tag:theconversation.com,2011:/us/topics/pollutants-51007/articlespollutants – The Conversation2024-02-27T14:07:04Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2230482024-02-27T14:07:04Z2024-02-27T14:07:04ZBenefits of using cleaner cooking fuels are blunted in urban areas where outdoor air is polluted: findings from Ghana, Cameroon and Kenya<p>Household air pollution from cooking, heating and lighting with fuels like wood, charcoal and kerosene poses a substantial global health problem. </p>
<p>Globally, <a href="https://www.who.int/news/item/20-01-2022-who-publishes-new-global-data-on-the-use-of-clean-and-polluting-fuels-for-cooking-by-fuel-type">2 billion</a> people cook with polluting fuels and are exposed to high levels of household air pollution. The highest proportion live in sub-Saharan Africa, where <a href="https://www.nihr.ac.uk/news/new-research-could-help-boost-growth-of-clean-cooking-in-sub-saharan-africa/29340#:%7E:text=Approximately%20900%20million%20people%20cook,health%2Ddamaging%20and%20climate%20pollutants">about 900 million</a> people cook with polluting fuels.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanplh/article/PIIS2542-5196(20)30197-2/fulltext">Studies</a> have shown that use of cleaner cooking fuels, like electricity, ethanol and liquefied petroleum gas, reduces exposure to fine particulate matter (PM2.5), a damaging pollutant. But <a href="https://ehjournal.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12940-021-00756-5">other studies</a> have also shown that the use of cleaner cooking fuels doesn’t necessarily reduce PM2.5 levels in people’s homes.</p>
<p>To understand why, our research looked at three rapidly urbanising communities in Cameroon (Mbalmayo), Ghana (Obuasi) and Kenya (Eldoret). We looked at differences in air pollutant levels across cooking fuel types as well as other environmental factors. We measured levels of PM2.5 as well as carbon monoxide (CO), another damaging air pollutant. </p>
<p>Half of the households that were part of our study were mostly cooking with LPG, which is considered a cleaner cooking fuel. The other half were cooking only with polluting fuels, including wood and charcoal.</p>
<p>Our findings showed that the type of cooking fuel households used did indeed affect levels of pollution inside people’s homes. But we found wide disparities between the three communities. For example, there was hardly any difference in average PM2.5 exposures between LPG and charcoal users in the Ghanaian setting. However, in the Kenyan and Cameroonian communities, women’s average PM2.5 levels were much higher among those cooking with wood, compared with those cooking with LPG. In Eldoret, Kenya, women cooking with charcoal were also exposed to substantially higher levels than those cooking with LPG. </p>
<p>We concluded from our results that this could be explained by the fact that environmental factors were also at play – air pollution levels outside people’s homes. In the Ghanaian area, outdoor air pollution levels were around double the levels in the other two communities. This difference is likely due in part to <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1352231099002964?via%3Dihub">increased levels</a> of Saharan dust in Ghana during the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/harmattan">harmattan</a> season. </p>
<p>In addition, most women in the Ghanaian setting usually cooked outdoors on a veranda. This increased their exposure to outdoor air pollution. In contrast, women in Kenya and Cameroon typically cooked indoors.</p>
<p>We also found that women, regardless of the cooking fuel they used, had higher exposure to PM2.5 if they lived closer to a busy road (less than a five minute walk away) and travelled outdoors during the day. This suggested that traffic emissions probably made up a substantial proportion of the air pollution that women were breathing in these urban areas. And emissions generated from cooking might have contributed less to overall PM2.5 exposures. </p>
<p>This may explain why there were minimal differences between PM2.5 exposures among women using LPG and charcoal stoves in the Ghanaian community, despite LPG stoves generally emitting lower levels of PM2.5. It follows that, in some areas with rapid urbanisation, outdoor air pollution is probably lowering the ability of clean cooking fuels to reduce PM2.5 exposures. </p>
<h2>What next</h2>
<p>As cities continue to urbanise and the African population increasingly migrates to cities, <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41561-023-01311-2">evidence</a> points to the fact that localised levels of air pollution from industrial sources, traffic, and trash burning are likely to increase. This means that people will become increasingly exposed to air pollutants outdoors and that reductions in PM2.5 exposure that happens when people switch from polluting fuels to LPG may be lower. </p>
<p>Our findings show that clean cooking fuels can reduce indoor air pollution. However, a focus on reducing indoor pollution by switching cooking fuels may only have a limited effect on people’s exposure to damaging air pollutants. Our findings point to the need for developing strategies for reducing both indoor and outdoor air pollution levels. Lower outdoor PM2.5 concentrations can be achieved through stricter regulations on traffic emissions and limiting or eliminating trash burning in favour of less polluting methods for solid waste disposal.</p>
<p>Nevertheless, efforts to encourage a transition towards clean cooking fuels should remain an important policy priority, particularly in communities that are exposed to lower levels of outdoor PM2.5. The transition to clean cooking fuels can potentially have a greater health benefit in these settings. </p>
<p>A more targeted approach and prioritising certain areas in the drive for access to cleaner cooking fuels makes sense. As the <a href="https://cleancooking.org/">Clean Cooking Alliance</a> has pointed out, there are limited resources and funding to tackle the move towards cleaner cooking fuels. Targeting specific areas for clean cooking transitions may therefore be a useful strategy. </p>
<p>In the meantime, the global health community must devote more resources to providing universal access to clean cooking by 2030 <a href="https://www.unep.org/explore-topics/sustainable-development-goals/why-do-sustainable-development-goals-matter/goal-7">(United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 7)</a>].</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/223048/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Matthew Shupler is also a researcher in the Department of Public Health, Policy and Systems at the University of Liverpool. This research was funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) (ref: 17/63/155) using UK aid from
the UK Government to support global health research. The views expressed in this article are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the NIHR or the UK government.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Esong Miranda Baame and Theresa Tawiah do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Dust and traffic pollution add to the health hazard posed by some cooking fuels.Matthew Shupler, Postdoctoral Research Associate in Environmental Public Health, Harvard UniversityEsong Miranda Baame, PhD Candidate, Université de DschangTheresa Tawiah, Health Economist ,Department of Environmental Health, Kintampo Health Research CenterLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2193952023-12-13T03:28:22Z2023-12-13T03:28:22ZPesticide residue from farms and towns is ending up in fresh oysters<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/564439/original/file-20231208-27-22yb4u.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=11%2C11%2C1930%2C1444&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Author supplied</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>For years, oysters have been lauded as one of the most sustainable and healthy seafood options. But our food is only as healthy as the environment it is grown in. </p>
<p>In new research published in <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2023.123084">Environmental Pollution</a>, we found something unfortunate. These filter-feeding shellfish eat by straining particles from water. This, alas, makes them very good at soaking up pesticide residue. </p>
<p>When we analysed oysters growing naturally in the Richmond River estuary in New South Wales, we found 21 different pesticides – more than in the water. Each oyster had detectable amounts of nine different pesticides, on average. </p>
<p>We don’t know the full health risks of eating oysters from this river. But we do know five pesticides we found are potentially dangerous – they are not allowed to be present in meat due to the risks. </p>
<p>To be clear: the risk is largely in taking oysters from the wild. Commercially farmed oysters are likely to be safer, as they are regulated by Australia’s <a href="https://www.agriculture.gov.au/biosecurity-trade/export/controlled-goods/fish/registered-establishment/shellfish-qa">shellfish quality assurance program</a> and can only be harvested when water quality is good. </p>
<h2>How do pesticides get into oysters?</h2>
<p>Oysters pump water through their bodies and eat the bacteria, plankton and other particles they filter out. A single oyster can filter up to five litres of water an hour and over 250,000 litres in their lifetime. </p>
<p>Before colonisation, oyster reefs were everywhere. Most of these reefs were pulled out to use the shells for lime and the meat to eat. In the Richmond River, poor water quality and a disease killed off most oysters until a new, <a href="https://ozfish.org.au/2020/04/new-oyster-variety-potential-game-changer/">disease-resistant strain emerged</a>. </p>
<p>Filter-feeding works well if you’re just filtering out what’s found naturally. But if the water is contaminated, oysters can end up storing pathogens and pollutants in their bodies. </p>
<p>Oysters prefer brackish water – where fresh meets salt. That’s why they’re intensively farmed in many estuaries. But because many of our coastal catchments now contain farms, towns or cities, the pesticides, herbicides and insecticides we use wash into rivers after rain.</p>
<figure class="align-left zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/564436/original/file-20231208-21-22yb4u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="oysters on a rock" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/564436/original/file-20231208-21-22yb4u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/564436/original/file-20231208-21-22yb4u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/564436/original/file-20231208-21-22yb4u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/564436/original/file-20231208-21-22yb4u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/564436/original/file-20231208-21-22yb4u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/564436/original/file-20231208-21-22yb4u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/564436/original/file-20231208-21-22yb4u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Sydney rock oysters have a remarkable ability to filter water but can also accumulate pesticides in the process.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Kirsten Benkendorff</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>What did we find in these oysters?</h2>
<p>Most of the herbicides, insecticides and fungicides we found are used routinely by farmers, land managers and council workers. </p>
<p>But we did find an unwelcome surprise – the fungicide benomyl, which has been illegal in Australia since 2006 due to the high risk to human health and the environment. Detecting this chemical means someone is using it illegally. </p>
<p>Four pesticides – atrazine, diuron, hexazinone and metolachlor – were found in concentrations above safe environmental limits for <a href="https://www.waterquality.gov.au/anz-guidelines/guideline-values/default/water-quality-toxicants/search">fresh and marine water</a>.</p>
<p>Atrazine and diuron are among the most commonly used herbicides in Australian farming, but they are not safe chemicals. They’re known to contaminate groundwater and surface water, and have been detected in unsafe levels in the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2009.03.006">waters of the Great Barrier Reef</a>. </p>
<p>Atrazine is banned in the European Union over concerns about the damage it can do to the environment and the risk of it getting into drinking water. </p>
<p>Diuron has been <a href="https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A32023R1656">severely restricted</a> in the EU, but is commonly used by the sugarcane industry in Australia. Like atrazine, diuron can pollute groundwater and kill aquatic species, and is <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26086120/">carcinogenic to humans</a>. </p>
<p>Australia’s pesticide authority suspended the use of 63 diuron products <a href="https://www.apvma.gov.au/sites/default/files/publication/15396-diuron-review-report.pdf">in 2011</a>. The ban only lasted a year, following <a href="https://search.informit.org/doi/abs/10.3316/ielapa.336804883887109">lobbying from sugarcane growers</a>, and diuron is back in use. </p>
<h2>What does this mean for oyster eaters?</h2>
<p>The sheer number of different pesticides we found in oysters was perhaps the biggest concern for lovers of oysters. Five of these – pebulate, vernolate, fosetyl Al, benomyl and prothiofos – have residue limits set at zero for meat. That is, if you want to sell meat, it cannot have any detectable level of these pesticides. (At present, our food safety guidelines have no specific limits for most pesticides in seafood.)</p>
<p>What about the 16 other pesticides we found? Most were below the allowable residue limits in meat on their own, but we have very little understanding of the combined effects of exposure from multiple pesticides. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-real-cost-of-pesticides-in-australias-food-boom-20757">The real cost of pesticides in Australia's food boom</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/564446/original/file-20231208-29-za277f.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="rock oyster on dock" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/564446/original/file-20231208-29-za277f.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/564446/original/file-20231208-29-za277f.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/564446/original/file-20231208-29-za277f.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/564446/original/file-20231208-29-za277f.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/564446/original/file-20231208-29-za277f.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/564446/original/file-20231208-29-za277f.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/564446/original/file-20231208-29-za277f.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">These Sydney rock oysters have come from an oyster lease in the Richmond River.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Kirsten Benkendorff</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>What should be done?</h2>
