Climate change threatens to widen the health gap between the haves and have-nots. Here’s why addressing environmental issues that drive poor health is a starting point.
The North Water Polynya, or Pikialasorsuaq, is a key ocean area for Arctic animals and for Inuit hunting and fishing. Rocket launches threaten to contaminate the area with harmful chemicals.
The U.S. Consumer Protection Safety Commission has recommended a wide-spread ban on an entire class of flame retardants. Here’s how Canada could follow suit.
New research shows that noise pollution in US cities is concentrated in poor and minority communities. Beyond regulating airplane noise, the US has done relatively little to curb noise pollution.
Mining social media posts from tourism hotspots such as coral reefs could turn tourists into environmental citizen scientists without them even realising it.
Cholera is caused by a lack of access to clean drinking water and unhygienic conditions. Misuse of antibiotics makes it difficult and expensive to treat outbreaks.
Research shows that bringing nature indoors, in the form of movement created by light, wind and water, makes occupants calmer and more productive. It also could promote interest in sustainable design.
Lee Blaney, University of Maryland, Baltimore County
Ingredients from shampoo, sunscreens and other personal care products are turning up in water supplies. Some are toxic or cause hormonal damage to aquatic life, and could threaten human health.
Edgar Hertwich, Norwegian University of Science and Technology; Anders Arvesen, Norwegian University of Science and Technology; Sangwon Suh, University of California, Santa Barbara, dan Thomas Gibon, Norwegian University of Science and Technology
No energy source is perfect, but solar and wind have a much lower health and environmental footprint than fossil fuels, a study finds. Biopower, though, is a mixed bag.
Rebekah Brown, Monash University; Karin Leder, Monash University, dan Tony Wong, Cooperative Research Centre for Water Sensitive Cities
A five-year project announced today will implement an innovative water-sensitive approach tailored to informal settlements. The goal is to revitalise 24 communities in Fiji and Indonesia.
Citizens and activists are using cheap off-the-shelf sensors to collect their own data on air pollution. It’s a promising trend, but these devices have serious technical limitations.
Inexpensive cloth face masks, worn by many people in heavily polluted countries, offer only partial protection. Instead governments should warn people to avoid exposure and work to clear the air.
The unanticipated public health consequences of unsustainable development reminds the world that the issues are not in the distant future, but instead face us now.
Research Director, Australian Microplastic Assessment Project (AUSMAP); Honorary Senior Research Fellow, School of Natural Sciences, Macquarie University