carbon deposits may be released from thawing Arctic permafrost.

New research shows how growing Queensland regions can learn from biodiversity and carbon offsetting efforts to better meet water quality targets.

Visitors to NOAA’s Atmospheric Turbulence and Diffusion Division in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, may notice a toy bear perched high on a shelf in the hallway.

Long-term smoke exposure from massive wildfires lowers the energy reserves of orchard trees and can cut their nut production by half, researchers at the University of California, Davis, found. 

When marine biologist Richard Thompson and his students analyzed samples of beach sand over 20 years ago, they were surprised to find countless small multicolored pieces of plastic mixed in.

A first-of-its-kind study has measured the toxicity of several types of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), better known as “forever chemicals,” when mixed together in the environment and in the human body.