<p>The problem for oyster farmers and marine managers is they’re effectively powerless to prevent water pollution entering the river from farms or towns upstream. </p>
<p>The first step is to find out how bad the problem is. We need dedicated pesticide monitoring programs for seafood producers in estuaries to gauge the size of the problem and look for hotspots. </p>
<p>If hotspots are found, the next step is to work with farmers and land managers to collaboratively design solutions. </p>
<p>These could include incentives to cut pesticide use through <a href="https://www.epa.nsw.gov.au/your-environment/pesticides/integrated-pest-management">integrated pest management</a> and <a href="https://www.csiro.au/en/research/plants/crops/farming-systems/precision-agriculture">precision agriculture</a> as well as the use of tools to decide <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11356-023-29814-w">which pesticide to use and when</a>. </p>
<p>Strategically located wetlands and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8wIJ8hVYlc&t=6s">bacterial bioreactors</a> able to break down pesticides can also stop these chemicals arriving in the river. </p>
<p>Mangrove and shellfish reef restoration could help protect commercial oyster farms and other seafood harvesting areas. Like oysters, mangroves have the ability to remove chemical contaminants from the water and store them internally. </p>
<p>You might be wondering why some of these chemicals are legal to use in the first place. It’s very time consuming to seek review of currently available pesticides in Australia. Scientists or community members have to demonstrate these products cause harm, even if they have been reviewed and banned in many other nations. </p>
<h2>Can I still eat oysters?</h2>
<p>Yes. To cut your personal risk, buy only from reputable commercial oyster farms. These farms are only allowed to harvest oysters when the water quality is good, which helps remove water soluble pesticides. Given most of us don’t eat oysters daily, the risk is likely to be low. </p>
<p>What you should avoid is harvesting your own oysters in estuaries where there are farms or towns upstream. These may have accumulated pesticides. Leave them where they are – they’re doing a very important job: cleaning the water. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/once-the-fish-factories-and-kidneys-of-colder-seas-australias-decimated-shellfish-reefs-are-coming-back-184063">Once the fish factories and ‘kidneys’ of colder seas, Australia’s decimated shellfish reefs are coming back</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/219395/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kirsten Benkendorff receives funding from the NSW Government for other current projects on seafood and water quality.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span><a href="mailto:amanda.reichelt-brushett@scu.edu.au">amanda.reichelt-brushett@scu.edu.au</a> receives funding from the NSW State Government. She is affiliated with the Richmond RiverKeeper Association. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span><a href="mailto:e.jamal.10@student.scu.edu.au">e.jamal.10@student.scu.edu.au</a> receives funding from the Australia Awards Scholarship and postgraduate funding from the Faculty of Science, Southern Cross University.</span></em></p>Herbicides and pesticides wash downriver from farms and towns – and some of these chemicals are taken up by oysters.Kirsten Benkendorff, Professor, Southern Cross UniversityAmanda Reichelt-Brushett, Professor Environmental and Marine Science, Southern Cross UniversityEndang Jamal, Senior lecturer in aquaculture, Pattimura University and doctoral student, Southern Cross UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2163042023-11-15T23:14:16Z2023-11-15T23:14:16ZWhat designers can do to make textiles healthier for people and the planet<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/555594/original/file-20230927-29-m4ke9q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=4%2C0%2C994%2C720&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The glamourous aspect of fashion obscures the health and socio-environmental issues of the textile industry.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rwp0Bx0awoE">pollution caused by the textile industry</a> is often discussed, but its <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30278363/">impact on health</a> is less emphasized. Nevertheless, the petrochemical compounds used in the manufacturing of our clothes have harmful effects on <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=onD5UOP5z_c">workers</a>, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IxVq_38BoPE">surrounding communities</a>, and <a href="http://www.cec.org/files/documents/publications/11777-furthering-understanding-migration-chemicals-from-consumer-products-en.pdf">consumers</a>. This issue has a <a href="https://www.greenpeace.org/static/planet4-international-stateless/2012/11/317d2d47-toxicthreads01.pdf">global impact</a>, but its assessment is complex due to our low chronic exposure to a <a href="https://www.leslibraires.ca/livres/perturbateurs-endocriniens-la-menace-invisible-marine-jobert-9782283028179.html">“cocktail” of synthetic substances</a> whose cause-and-effect relationships are difficult to identify.</p>
<p>Moreover, most of these substances prove to be toxic through interaction or degradation, as is the case with <a href="https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/chemical-substances/substance-groupings-initiative/aromatic-azo-benzidine-based.html">azo dyes</a> that are ubiquitous and persistent in the environment.</p>
<p>Through my research in sustainable textile design, I explore how design can contribute to making the textile industry more environmentally friendly, focusing on raising ecological awareness among designers, decision-makers, and the general public.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/551518/original/file-20231002-15-cu6ppt.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="textile dyes" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/551518/original/file-20231002-15-cu6ppt.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/551518/original/file-20231002-15-cu6ppt.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=221&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551518/original/file-20231002-15-cu6ppt.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=221&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551518/original/file-20231002-15-cu6ppt.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=221&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551518/original/file-20231002-15-cu6ppt.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=277&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551518/original/file-20231002-15-cu6ppt.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=277&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551518/original/file-20231002-15-cu6ppt.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=277&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Dyes made from agri-food waste and inspired by Pantone.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Vanessa Mardirossian)</span>, <span class="license">Fourni par l'auteur</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Design-led solutions</h2>
<p>In the 1960s, designer <a href="https://papanek.org/archivelibrary/victor-papanek/">Victor Papanek</a> was the first to address <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/190560.Design_for_the_Real_World">environmental issues related to industrial product design</a>. Meanwhile, biologist <a href="https://www.rachelcarson.org/silent-spring">Rachel Carson</a> initiated the emergence of ecological consciousness, shedding light on the profound impact of human activity on the environment. </p>
<p>Then in the 1990s, <a href="https://www.epa.gov/greenchemistry/basics-green-chemistry">green chemistry</a> facilitated collaboration between design and biology to develop <a href="https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1278402">ecological textiles</a>. Aligned with <a href="https://mcdonough.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/Hannover-Principles-1992.pdf">The Hannover Principles</a>, these textiles aimed to enhance waste management and preserve water purity. Intending to harmonize the interdependence between human activity and the natural world by eliminating toxic inputs at their source, these principles also gave rise to the “<a href="https://us.macmillan.com/books/9780865475878/cradletocradle">Cradle to Cradle</a>” ecodesign philosophy that popularized the concept of circular design in the early 2000s.</p>
<h2>An inspired approach from nature</h2>
<p>Humanity has always drawn inspiration from nature to create. </p>
<p>However, in the late 20th century, biologist <a href="https://biomimicry.org/janine-benyus/">Janine Benyus</a> invited us to <a href="https://biomimicry.org">observe the operating mechanisms of living organisms</a>, encouraging a reevaluation of manufacturing processes through <a href="https://biomimicry.org/chapterone/">biomimicry</a> — a concept that draws inspiration from nature’s designs and processes to create more sustainable technologies.</p>
<p>Could we, for example, produce dyes at room temperature and without toxic molecules? This approach leads to a shared reflection between design, science and engineering. This multidisciplinary vision of design, where ecology, medicine, and politics play a role in the design process to better meet the needs of society, was already advocated by Papanek in 1969.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/551520/original/file-20231002-30-2h1680.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="diagram" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/551520/original/file-20231002-30-2h1680.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/551520/original/file-20231002-30-2h1680.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551520/original/file-20231002-30-2h1680.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551520/original/file-20231002-30-2h1680.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551520/original/file-20231002-30-2h1680.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551520/original/file-20231002-30-2h1680.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551520/original/file-20231002-30-2h1680.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Concept of ‘minimal design,’ by Victor Papanek.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Diagram taken from the work of Victor Papanek)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Developing ecological literacy</h2>
<p>In 1990, educator <a href="https://blogs.ubc.ca/lled3662017/files/2017/08/Orr_Environmental-Literacy-Ecoliteracy.pdf">David Orr</a> introduced the concept of ecoliteracy to address a major gap in traditional education, centered on humans and ignoring their interconnectedness with nature. He advocated for environmental education to develop a sense of belonging to one’s living environment and establish production models that promote the resilience of ecosystems. This concept helps to understand the intricate connections between human activities and ecological systems, to foster a sense of responsibility and informed decision-making.</p>
<p>In the 2000s, fashion design researcher <a href="https://katefletcher.com">Kate Fletcher</a> supported the development of this ecological literacy to help stakeholders in the industry (designers, consumers and manufacturers) understand the implicit interconnection of industrial and living systems, showing that fashion maintains a vital relationship with nature. </p>
<p>Then, in 2018, the sustainable design researcher <a href="https://www.bloomsbury.com/ca/design-ecology-politics-9781350258778/">Joanna Boehnert </a>emphasized that ecological literacy not only promotes the development of new, more sustainable ways of producing, but also broadens our social, political, and economic vision to systemically address transdisciplinary sustainability challenges. </p>
<p>This is also supported by biologist Emmanuel Delannoy who offers a <a href="http://permaeconomie.fr/author/edelannoy">permaeconomy</a> model, blending permaculture and economics to establish a symbiotic relationship between economic systems and the natural environment, fostering resilience and prompting a reevaluation of our connection with living organisms</p>
<h2>A colourful heritage to rediscover</h2>
<p>My <a href="https://hexagram.ca/fr/qu-est-ce-que-la-recherche-creation/">research-creation</a> proposes a critical reflection on textile dyeing. </p>
<p>This field of investigation leads me to explore colouring beyond its aesthetic to raise ecological, economic and pedagogical questions. </p>
<p>While the glamourous aspect of fashion obscures the health and socio-environmental issues of the textile industry, I direct my thinking toward a more global understanding of dyeing, including its origins, manufacturing methods and interactions with living organisms. </p>
<p>I explore the development of non-toxic dyes by studying, on one hand, literature on <a href="https://www.belin-editeur.com/le-monde-des-teintures-naturelles">natural dyes since prehistory</a>, and, on the other hand, by meeting experts in the field such as scientific historian <a href="https://www.cnrs.fr/sites/default/files/download-file/CardonD.pdf">Dominique Cardon</a> or ecoliterate artisan <a href="https://fibershed.org/staff-board/">Rebecca Burgess</a>, founder of the <a href="https://fibershed.org">Fibershed</a> concept, which aims to produce biodegradable clothing in a limited geographical space. </p>
<p>I also study field practices, including those of the Textile Laboratory of <a href="https://www.luma.org/arles/atelierluma.html">Atelier Luma</a>, which works at the intersection of ecology, textiles and regional economic development. </p>
<p>And, I keep an eye on <a href="https://www.arts.ac.uk/subjects/textiles-and-materials/postgraduate?collection=ual-courses-meta-prod&query=!nullquery&start_rank=1&sort=relevance&f.Subject-test%7Csubject=Textiles%20and%20materials&f.Course%20level%7Clevel=Postgraduate">design education programs </a>that offer an art-science approach where deep ecology is integrated into the design process. </p>
<h2>Symbiosis between nature and the textile industry</h2>
<p>Additionally, in the <a href="https://speculativelifebiolab.com/2022/04/03/cooking-and-culturing-colour-part-iv/">research laboratory</a> where I work, I experiment with the intersection of traditional and prospective dyeing recipes.</p>
<p>Inspired by the concept of <a href="https://www.scirp.org/(S(lz5mqp453edsnp55rrgjct55))/reference/ReferencesPapers.aspx?ReferenceID=1999041">industrial ecology</a> (precursor of the <a href="https://www.canada.ca/en/services/environment/conservation/sustainability/circular-economy.html">circular economy</a>), that values the waste of one industry as resources for another, I use <a href="https://www.lapresse.ca/societe/mode-et-beaute/2021-03-30/quand-les-dechets-se-melent-de-la-mode.php">agri-food waste</a> as a colouring source, combined with the use of <a href="https://hexagram.ca/en/demo2-vanessa-mardirossian-the-culture-of-color-an-ecoliteracy-of-textile-design/">pigment-producing bacteria</a> to expand the colour palette. </p>
<p>Thus, tannins from various waste materials can be used in dye recipes. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/551537/original/file-20231002-25-qtiisx.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="bits of coloured fabric" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/551537/original/file-20231002-25-qtiisx.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/551537/original/file-20231002-25-qtiisx.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551537/original/file-20231002-25-qtiisx.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551537/original/file-20231002-25-qtiisx.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551537/original/file-20231002-25-qtiisx.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551537/original/file-20231002-25-qtiisx.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551537/original/file-20231002-25-qtiisx.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Fabric dyed from waste and bacteria.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Vanessa Mardirossian)</span>, <span class="license">Fourni par l'auteur</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>But colouring a textile is only the visible part of the iceberg, as fibre preparation takes place upstream to ensure the colour’s resistance to light and washing, known as “mordanting.” Whether the fibre is animal or vegetable, different mordants will be used. </p>
<p>This expertise acquired iteratively between theory, prototyping, and results analysis contributes to gaining “textile ecoliteracy.” Coupled with a knowledge of biology, this allows for understanding the deleterious interactions between the material and living worlds. </p>
<p>Ultimately, the synthesis of ecoliteracy and biomimicry concepts has led me to reflect on a macro-vision of the fashion industry ecosystem, and to consider the concept of “textile ecoliteracy” as a means to deploy a network of intersectoral collaborations between design, health, education, and industry. </p>
<p>My research aims to show that <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.2752/175693810X12774625387594">textile materiality must harmonize symbiotically with natural ecosystems</a> so that both parties benefit from their interaction.</p>
<p>In conclusion, the textile industry’s environmental and health impacts necessitate urgent attention and innovative solutions. This article has delved into the historical context, explored interdisciplinary approaches, and proposed the concept of “textile ecoliteracy” as a collaborative means to address these challenges. </p>
<p>By focusing on sustainable design, education, and the utilization of innovative practices, designers can play a pivotal role in reshaping the industry. The synthesis of ecological awareness and biomimicry principles highlights the potential for a harmonious coexistence between textile materiality and natural ecosystems. </p>
<p>As we move forward, fostering a symbiotic relationship between the textile industry and the environment is not just a choice but a collective responsibility — one that promises a healthier future for both people and the planet.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/216304/count.gif" alt="La Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Vanessa Mardirossian is a member of Acfas, Hexagram and Concordia University's Textiles & Materiality and Critical Practices in Material and Materiality research laboratories. She has received funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC), Concordia University and Université du Québec à Montréal.</span></em></p>The production, use and end-of-life of clothing all have an impact on our health. But greater ecological awareness could turn the tide.Vanessa Mardirossian, PhD Candidate and educator in sustainable fashion, Concordia UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2106972023-08-07T20:02:11Z2023-08-07T20:02:11ZControversial ‘forever chemicals’ could be phased out in Australia under new restrictions. Here’s what you need to know<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/541416/original/file-20230807-20-siq78h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=50%2C30%2C6659%2C4436&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/tasty-food-containers-wooden-knife-fork-2320021427">Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>There’s growing global concern about potential risks to human health and the environment from a group of industrial chemicals commonly known as PFAS, or “forever chemicals”.</p>
<p>While the full extent of harm from PFAS is still emerging, the fact these chemicals persist in the environment and accumulate in the body is alarming enough. Some scientists believe they will <a href="https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.est.2c02765">never break down</a>.</p>
<p>Until now, Australia has not restricted the trade or use of most PFAS chemicals. But that’s about to change. </p>
<p>The federal government intends to stop the import, manufacture and use of some types of PFAS within two years. We want to raise awareness and encourage industry to be proactive about finding alternatives. The sooner industry acts on this, the faster we can eliminate PFAS from the products we use and our waste. With untold benefits for people and our planet.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1648034832377606144"}"></div></p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/pfas-might-be-everywhere-including-toilet-paper-but-lets-keep-the-health-risks-in-context-201785">PFAS might be everywhere – including toilet paper – but let's keep the health risks in context</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Hang on, what is PFAS again?</h2>
<p>PFAS (or per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances) are a group of around <a href="https://theconversation.com/what-are-pfas-the-forever-chemicals-showing-up-in-drinking-water-an-environmental-health-scientist-explains-185015">9,000</a> individual chemical compounds found in many everyday products. </p>
<p>These complex substances are made by joining carbon and fluorine atoms, creating one of the strongest bonds in organic chemistry. As a result, they are stain-resistant, water-resistant, grease-resistant and heat-resistant. That makes them enormously useful in products such as food packaging, non-stick cookware, semiconductors and other electronics, refrigerants, stain or waterproof textiles and cosmetics. PFAS has even been found in <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/mar/13/toxic-forever-chemicals-pfas-toilet-paper">toilet paper</a>. </p>
<p>But PFAS chemicals also appear to be toxic. They have been linked to a range of <a href="https://setac.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/etc.4890">human</a> and <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2305-6304/10/2/44">environmental health problems</a>. </p>
<p>The use of potentially hazardous chemicals such as PFAS also undermines recycling and the <a href="https://ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/topics/circular-economy-introduction/overview">circular economy</a>. Compost made from food and garden organics may be <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666765722000102">contaminated</a> through packaging and other sources. PFAS in sewage also challenges the use of <a href="https://theconversation.com/forever-chemicals-have-made-their-way-to-farms-for-now-levels-in-your-food-are-low-but-theres-no-time-to-waste-192402">biosolids</a> as fertiliser on farms. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/forever-chemicals-have-made-their-way-to-farms-for-now-levels-in-your-food-are-low-but-theres-no-time-to-waste-192402">'Forever chemicals' have made their way to farms. For now, levels in your food are low – but there's no time to waste</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1677768269288153088"}"></div></p>
<h2>What is changing and what will this mean?</h2>
<p>The federal government recently reviewed the industrial chemical regulatory frameworks protecting human and environmental health. As a result, the federal, state and territory governments established the new Australian <a href="https://www.dcceew.gov.au/environment/protection/chemicals-management/national-standard">Industrial Chemical Environmental Management Standard</a> in 2021. </p>
<p>Chemicals with industrial applications are placed into <a href="https://www.dcceew.gov.au/environment/protection/chemicals-management/national-standard/roadmap">one of seven categories</a> or “schedules”, according to the level of environmental risk they represent. The standard sets out the measures required to manage such risks.</p>
<p>Schedule 7 is reserved for industrial chemicals likely to cause serious or irreversible harm to the environment. </p>
<p>Last month, the federal Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water announced its <a href="https://www.dcceew.gov.au/about/news/consultation-open-pfas-pecb-management-standards">intention</a> to regulate three groups of PFAS chemicals and pentachlorobenzene (PeCB) under Schedule 7.</p>
<p>This means businesses will have to stop importing, manufacturing or using these PFAS groups, either as bulk chemicals or in consumer products. </p>
<p>Schedule 7 also states “<a href="https://treaties.un.org/doc/publication/unts/volume%201522/volume-1522-i-26369-english.pdf">no essential uses</a>”. This means the chemicals cannot be used, even when it is necessary for the health, safety or functioning of society, or when there are no other available alternatives. </p>
<p>The timing of the proposed Australian restrictions aligns with the <a href="https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/ALL/?uri=CELEX%3A32019R1021">EU phase-out</a>. The <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2023/03/14/fact-sheet-biden-harris-administration-takes-new-action-to-protect-communities-from-pfas-pollution/">United States</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/canada-takes-first-step-to-regulate-toxic-forever-chemicals-but-is-it-enough-207288">Canada</a> are also pursuing similar action. </p>
<p>Increasingly, countries are pursuing coordinated regulatory actions that will shift market standards around industrial chemical use and management.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1660511304220827650"}"></div></p>
<h2>What should business do?</h2>
<p>At this stage, <a href="https://www.uts.edu.au/sites/default/files/2021-04/UTS_Chemical_Sustainability_report_2020_WEB.pdf">research indicates</a> low levels of industry awareness and action globally. Industry risks being caught short, facing the economic and administrative consequences of compliance when new rules come into effect. </p>
<p>Phasing out potentially hazardous chemicals such as PFAS will require careful consideration of both risk and technical function. In many cases, products have been designed around these chemicals. This means substitutions will need to be found. However, businesses also need to be aware of the potential for “regrettable substitution”, where a potentially hazardous chemical is replaced by a similar, but lesser-known chemical that also threatens human health and the environment. </p>
<p>There are some tools available to help find safe alternatives. For example, the European non-government organisation ChemSec has compiled a <a href="https://sinlist.chemsec.org/">database</a> of hazardous chemicals that are likely to be regulated in future, if not already, and a <a href="https://marketplace.chemsec.org/">marketplace</a> for safe substitutions.</p>
<p>In some cases, avoiding regrettable substitution will necessitate rethinking how the function of a product can be delivered in an entirely new way. </p>
<p>Market-leading businesses are experimenting with recent advances in engineering, material sciences, and technology to redesign products without hazardous chemicals. </p>
<p>For example, outdoor-wear companies have redesigned textiles to deliver waterproof products without PFAS chemicals. The North Face has started using an advanced material called “<a href="https://thenorthface.com.au/explore-technologies/technologies-futurelight.html">FUTURELIGHT</a>”, which uses nanotechnology to create a waterproof nano-fibre structure. Helly Hansen introduced “<a href="https://hellyhansen.com.au/pages/lifa-infinity-pro%E2%84%A2">Lifa Infinity Pro</a>” that uses advanced textile engineering to create a hydrophobic (water-hating) material, without having to add chemicals.</p>
<p>Emerging new services design-out problematic products entirely. For example, <a href="https://theconversation.com/recycling-plastic-bottles-is-good-but-reusing-them-is-better-126339">reusable food packaging services</a>, intended to address the environmental impacts of single-use-packaging, generally use reusable materials such as stainless steel that do not require hazardous chemicals to function. </p>
<p>In support of industry action, governments industry, universities and non-governmental organisations are helping support better chemical management.
For example, ChemSec has convened an <a href="https://chemsec.org/knowledge/iihc/">Investor Initiative on Hazardous Chemicals</a> to help reduce the impacts of hazardous chemicals, while also reducing financial risks to investors. Or in Australia, the <a href="https://stewardshipexcellence.com.au/">Product Stewardship Centre of Excellence</a> is providing <a href="https://stewardshipexcellence.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/WHITEPAPER_Chemicals-of-concern_FINAL-1.pdf">tools</a> for business and government to ensure safe, clean supply chains. </p>
<p>Governments also have a role to play in helping business transition away from hazardous chemicals. They can encourage business to take a whole-of-system approach to reducing chemicals across supply chains. This might involve tracking and tracing mechanisms, certification and labelling, or supporting research into <a href="https://www.turi.org/">safer alternatives</a>.</p>
<p>The Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water is inviting <a href="https://consult.dcceew.gov.au/ichems-s17-proposed-decisions">feedback on the proposed scheduling decisions</a> before submissions close on September 1 this year. The government says feedback will help Australian governments and businesses to better manage the environmental risks of these chemicals.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/youve-read-the-scary-headlines-but-rest-assured-your-cookware-is-safe-199967">You've read the scary headlines – but rest assured, your cookware is safe</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/210697/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rachael Wakefield-Rann receives research funding from various government and non-government organisations. She does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would financially benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond her academic appointment.
</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sarah Wilson does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>New restrictions on PFAS and other potentially hazardous chemicals in Australia present an opportunity for industry to develop alternatives for new, safe and clean products.Sarah Wilson, PhD Candidate in Nanotechnology & Innovation Governance, University of Technology SydneyRachael Wakefield-Rann, Senior Research Consultant, Institute for Sustainable Futures, University of Technology SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2013632023-06-07T17:44:04Z2023-06-07T17:44:04ZThe invisible effects of human activity on nature<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/515229/original/file-20230314-2080-67ctev.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=27%2C0%2C4573%2C3414&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Lake surrounding a mining site in Northern Québec.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Maxime Thomas)</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Discussions at the recent COP15 biodiversity conference in Montréal highlighted once again the <a href="https://www.unep.org/news-and-stories/story/cop15-ends-landmark-biodiversity-agreement">impact of human activities on wildlife</a>. Many species are <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.158038">forced to migrate</a>, <a href="https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/blog/2019/05/nature-decline-unprecedented-report/">are seeing their populations declining, or worse, are finding themselves on the brink of extinction</a>. For example, the populations of woodland caribou (<em>Rangifer tarandus</em>) are declining <a href="https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/species-risk-public-registry/cosewic-assessments-status-reports/caribou-specific-populations-2014/part-2.html">as a result of the damage of logging on their habitat</a>.</p>
<hr>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/524152/original/file-20230503-20-rp105s.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/524152/original/file-20230503-20-rp105s.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/524152/original/file-20230503-20-rp105s.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/524152/original/file-20230503-20-rp105s.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/524152/original/file-20230503-20-rp105s.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/524152/original/file-20230503-20-rp105s.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/524152/original/file-20230503-20-rp105s.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><strong>This article is part of <em>La Conversation Canada’s</em> series <a href="https://theconversation.com/ca-fr/topics/foret-boreale-138017">The boreal forest: A thousand secrets, a thousand dangers</a></strong></p>
<p><br><em>La Conversation Canada invites you to take a virtual walk in the heart of the boreal forest. In this series, our experts focus on management and sustainable development issues, natural disturbances, the ecology of terrestrial wildlife and aquatic ecosystems, northern agriculture and the cultural and economic importance of the boreal forest for Indigenous peoples. We hope you have a pleasant — and informative — walk through the forest!</em></p>
<hr>
<p>However, the consequences of human activities are not always visible. Before being driven into decline, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-294X.2007.03484.x">some species are able to adapt to disturbances in their habitat</a> — but only up to a point. This is particularly true of plants, which cannot move to avoid disturbances in their environment, and as a result, are necessarily subjected to the impact of human activities. </p>
<p>Our work in forest ecology at the Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue (UQAT) is allowing us to demonstrate the invisible effects of human activities on boreal flora. </p>
<h2>Adapting, but not without consequences…</h2>
<p>The capacity of plants to adapt is actually a double-edged sword. On the one hand, it makes it possible to put off a decline in their populations due to human activity. On the other hand, it can lead researchers to underestimate the consequences that human activities are having on the environment.</p>
<p>When a species adapts to disturbances in its habitat, its nutritional and medicinal properties may change. This is because plants respond to these disturbances by producing chemical compounds. <a href="https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/food-nutrition/reports-publications/food-safety/glycoalkaloids-foods.html">Some of these compounds can have harmful effects on the health of the humans who consume them</a>. In the boreal forest, this can take the form of toxins in the seeds of <a href="https://m.espacepourlavie.ca/en/biodome-flora/ground-hemlock">ground hemlock</a> and the leaves of <a href="https://espacepourlavie.ca/en/biodome-flora/sheep-laurel">sheep laurel</a>.</p>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jarmap.2018.11.004">However, other compounds are sought after for their benefits to human health</a>. For example, antioxidants, which are highly valued in food for their health benefits, have the primary function of <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-5254-5_1">protecting plants from sunlight and various pollutants</a>. One example of these is <a href="http://www5.agr.gc.ca/resources/prod/doc/misb/fb-ba/nutra/pdf/polyphenols_eng.pdf">polyphenols, found in some boreal forest berries, such as blueberries and cranberries</a>.</p>
<h2>…especially for Indigenous communities</h2>
<p>People whose diet consists of wild plants are particularly affected by the changes in chemical composition that take place when plants are adapting to disturbances in their habitat. This is the case for Indigenous communities, who <a href="https://mackiki.uqat.ca/index.php">gather dozens of species in their traditional territories for food and medicinal purposes</a>.</p>
<p>To study how the adaptation of plants affects their chemical properties, we conducted a project in partnership with three Indigenous communities in northwestern Québec. Members of the communities suggested that we work on <a href="https://espacepourlavie.ca/en/biodome-flora/labrador-tea">Labrador tea</a> because of its cultural importance and medicinal uses. Labrador tea leaves are <a href="https://doi.org/10.1186/1746-4269-8-7">used in infusion to treat many ailments, such as osteoarthritis, diabetes or kidney problems</a>. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jep.2015.12.021">The leaves contain antioxidants</a> called flavonoids in <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/pca.1203">large quantities</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Labrador tea plants in the forest" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/508419/original/file-20230206-21-5q16bp.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/508419/original/file-20230206-21-5q16bp.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/508419/original/file-20230206-21-5q16bp.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/508419/original/file-20230206-21-5q16bp.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/508419/original/file-20230206-21-5q16bp.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/508419/original/file-20230206-21-5q16bp.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/508419/original/file-20230206-21-5q16bp.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Labrador tea is an understory plant, 30 to 120 centimetres tall. It is found in moist forest environments in Canada and the northern United States.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Maxime Thomas), provided by the author</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Disturbances have different effects</h2>
<p>The members of the communities we met expressed their concerns about the consequences of two human disturbances on their territories: hydroelectric transmission lines and the exploitation of mining sites. The hydroelectric transmission lines create an artificial opening in the forest, which overexposes the plants to the sun. Mining sites <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s11157-017-9453-y">generate heavy metal pollution</a>. In both cases, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1155/2013/162750">Labrador tea plants adapt by producing flavonoids</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Labrador tea plants under a hydroelectric transmission line" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/508420/original/file-20230206-21-nh0rng.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/508420/original/file-20230206-21-nh0rng.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/508420/original/file-20230206-21-nh0rng.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/508420/original/file-20230206-21-nh0rng.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/508420/original/file-20230206-21-nh0rng.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/508420/original/file-20230206-21-nh0rng.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/508420/original/file-20230206-21-nh0rng.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Plants under hydroelectric lines are much more exposed to the sun than in the surrounding forest.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Maxime Thomas), provided by the author</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>After analyzing the chemical composition of Labrador tea plants sampled from the territories of three Indigenous communities, we found contrasting effects of human disturbances. On the one hand, plants under hydroelectric transmission lines produced more flavonoids to protect themselves from the sun. On the other hand, plants near mining sites produced less flavonoids, due to a degradation of their metabolism by heavy metals.</p>
<p>However, before jumping to the conclusion that plants under hydroelectric transmission lines are healthier, other factors need to be considered. For example, chemicals potentially harmful to human health, such as <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/annhyg/meh106">triclopyr</a> or <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/transmission-line-herbicide-1.3221418">glyphosate</a>, may be used to maintain hydroelectric transmission lines.</p>
<p>The flavonoid analysis only tells part of the story, so further analysis of factors such as the content of plant pollutants would be needed to gain a full picture of the effects of human disturbance on plant properties.</p>
<p>Biodiversity is important for the functioning of ecosystems, and also for the services it provides to humans. Indigenous peoples <a href="https://e360.yale.edu/features/native-knowledge-what-ecologists-are-learning-from-indigenous-people">have extensive knowledge of plants and their environment</a>, which should be valued. </p>
<p>Human disturbances affect the plants, the benefits they provide and the Indigenous knowledge that depends on them.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/201363/count.gif" alt="La Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Les auteurs ne travaillent pas, ne conseillent pas, ne possèdent pas de parts, ne reçoivent pas de fonds d'une organisation qui pourrait tirer profit de cet article, et n'ont déclaré aucune autre affiliation que leur organisme de recherche.</span></em></p>Human activities can affect plants and have consequences for the human populations that consume them.Maxime Thomas, Doctorant en sciences de l'environnement, Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue (UQAT)Hugo Asselin, Professeur titulaire, Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue (UQAT)Mebarek Lamara, Professeur, Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue (UQAT)Nicole Fenton, Professeure, écologie végétale/Professor, plant ecology, Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue (UQAT)Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2017852023-03-15T02:31:55Z2023-03-15T02:31:55ZPFAS might be everywhere – including toilet paper – but let’s keep the health risks in context<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/515332/original/file-20230314-6135-dl3ib.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=40%2C33%2C4452%2C2997&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/hand-reaching-empty-toilet-paper-holder-1680475540">Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The United States Environmental Protection Agency has <a href="https://www.ewg.org/news-insights/news-release/2023/03/epa-proposes-bold-new-limits-tackling-forever-chemicals-drinking">announced</a> new limits on the toxic “forever chemicals” – perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) – in drinking water. </p>
<p>The announcement comes amid rising concern about PFAS, which persist in the environment, are <a href="https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.est.0c08035">ubiquitous</a> and do not break down over time. </p>
<p>The carbon and fluorine PFAS compounds have been used in myriad <a href="https://www.epa.gov/pfas/our-current-understanding-human-health-and-environmental-risks-pfas">domestic and industrial products</a> from non-stick cookware to cosmetics to firefighting foams and fabric treatments. This week, a group of researchers said <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/mar/13/toxic-forever-chemicals-pfas-toilet-paper">toilet paper</a> should be considered a potential source (but more on that later). </p>
<p>Every household is more likely than not to have dusts containing PFAS chemicals at low concentrations; forming a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2022.135061">route of exposure</a> for the people living there. But how worried should we be about the risks to our personal health linked to these forever chemicals?</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/regulating-forever-chemicals-3-essential-reads-on-pfas-201263">Regulating 'forever chemicals': 3 essential reads on PFAS</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Harmful impacts</h2>
<p>Three specific PFAS chemicals of concern: perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), and perfluorohexane sulfonate (PFHxS) are listed on the <a href="http://www.pops.int/TheConvention/Overview/tabid/3351/Default.aspx">Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants</a>. The convention is a global treaty to protect human health and the environment from chemicals that remain intact in the environment for long periods, become widely distributed geographically, accumulate in the fatty tissue of humans and wildlife, and have harmful impacts on human health or on the environment. </p>
<p>To address PFAS risks and set acceptable limits, Australia has <a href="https://www.dcceew.gov.au/environment/protection/publications/pfas-nemp-2">environmental</a> and <a href="https://www.health.gov.au/resources/publications/health-based-guidance-values-for-pfas-for-use-in-site-investigations-in-australia?utm_source=health.gov.au&utm_medium=callout-auto-custom&utm_campaign=digital_transformation">health guidelines</a> for food, drinking water and recreational water exposures – like those just announced in the US.</p>
<p>The effects of PFAS exposure remain a matter of debate, specifically around the causal links between exposure and poorer human health. Nonetheless, there are <a href="https://www.hbm4eu.eu/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Factsheet_PFAS.pdf">clear associations</a> to health outcomes <a href="https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/pfas/health-effects/index.html">including</a> low fetal weight, impaired immune response, thyroid function abnormalities, obesity, increased lipid levels and liver function and impaired vaccine response. </p>
<p>These associations to disease <a href="https://apo.org.au/sites/default/files/resource-files/2018-05/apo-nid171461_1.pdf">have been disputed</a>, but it nevertheless remains prudent to minimise exposure to all potentially harmful chemicals. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/515335/original/file-20230314-3619-8os7mj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="pan with cooked eggs sliding off" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/515335/original/file-20230314-3619-8os7mj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/515335/original/file-20230314-3619-8os7mj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/515335/original/file-20230314-3619-8os7mj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/515335/original/file-20230314-3619-8os7mj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/515335/original/file-20230314-3619-8os7mj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/515335/original/file-20230314-3619-8os7mj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/515335/original/file-20230314-3619-8os7mj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Non-stick pans may expose people to PFAS.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/two-fried-eggs-pan-olive-oil-700699756">Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/new-evidence-shows-blood-or-plasma-donations-can-reduce-the-pfas-forever-chemicals-in-our-bodies-178771">New evidence shows blood or plasma donations can reduce the PFAS 'forever chemicals' in our bodies</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>What about toilet paper though?</h2>
<p>The issue in regard to the <a href="https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.estlett.3c00094#">PFAS in toilet paper</a> study is that consumers do not know the products they are buying contain PFAS. Toilet roll PFAS may have entered the paper as an additive as part of the pulping and <a href="https://pubs.acs.org/doi/pdf/10.1021/acs.estlett.3c00094">manufacturing process</a>. Toilet paper with PFAS adds to the total burden found in <a href="https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acsestwater.1c00377">wastewater</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2020.129143">biosolids</a>. But should we really give a crap? </p>
<p>Yes and no. Yes because it’s not unreasonable for consumers to demand to know if the products they are buying (and rubbing on their nether regions) contain potentially toxic compounds. Some chemicals such as BPA (Bisphenol-A, an industrial chemical used in plastics manufacturing) have been <a href="https://www.foodstandards.gov.au/consumer/chemicals/bpa/pages/regulationandmonitor5377.aspx">voluntarily phased out</a> and products that are BPA-free are labelled accordingly. </p>
<p>One concern when swapping out chemicals is that <a href="https://doi.org/10.1021/acssuschemeng.0c09435">subsitutions</a> are actually more <a href="https://theconversation.com/what-that-bpa-free-label-isnt-telling-you-34725">acceptable</a> and are not replaced by something <a href="https://www.science.org/content/article/bpa-substitutes-may-be-just-bad-popular-consumer-plastic">equally concerning</a>. And we should do everything we can to minimise adding persistent, bioaccumalative and toxic chemicals to our environment that are hard to remediate.</p>
<p>On the other hand, we should not worry overly because <a href="https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/pfas/health-effects/index.html">dermal exposure</a> to PFAS is negligible even from wiping your bum. Most assessments show food and water are the primary <a href="https://www.epa.vic.gov.au/for-community/environmental-information/pfas">sources of PFAS exposure</a> for humans. </p>
<p>And harm from exposure is determined by the dose. Although for some chemicals there is <a href="https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.2003066">no safe acceptable threshold</a>, ultra low concentrations are typically present in the wider environment away from PFAS sources such as fire stations and training grounds and airports. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/515336/original/file-20230314-2595-ew1deb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="plastic containers labelled BPA free" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/515336/original/file-20230314-2595-ew1deb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/515336/original/file-20230314-2595-ew1deb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/515336/original/file-20230314-2595-ew1deb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/515336/original/file-20230314-2595-ew1deb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/515336/original/file-20230314-2595-ew1deb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/515336/original/file-20230314-2595-ew1deb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/515336/original/file-20230314-2595-ew1deb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">BPA-free plastic is now widely available.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/plastic-reusable-cutlery-flat-lay-bpa-1504558490">Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/house-dust-from-35-countries-reveals-our-global-toxic-contaminant-exposure-and-health-risk-172499">House dust from 35 countries reveals our global toxic contaminant exposure and health risk</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Levels are falling</h2>
<p>Australian population exposure levels to regulated PFAS chemicals – <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijheh.2019.03.004">PFOA, PFOS and PFHxS</a> – have been falling over the last 20 years despite the fact these chemicals are still present in cosmetics, food packing, cookware, clothes and carpets. </p>
<p>In addition, the <a href="https://www.foodstandards.gov.au/publications/Documents/27th%20ATDS%20report.pdf">Australian Total Diet Study</a> showed only PFOS was detected in five of 112 food types and in less than 2% of all samples. The daily intake of PFOS in the population was identified as being well below public health and safety concerns. Australian food PFAS values were consistently lower than those reported from Europe, the US, United Kingdom and China.</p>
<p>Population exposure concentrations – outside of <a href="https://pfas.australianmap.net/">known contamination hotspots</a> – are low and the risks have been reducing over time. Our prime focus should be improving modifiable <a href="https://www.who.int/health-topics/social-determinants-of-health#tab=tab_1">social determinants of health</a> such as income, education, employment security, relationships with friends and family. These will result in tangible beneficial health outcomes.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/201785/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Mark Patrick Taylor is a full-time employee of EPA Victoria, appointed to the statutory role of Chief Environmental Scientist. He is also an Honorary Professor at Macquarie University.</span></em></p>Every household is more likely than not to have dusts containing PFAS chemicals at low concentrations. But how worried should we be about the risks to our personal health?Mark Patrick Taylor, Victoria's Chief Environmental Scientist, EPA Victoria; Honorary Professor, School of Natural Sciences, Macquarie UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1979972023-03-13T13:36:22Z2023-03-13T13:36:22ZFrom waste to clean water: tiny carbon particles can do the job<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/512388/original/file-20230227-20-kep09i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Clean water is in short supply around the world. But it doesn't have to be.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">borgogniels/Getty Images</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Many futuristic novels and films have explored what the world might look like without water. But water scarcity isn’t a problem for the far-off future: it’s already here.</p>
<p>In its <a href="https://www.unwater.org/publications/summary-progress-update-2021-sdg-6-water-and-sanitation-all">2021 report</a> UN Water outlined the scale of the crisis: 2.3 billion people live in water-stressed countries and 733 million of those people are in “high and critically water-stressed countries”.</p>
<p>In 2018 Cape Town, where I live and conduct my research, residents found themselves staring down “<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/may/04/back-from-the-brink-how-cape-town-cracked-its-water-crisis">day zero</a>”, when household water supplies would run dry. Good rains spared the South African city, but now other parts of the country face <a href="https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2022-10-04-day-zero-comes-to-parts-of-joburg-as-water-cuts-roll-through-city-and-taps-run-dry/">similarly dire</a> predictions of empty taps. </p>
<p>This scenario is threatening to play out across Africa. In the <a href="https://climatechampions.unfccc.int/is-eastern-africas-drought-the-worst-in-recent-history-and-are-worse-yet-to-come/">Horn of Africa</a> region, for example, large areas of Ethiopia, Somalia and Kenya have seen four consecutive rainy seasons pass without decent rains. The rise of “<a href="https://www.afdb.org/en/news-and-events/particularly-exposed-climate-shocks-african-cities-are-turning-adaptation-and-resilience-56462">megacities</a>” in Africa – with millions moving into city areas – puts further pressures on already limited infrastructure.</p>
<p>And the crisis extends <a href="https://www.unwater.org/publications/summary-progress-update-2021-sdg-6-water-and-sanitation-all">far beyond the African continent</a>. </p>
<p>There is no one solution for this grim reality. A multi-pronged approach will be necessary, as Cape Town’s experience <a href="https://www.businessinsider.co.za/water-tips-2022-10">illustrated</a>.</p>
<p>Technology will be a key part of solving the global water scarcity crisis. Technological solutions can run the gamut from the most basic, like water leak detectors for households, to highly sophisticated, like ways to <a href="https://borgenproject.org/top-4-technologies-solving-water-scarcity/">pull moisture out of the air</a> to produce clean drinking water, or convert the planet’s abundant salt water into fresh water.</p>
<p>In a <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/cben.202100003">recent paper</a> colleagues and I outlined another potentially powerful technology: carbon nanomaterials, which have <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S221478532100420X">been shown</a> to remove organic, inorganic and biological pollutants from water. </p>
<h2>Contamination threatens water sources</h2>
<p>Contamination is one of the factors putting strain on water sources. All water supplies contain some microbes and pathogens. But industrial waste is a huge problem: vehicles release heavy metal pollutants, for instance, and <a href="https://www.wits.ac.za/news/latest-news/research-news/2018/2018-05/the-heat-of-acid-mine-drainage.html#:%7E:text=The%20water%20becomes%20acidic%20and,the%20drinking%20water%20supply%20system">acid mine drainage</a> seeps into water sources. This results in contaminated ground and surface water that cannot be safely used for most human activities, much less for drinking or washing food.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/marine-life-in-a-south-african-bay-is-full-of-chemical-pollutants-182791">Marine life in a South African bay is full of chemical pollutants</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Some current technologies make the treatment of water too expensive. Others are simply not up to the job and are unable to remove microorganisms. In removing organic pollutants like pharmaceutical waste, organic dyes, plastics and detergents from wastewater, for instance, some conventional techniques such as membrane filtration have been found wanting. </p>
<p>That’s where carbon nanomaterials come in. With others, I am exploring their use and finding that they are more efficient and economically viable than conventional materials.</p>
<h2>Nanomaterials</h2>
<p>Nanomaterials are broadly defined as materials that contain particles of between 1 and 100 nanometres (nm) in size. One nanometre equals one-billionth of a metre. Different nanomaterials are composed of different atoms – some, like those I research, are made up of carbon atoms.</p>
<p>Carbon is, by mass, the second most abundant <a href="https://www.thoughtco.com/most-abundant-element-in-the-universe-602186">element</a> in the human body after oxygen. It is also a common element of all known life. Carbon nanotechnologies are environmentally friendly because they hold less risk of secondary pollution than some adsorbents (solid substances used to remove contaminants from liquid or gas).</p>
<p>Engineered into nanomaterial form, carbon nanomaterials are being <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/nanomaterials-could-combat-climate-change-and-reduce-pollution/">hailed</a> by many scientists around the world for their superior physical and chemical properties. They are increasingly prized for their potential to remove heavy metals from water thanks to their large <a href="https://www.diffen.com/difference/Absorption_vs_Adsorption">surface area and adsorption</a> capabilities, their nano-scaled size and their chemical properties. </p>
<p>Carbon nanomaterials have all been <a href="https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/2053-1591/ac48b8#:%7E:text=Carbon%20nanomaterials%20are%20applied%20in,with%20the%20rise%20of%20nanotechnology.">shown</a> to be effective in the treatment of wastewater.</p>
<h2>Tackling water scarcity</h2>
<p>I work with carbon-coated magnetic nanomaterials. This blended composite plays a crucial role in decontaminating water. At the same time, it removes materials such as heavy metals. That makes it ideal for water treatment, as do its easy, fast recovery and recyclability, thanks to what’s known as magnetic filtration. In this process, the magnetic nanomaterials added to the contaminated water are recovered after treatment by an external strong magnet. The recovered materials can be regenerated and be reused again.</p>
<p>Carbon-based nanomaterials still have shortcomings. Nanomaterials tend to clump together into large particles, reducing their capacity to adsorb (attract and hold) pollutants. And nanoparticles are not always fully recovered from treated water, leading to secondary contamination. We’re still not sure how to separate exhausted – fully utilised – nanomaterials from treated water.</p>
<p>The work continues in our lab and others all over the world. Scientists dislike timelines, since breakthroughs rarely happen within set deadlines. But our hope is that more and more advances will be made with carbon-based nanonmaterials in the years to come, giving the world an important tool to tackle water scarcity.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/197997/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Salam Titinchi does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Technology will be a key part of solving the global water scarcity crisis.Salam Titinchi, Professor, University of the Western CapeLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1916512022-10-17T17:38:56Z2022-10-17T17:38:56ZSnow can spread and worsen the effects of pollutants in the environment<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/488312/original/file-20221005-25-3ul0kh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C5068%2C3368&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Snow's physical properties mean that it can accumulate chemicals from the environment, including nanoparticles from car exhaust.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span></figcaption></figure><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100px; border: none; position: relative; z-index: 1;" allowtransparency="" allow="clipboard-read; clipboard-write" src="https://narrations.ad-auris.com/widget/the-conversation-canada/snow-can-spread-and-worsen-the-effects-of-pollutants-in-the-environment" width="100%" height="400"></iframe>
<p>By October, autumn’s arrival brings with it the promise of winter — and snow. </p>
<p>And with it comes a quieter world, thanks to snow’s ability to absorb noise. This is because the spaces between snow crystals limit sound waves from bouncing around, creating a soundproofing effect. </p>
<p>Snow also adsorbs other matters it comes into contact with. Adsorption is when substances adhere on surfaces of materials (usually liquids or solids). The adsorptive properties of snow are the reason for some of its unique features, including its loosely bound crystalline porous structure with finely divided individually shaped flakes with large surface areas. </p>
<p>Its dynamic changes between ice and liquid states facilitate the absorption and release of pollutants, depending on prevailing surface and atmospheric conditions. </p>
<p>As an analytical material chemist with a research background in adsorption, I am interested in understanding how various materials — like snow — adsorb certain substances, like persistent organic and vehicular exhaust pollutants.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/489891/original/file-20221016-22-qbrsr0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="a pile of dirty snow at a street corner" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/489891/original/file-20221016-22-qbrsr0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/489891/original/file-20221016-22-qbrsr0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/489891/original/file-20221016-22-qbrsr0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/489891/original/file-20221016-22-qbrsr0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/489891/original/file-20221016-22-qbrsr0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/489891/original/file-20221016-22-qbrsr0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/489891/original/file-20221016-22-qbrsr0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">During winter, piles of snow like this one become a regular sight.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Snow and pollution</h2>
<p>In the winter, snow becomes a superabsorbent for a wide range of <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.144136">pollutants</a>, including vehicular exhaust particulate matters, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.microc.2014.10.010">persistent organic pollutants</a> (POPs), trace metals and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2021.117493">chlorides from road salts</a>. </p>
<p>As snow subsequently moves around or melts, most of these pollutants find their way into underground pipes and aquifers. </p>
<p>POPs are some of the most dangerous pollutants because they remain active, lasting for several years within their environments before <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rsma.2022.102688">finally degrading into other chemical forms</a>. POPs, such as polychlorinated biphenyls, organochlorine pesticides and perflouroalkylated substances, have <a href="https://www.epa.gov/international-cooperation/persistent-organic-pollutants-global-issue-global-response">severe environmental impacts</a>. </p>
<p>They are classified under the <a href="https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/canadian-environmental-protection-act-registry/historical/plans-policies/statement-pops-negotiations/backgrounder-persistent-organic-pollutants.html">Toxic Substances Management Policy as Track 1 substances in Canada, and are usually targeted for environmental removal</a>. </p>
<p>Just like POPs, very little is also known about how chemical pollutants from the exhausts of gasoline-powered vehicles interact with snow. </p>
<p>In Canadian cities, snow is moved around through various means, including snow melts, during plowing, on tires of vehicles or even soles of pedestrian shoes. During transportation, changes in ground surface pressure and ambient temperature can also affect the adsorption rates of chemical pollutants on snow. </p>
<p>Research conducted in Québec has shown that snow adsorbs significant amounts of organic pollutants and aerosol particles from exhaust pipes <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2017.01.082">within 30 minutes of exposure</a>. These researchers also observed the adsorption of aerosol particles with larger particulate sizes (approximately 50-400 nm) relative to smaller nanoparticles (less than 50 nm).</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/489886/original/file-20221016-56148-cmyp4e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="cars follow behind three snowplows on a highway" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/489886/original/file-20221016-56148-cmyp4e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/489886/original/file-20221016-56148-cmyp4e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/489886/original/file-20221016-56148-cmyp4e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/489886/original/file-20221016-56148-cmyp4e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/489886/original/file-20221016-56148-cmyp4e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/489886/original/file-20221016-56148-cmyp4e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/489886/original/file-20221016-56148-cmyp4e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Snow carrying pollutants from road salts and vehicle exhausts can make its way into water systems.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Health effects</h2>
<p>POPs are introduced into the environment through agricultural and industrial practices. Most of them may have come from other anthropogenic sources but are unintentionally released from simple events like <a href="https://nepis.epa.gov/Exe/ZyPDF.cgi/70000AZL.PDF?Dockey=70000AZL.PDF">burning household waste</a>. </p>
<p>Burning industrial, municipal or medical wastes can also release dioxins and furans. <a href="https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/ToxProfiles/tp94-c6.pdf">Toxaphene</a> and <a href="https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/ToxProfiles/tp90-c6.pdf">hexachlorobenzene</a> could originate from uncontrolled insecticide and pesticide waste disposal. Upon exposure during winter, these chemical pollutants find their way into the snow, then into surface water and up the food chain. They can adversely affect aquatic life when subsequently introduced into the aquatic ecosystems. </p>
<p>POPs and exhaust particulate matters can <a href="https://www.epa.gov/international-cooperation/persistent-organic-pollutants-global-issue-global-response">affect human health</a>. They can cause allergies, hypersensitivity, birth defects and neurological disorders. Most POPs are carcinogens. Some of them may alter the nervous systems, leading to chronic health conditions. POPs can also affect reproductive health and disrupt the immune system. Some particulate matters cause lung inflammation and increase the risk of blood clotting. </p>
<p>These severe impacts on human health and environment sustainability are why POPs are <a href="https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/corporate/international-affairs/partnerships-organizations/persistent-organic-pollutants-stockholm-convention.html">currently regulated under the Stockholm Convention, as adopted by Canada in 2001</a>. </p>
<p>Between applicable industries and environmental monitoring agencies, federal and provincial governments and us, everyone has a part to play. All hands must be on deck in providing sustainable regulations for these pollutants. And as we approach winter, measures should be developed to reduce the amount of pollutants that can accumulate and persist in snow.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/191651/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Eduok, U. does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>From persistent chemicals to exhaust particulate matter, snow accumulates highly toxic pollutants. Regulations are needed to address the impacts on water supplies and the food chain.Eduok, U., Senior Research Associate, Chemistry, Western UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1886302022-08-19T20:47:15Z2022-08-19T20:47:15ZContaminants of emerging concern, found in sunscreens and plastics, end up in the St. Lawrence River<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/478808/original/file-20220811-17796-y4twb4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=12%2C6%2C3977%2C3011&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">UV absorbents and industrial antioxidants can reach aquatic environments through the degradation of plastics, or via wastewater treatment plant effluents.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Environment and Climate Change Canada)</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Ultraviolet (UV) absorbents and industrial antioxidants are contaminants attracting growing interest as they are found in a wide range of products that are used daily. These products include sunscreens, anti-aging creams and shampoos, and materials such as plastics and textiles, both domestic or industrial. Primarily, their use is to protect our skin and other <a href="https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/psr-2016-0130/html">consumer goods from the sun’s UV radiation or from naturally occurring oxidizing agents</a> in the air.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
À lire aussi :
<a href="https://theconversation.com/les-retardateurs-de-flamme-un-veritable-danger-pour-la-faune-182714">Les retardateurs de flamme, un véritable danger pour la faune</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Given their high versatility, there are several entry points for these contaminants into aquatic environments. Commonly targeted sources are municipal wastewater treatment plants’ effluents, since they collect water from routine domestic and industrial uses.</p>
<p>To improve the current knowledge of the Québec situation, I studied the evolution of these contaminants in the St. Lawrence River near Montréal during my master’s degree. With my colleagues, we present here the <a href="https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.est.1c07932">conclusions of this study</a>. </p>
<hr>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/469058/original/file-20220615-9549-jj1phn.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/469058/original/file-20220615-9549-jj1phn.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=398&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469058/original/file-20220615-9549-jj1phn.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=398&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469058/original/file-20220615-9549-jj1phn.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=398&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469058/original/file-20220615-9549-jj1phn.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=500&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469058/original/file-20220615-9549-jj1phn.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=500&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469058/original/file-20220615-9549-jj1phn.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=500&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><em>This article is part of our series, <a href="https://theconversation.com/ca-fr/topics/fleuve-saint-laurent-116908">The St. Lawrence River: In depth</a>.
Don’t miss new articles on this mythical river of remarkable beauty. Our experts look at its fauna, flora and history, and the issues it faces. This series is brought to you by <a href="https://theconversation.com/ca-fr">La Conversation</a>.</em></p>
<hr>
<h2>From showers and garbage cans … to fish in the St. Lawrence River</h2>
<p>As people shower, rinse water containing residues of sunscreens, shampoo and other personal care products, goes to wastewater treatment plants. Similarly, swimming in more touristy areas can lead to direct contamination of waterways. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S030438941730763X">Another source is plastic pollution</a>, which enters the aquatic environment through direct dumping, for example when people leave debris on beaches. Indirect plastic discharge also occurs through their presence in the effluents of domestic wastewater treatment plants. As plastics degrade, for example through exposure to sunlight, salinity or the prolonged contact with waves, the compounds they contain (such as UV absorbents and industrial antioxidants) can migrate to the environment. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/478319/original/file-20220809-18-w9mttj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="filet dans un lac" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/478319/original/file-20220809-18-w9mttj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/478319/original/file-20220809-18-w9mttj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478319/original/file-20220809-18-w9mttj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478319/original/file-20220809-18-w9mttj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478319/original/file-20220809-18-w9mttj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478319/original/file-20220809-18-w9mttj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478319/original/file-20220809-18-w9mttj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Once found in aquatic environments, UV absorbents and industrial antioxidants can harm the animals that live there. (Environment and Climate Change Canada). Provided by the author.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Environnement et Changement climatique Canada)</span>, <span class="license">Fourni par l'auteur</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>As soon as they enter the environment, these contaminants can disperse into sediments, water, and even among aquatic organisms, thereby harming biodiversity and ecosystem health. Indeed, some of these compounds are suspected of causing harmful effects, including <a href="https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.est.7b05057">disrupting the hormonal system in exposed aquatic organisms</a> and <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00244-015-0227-7">promoting coral bleaching</a>.</p>
<p>However, it is important to gain a better understanding of their distribution and evolution in aquatic environments in order to assess the current risk to species exposed to these contaminants. </p>
<h2>Contaminants in the river</h2>
<p>To better understand the fate of pollutants of interest in the St. Lawrence ecosystem, several types of samples were studied from upstream and downstream of the Montréal wastewater treatment centre. We collected water, suspended matter (which are insoluble particles visible in the water), sediment and tissues from two fish species, northern pike and lake sturgeon.</p>
<p>The analysis results found several contaminants, confirming their presence in the St. Lawrence ecosystem. In addition, affinity for suspended matter was observed, with higher concentrations for some contaminants, indicating the importance of improving our understanding of the risks associated with ingesting suspended matter. Indeed, the latter can be an important route of accumulation for organisms.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/477479/original/file-20220803-25-fruewv.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="schéma présentant la présence de contaminants émergents dans le Fleuve" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/477479/original/file-20220803-25-fruewv.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/477479/original/file-20220803-25-fruewv.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=436&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477479/original/file-20220803-25-fruewv.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=436&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477479/original/file-20220803-25-fruewv.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=436&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477479/original/file-20220803-25-fruewv.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=548&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477479/original/file-20220803-25-fruewv.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=548&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477479/original/file-20220803-25-fruewv.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=548&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">UV absorbents and industrial antioxidants can find several pathways to aquatic environments through the degradation of plastics, wastewater or landfills. (Abigaëlle Dalpé-Castilloux), Provided by the author.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Abigaëlle Dalpé-Castilloux)</span>, <span class="license">Fourni par l'auteur</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In comparing the dominant contaminants in the two fish studied, we observed a major difference between lake sturgeon and northern pike. This discrepancy can be caused by different factors, such as dietary differences between the two organisms. <a href="https://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/species-especes/profiles-profils/northernpike-grandbrochet-eng.html">Northern pike</a> is an opportunistic carnivore that feeds on what is easily available. Its main diet consists of yellow perch, suckers, sunfish and others.</p>
<p>In comparison, <a href="https://naturecanada.ca/news/sp-spot-lake-sturgeon/">lake sturgeon</a> is a bottom predator that feeds on small organisms such as larvae, crayfish and small molluscs. This difference in lifestyles leads to a difference in the way the organisms are exposed to pollution and therefore the extent of contamination by certain pollutants. For example, if a contaminant has a greater affinity for sediment, organisms living near the bottom may be more affected by it.</p>
<h2>Some contaminants are of greater concern than others</h2>
<p>The results also show that BHT, an industrial antioxidant, and its breakdown product, BHTQ, were the only compounds found in the brain of northern pike. The effects of these contaminants on the nervous system of aquatic organisms are not well known at this time. An earlier study, however, demonstrated that BHT can accumulate in the rat brain and can lead to an increase <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/0300483X80901213?via%3Dihub">in the number of dead cells</a>. To our knowledge, this is the first finding of these toxic compounds in the St. Lawrence.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/478324/original/file-20220809-24-hxw36w.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="2 personnes déploient un filet dans l'eau" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/478324/original/file-20220809-24-hxw36w.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/478324/original/file-20220809-24-hxw36w.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=402&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478324/original/file-20220809-24-hxw36w.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=402&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478324/original/file-20220809-24-hxw36w.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=402&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478324/original/file-20220809-24-hxw36w.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=505&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478324/original/file-20220809-24-hxw36w.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=505&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478324/original/file-20220809-24-hxw36w.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=505&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Contaminant concentrations were measured in northern pike and lake sturgeon in the St. Lawrence River. (Environment and Climate Change Canada). Provided by the author.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Environnement et Changement climatique Canada)</span>, <span class="license">Fourni par l'auteur</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Found mainly in plastics and paints, UV328 is a molecule of international interest <a href="http://www.pops.int/TheConvention/ThePOPs/ChemicalsProposedforListing/tabid/2510/Default.aspx">monitored by the Stockholm Convention</a> for its damaging effects on the liver and its potential for hormonal disruption. Its presence has been detected primarily in lake sturgeon, water, suspended matter and sediments of the river. </p>
<h2>More gaps to be filled</h2>
<p>The study highlighted the presence of contaminants of interest in the St. Lawrence River and identified UV328 and BHT as being of greater concern. On the other hand, there is still insufficient knowledge to understand the impact of these contaminants on the various organisms living in the St. Lawrence, particularly in terms of the effects of long-term exposures. </p>
<p>Moreover, it is important to remember that aquatic organisms are subject to a mixture of several pollutants and that it is therefore essential to have a better understanding of the consequences of their interactions on the health of organisms.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/188630/count.gif" alt="La Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Zhe Lu received funding from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, Environment and Climate Change Canada and UQAR-ISMER for this project.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Abigaëlle Dalpé-Castilloux received funding from FRQNT and Regroupement des écotoxicologues du Québec.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Magali Houde received funding from Environment and Climate Change Canada.</span></em></p>UV absorbents and industrial antioxidants are used in many household goods to protect them from UV radiation. They can have an adverse impact on ecosystems.Zhe Lu, Professor, Université du Québec à Rimouski (UQAR)Abigaëlle Dalpé-Castilloux, M Sc océanographie (laboratoire d'écotoxicologie marine, chimie analytique environnementale), Université du Québec à Rimouski (UQAR)Magali Houde, Chercheuse scientifique, Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM)Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1845272022-06-26T12:11:57Z2022-06-26T12:11:57ZMicroplastics may pose a greater threat to the base of marine food webs<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/470649/original/file-20220623-7584-hsv69v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=81%2C148%2C4424%2C2782&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Smaller animals that feed lower in the food web might be at greater risk from microplastic exposure than larger ones.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Microplastics — <a href="https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/microplastics">tiny pieces of plastic less than five millimetres in size</a> — have been found in marine and freshwater animals <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-15406-6">ranging from tiny zooplankton to large whales</a>. </p>
<p>However, <a href="https://theconversation.com/microplastic-pollution-is-everywhere-but-scientists-are-still-learning-how-it-harms-wildlife-129882">researchers are still struggling to understand the impact that microplastics are having on aquatic species</a>. </p>
<p>Scientists have found that microplastics have the potential to cause harm to animals through pathways including replacing food and leaching added chemicals into their bodies. However, it’s unclear how much these effects are currently occurring in the environment.</p>
<p><a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/eap.2654">Our recently published study</a> explores how microplastics move within coastal marine food webs. We found that smaller animals feeding lower in the food web might be at greater risk from microplastic exposure than larger predatory animals.</p>
<h2>Pollutants and food webs</h2>
<p>Food webs are tangled networks of organisms feeding on each other. Where an animal is feeding within this tangled network is called its trophic position and may determine its exposure to pollutants.</p>
<p>For example, mercury pollution accumulates in the muscles of animals and is passed from prey to predators, reaching <a href="https://dx.doi.org/10.1021/es403103t">higher levels of concentration through the food web</a>. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/killer-whales-why-more-than-half-worlds-orcas-are-threatened-by-leftover-industrial-chemicals-104020">Killer whales: why more than half world's orcas are threatened by leftover industrial chemicals</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>This process is called biomagnification, and it’s why animals like tuna and salmon <a href="https://theconversation.com/climate-change-and-overfishing-are-boosting-toxic-mercury-levels-in-fish-122748">end up with potentially dangerous concentrations of pollutants</a>.</p>
<h2>Do microplastics biomagnify?</h2>
<p>During the summer of 2018, we collected individuals — including clams, mussels, sea cucumbers, crabs, sea stars and fishes — across a food web from several sites around southern Vancouver Island. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A researcher at a beach collects fishes." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/469362/original/file-20220616-13-wshlve.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=35%2C347%2C4000%2C2311&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/469362/original/file-20220616-13-wshlve.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469362/original/file-20220616-13-wshlve.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469362/original/file-20220616-13-wshlve.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469362/original/file-20220616-13-wshlve.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469362/original/file-20220616-13-wshlve.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469362/original/file-20220616-13-wshlve.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A beach seine conducted to collect fish for the study. We found that most individuals had up to two microplastic particles in each of their guts and that the particles were mostly fibres.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Kieran Cox)</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>We then determined the concentrations of microplastics found in the guts of the animals and the liver of the fishes and related these concentrations to each animal’s place in the food web.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/469091/original/file-20220615-11741-iehxqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A graphical representation of fish and other sea animals analyzed for microplastic content." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/469091/original/file-20220615-11741-iehxqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/469091/original/file-20220615-11741-iehxqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469091/original/file-20220615-11741-iehxqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469091/original/file-20220615-11741-iehxqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469091/original/file-20220615-11741-iehxqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469091/original/file-20220615-11741-iehxqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469091/original/file-20220615-11741-iehxqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The species of aquatic animals we analyzed for microplastic content and positions in the food web.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Garth Covernton)</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Animals higher in the food web did not contain greater concentrations of microplastics than animals lower in the food web, suggesting that biomagnification was not occurring.</p>
<p>Some of <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2021.125405">our past work</a> has also shown a lack of evidence for biomagnification of microplastics. In that work, we compared microplastic concentrations in fish guts, reported in the scientific literature, with estimates of their place within food webs.</p>
<h2>Some species might be at greater risk</h2>
<p>Although we didn’t find evidence of biomagnification, we did find that concentrations of microplastics were higher for certain smaller species when compared to their body weight.</p>
<figure class="align-left zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/470672/original/file-20220623-51375-jlqwdv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="An illustration of the authors' findings after comparing reported microplastic concentrations in fish guts with fish trophic level." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/470672/original/file-20220623-51375-jlqwdv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/470672/original/file-20220623-51375-jlqwdv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=444&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470672/original/file-20220623-51375-jlqwdv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=444&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470672/original/file-20220623-51375-jlqwdv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=444&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470672/original/file-20220623-51375-jlqwdv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=558&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470672/original/file-20220623-51375-jlqwdv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=558&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470672/original/file-20220623-51375-jlqwdv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=558&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Microplastics did not increase at higher trophic levels — higher positions in the food web — according to a literature review.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Garth Covernton)</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>This included filter feeding animals like clams, mussels and certain sea cucumbers, as well as a type of fish, the <a href="https://www.fishbase.de/summary/Cymatogaster-aggregata.html">shiner surfperch</a>. These fish might be ingesting more microplastics because the particles are <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2022.113433">similar in size and shape to their preferred food</a> — small aquatic microorganisms like zooplankton and other small invertebrates.</p>
<p>However, the numbers of microplastics we found in all animals were less than two particles per individual on average. While this could mean that health risks to these animals are low, we have yet to understand how long-term exposure to low concentrations of microplastics could affect their health.</p>
<p>In our research, we were limited to studying particles greater than 100 microns in size — about the width of a human hair — as particles smaller than this are very difficult to study using a regular microscope. However, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/0003702820921465">emerging methods</a> may make them easier to investigate in the future. These smaller particles are <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-021-01143-3">potentially more toxic</a> and we can’t rule out biomagnification at this scale, even if it’s not occurring for larger particles.</p>
<h2>How are microplastics affecting aquatic food webs?</h2>
<p>As microplastics pollution of the environment increases, we need to understand its possible effects to avoid potential ecosystem disasters in the future. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="An aerial view of a lake with experimental enclosures." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/469871/original/file-20220620-14209-s5siht.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/469871/original/file-20220620-14209-s5siht.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469871/original/file-20220620-14209-s5siht.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469871/original/file-20220620-14209-s5siht.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469871/original/file-20220620-14209-s5siht.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469871/original/file-20220620-14209-s5siht.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469871/original/file-20220620-14209-s5siht.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">An aerial view of a lake with experimental enclosures where microplastics research is being conducted at the IISD-ELA, northwestern Ontario. Studying microplastics in natural freshwater labs will advance our understanding of how they might affect aquatic food webs.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Garth Covernton)</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Freshwater ecosystems, for example, are often more directly exposed to microplastics and can contain higher concentrations.</p>
<p>Researchers, including a member of our team, are currently conducting work at the <a href="https://rochmanlab.wordpress.com/the-pelastic-project/">International Institute for Sustainable Development’s Experimental Lakes Area</a> to help understand how microplastics exposure might affect freshwater ecosystems and food webs.</p>
<p>This work, alongside the work of other researchers, should advance our understanding of how microplastics can affect aquatic ecosystems, especially the effects on the small animals at the base of food webs that might be ingesting more of these particles.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/184527/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Garth Covernton currently receives funding from the University of Toronto Arts and Sciences Fellowship. In the past he has received funding from Fisheries and Oceans Canada, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, and the University of Victoria.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Hailey Davies receives funding from Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council and the University of Victoria.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kieran Cox receives funding from the Liber Ero Fellowship Postdoctoral Fellowship and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council. </span></em></p>We need to advance our understanding of the effects of microplastics on aquatic ecosystems, especially on small animals at the base of food webs that might be ingesting more of these particles.Garth A Covernton, Postdoctoral fellow, Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of TorontoHailey Davies, PhD Student, Department of Biology, University of VictoriaKieran Cox, Postdoctoral fellow, Marine Ecology, University of VictoriaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1708852021-11-12T10:33:49Z2021-11-12T10:33:49ZSix areas where action must focus to rescue this planet<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/431653/original/file-20211112-25-16gi94.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Sandstorm approaching Merzouga Settlement in Erg Chebbi Desert, Morocco.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Pavliha/Getty Images</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>For some time, the Earth’s natural resources have been depleted faster than they can be replaced. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has set a 2030 <a href="https://www.ipcc.ch/2018/10/08/summary-for-policymakers-of-ipcc-special-report-on-global-warming-of-1-5c-approved-by-governments/">deadline</a> to reduce heat-trapping emissions by half to avoid climate change that is both irreversible and destructive. </p>
<p>With colleagues, we coauthored a <a href="https://academic.oup.com/bioscience/article/70/1/8/5610806">climate emergency warning paper</a> in 2019. It has now been co-signed by 14,594 scientists from 158 countries. We also produced <a href="https://academic.oup.com/bioscience/article/70/6/446/5828583?login=true">an extension</a> in 2020 and a <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-climate-emergency-2020-in-review/">grim update</a> in 2021. Our warnings are supported by thousands of research studies, many referenced in the <a href="https://www.ipcc.ch/assessment-report/ar6/">Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change</a> papers.</p>
<p>In our new <a href="https://www.scientistswarningeurope.org.uk/">paper</a>, we move beyond warnings and call for concrete actions. These must happen in six areas, at six levels – from household to community, city, state, nation and global – and on three timescales.</p>
<p>In the next three decades, the world must dramatically decrease greenhouse gases in the atmosphere to return to a more stable climate. To do this, we identify priority actions for energy, pollutants, nature, food, population and economy. </p>
<p>This takes place on three timescales – by 2026, 2030, and 2050. By 2050, carbon dioxide emissions must not exceed removals. After that, we must lower atmospheric concentrations by taking enough carbon out of the atmosphere.</p>
<p>Our paper, <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/00368504211056290">summarised here</a>, is intended to guide society, decision makers, planners, managers and financial investors with a framework for action. Yet humanity’s biggest challenges are not technical, but social, economic, political and behavioural. </p>
<h2>Energy: less, cleaner, more with less</h2>
<p>It is essential to reduce demand for energy by increasing energy productivity. That means getting more energy services – heating, cooling, lighting, transport, electricity and mechanical work – out of less primary energy. Fossil fuels are the largest sources of heat-trapping carbon dioxide and methane, and must be replaced. Our paper recommends the following:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>Follow much more ambitious road-maps for energy transformation to halve carbon dioxide emissions by 2030.</p></li>
<li><p>Create economic incentives to provide <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214629617300518">energy services</a> with less primary energy.</p></li>
<li><p>Replace primary energy from coal, oil, natural gas and wood with solar, wind, geothermal, tidal and hydro energy, wherever ecologically appropriate.</p></li>
<li><p>Account for all emissions and black carbon (soot) from burning bioenergy.</p></li>
<li><p>Levy high carbon prices on air travel, inefficient vehicles, appliances, buildings and carbon intensive goods.</p></li>
</ul>
<h2>Pollutants: reduce and remove</h2>
<p>Methane, nitrous oxide, hydrofluorocarbons, black carbon and other atmospheric pollutants add directly to global heating. Our warming world is melting permafrost, releasing heat-trapping methane. Policies must:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>Rapidly reduce methane emissions from agriculture, industry, and oil and gas production.</p></li>
<li><p>Develop effective atmospheric methane removal practices. </p></li>
<li><p>Require large methane producers to pay for atmospheric removal. </p></li>
<li><p>Reduce methane, nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide and non-methane hydrocarbons that produce heat-trapping pollutants. </p></li>
<li><p>Reduce emissions of hydrofluorocarbons from refrigerants, solvents and other sources. </p></li>
<li><p>Reduce nitrous oxide emissions from fertilisers, fossil fuel combustion and industrial processes.</p></li>
</ul>
<h2>Natural climate solutions</h2>
<p>Biodiverse natural ecosystems, including forests, wetlands, grasslands, peatlands and oceans, are essential for our planet to function. This includes carbon management. They remove and store 56% of annual <a href="https://www.ipcc.ch/assessment-report/ar6/">carbon emissions</a>, preventing additional warming. </p>
<p>Society needs to:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>Protect carbon dense ecosystems to cover 30% of the Earth’s surface by 2030 and remove all emitted carbon dioxide by 2050.</p></li>
<li><p>Halt destruction of these essential systems. </p></li>
<li><p>Restore degraded ecosystems.</p></li>
<li><p>Greatly reduce land conversions by 2026 and halt them by 2030.</p></li>
</ul>
<h2>Food system reform</h2>
<p>Agricultural production is failing to sustain Earth’s nearly 8 billion people without unacceptable damage to climate, land and water. The global food system generates <a href="https://science.sciencemag.org/content/360/6392/987">more than 25%</a> of greenhouse gas emissions and <a href="https://www.pnas.org/content/115/33/8252">consumes 70%</a> of freshwater. Expanding inefficient agriculture causes deforestation and nutrient runoff. It creates coastal low oxygen dead zones. To avoid widespread famines this century, leaders and farmers must:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>Shift production to foods that use land and water more efficiently.</p></li>
<li><p>Use farming methods that regenerate the environment and store carbon in soils.</p></li>
<li><p>Support farmers in these transitions, especially small farmers.</p></li>
</ul>
<h2>Population stability</h2>
<p>Population growth undermines efforts to protect nature and people. Leaders and civil society should:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>Embed population actions in economic, social and political agendas.</p></li>
<li><p>Invest more in family well-being through health, education and economic policies. </p></li>
<li><p>Support poorer families to advance economically and educationally.</p></li>
<li><p>Protect everyone’s right to life purposes other than parenting.</p></li>
<li><p>Increase aid for family planning.</p></li>
</ul>
<h2>Economic reform</h2>
<p>Economies must operate within <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.1259855">planetary boundaries</a>. Leaders need to:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>Correct market failures through appropriate taxes, subsidies and regulations. </p></li>
<li><p>Create economic frameworks for profitable activities that protect and restore nature. </p></li>
<li><p>Introduce reforms to sustain farm and forest lands, oceans, rivers and wetlands. </p></li>
<li><p>Introduce land rights and urban planning models that encourage efficient land use. </p></li>
<li><p>Develop economic policies that halt loss of wild lands. </p></li>
<li><p>Introduce policies to reduce climate altering emissions and restore socially efficient local production.</p></li>
</ul>
<p>We must accelerate these transformations, while maintaining social, economic and political stability. Effective and timely actions are still possible on many, but not all fronts. Avoiding each tenth of a degree increase in global temperature improves the lives of billions of people, thousands of species and ecosystems.</p>
<p>Humanity can choose cooperation, wisdom, innovation, and ethics – or not. People can learn from past mistakes and create better societies. Leaders’ main challenge in the next decade may be to hold the rudder steady as society transforms on an almost impossible timescale. Our actions, or inaction, will determine whether we meet the challenges of the coming decades, and persist as civilised societies. </p>
<p><em>Our paper is open <a href="https://www.scientistswarningeurope.org.uk">here</a> for signature by anyone with a degree in natural, political, social, health, educational, behavioural or other science.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/170885/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Phoebe Barnard receives funding from Automated Visual Inspections and has received grants from the South African National Research Foundation, University of Cape Town, the Royal Society, and Leverhulme Trust. She is a board member of Scientists Warning Europe, Merz Institute, and Transition Fidalgo, and a member of the Union of Concerned Scientists, Society for Conservation Biology and American Society of Adaptation Professionals. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>William Moomaw receives funding from Rockefeller Brothers' Fund. He is affiliated with Woodwell Climate Research Center, The Climate Group, The Nature Conservancy, Union of Concerned Scientists, Young Voices for the Planet</span></em></p>Humanity’s biggest challenges are not technical, but social, economic, political and behavioural. Effective actions are still possible to stabilise the climate and the planet, but must be taken now.Phoebe Barnard, CEO and Exec Director, Stable Planet Alliance; Affiliate Full Professor, University of Washington; Research Associate, African Climate and Development Initiative and FitzPatrick Institute, University of Cape TownWilliam Moomaw, Professor Emeritus of International Environmental Policy, Tufts UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1399872020-07-15T14:49:35Z2020-07-15T14:49:35ZHow we learnt more about dangerous pollutants in Lagos lagoon<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/346855/original/file-20200710-189224-iew1dy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Plastic bottles, containers and other waste washed up from the Lagos lagoon at one of the waterfront jetties </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/plastic-bottles-are-seen-floating-between-motorboats-in-the-news-photo/967065968?adppopup=true">Stefan Harris/AFP via Getty Images </a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Lagos lagoon is the largest of four lagoon systems off the Gulf of Guinea. Several rivers and waterways empty into it, and it plays an important role in the West African coastal ecosystem as well as the Nigerian economy.</p>
<p>Several aquatic organisms in the lagoon are commercially important species, providing food and income for surrounding communities and beyond. The fish caught here represent <a href="https://academicjournals.org/journal/IJFA/article-full-text-pdf/0274B065919#:%7E:text=The%20fisheries%20productivity%20of%20the,tons%20(Onefeghare%2C%201990).">more than half</a> of Nigeria’s fisheries production of <a href="https://www.worldfishcenter.org/country-pages/nigeria">nearly 800,000 metric tonnes</a>. This unique brackish water environment also <a href="https://scialert.net/abstract/?doi=jfas.2011.202.211">plays</a> significant roles in ecosystem stability and as a breeding ground for aquatic species. </p>
<p>Unfortunately, the lagoon receives enormous amounts of largely untreated industrial and other wastes. Lagos State accounts for most of the country’s <a href="https://doi.org/10.5772/23353">industries</a> and is home to an estimated <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/22797254.2017.1419831">20 million</a> people. </p>
<p>The Ogun, Osun, Ona and Yewa rivers empty large volumes of water from inland and coastal cities. This water is generally polluted by industrial, domestic and agricultural activities. The lagoon also receives a large quantity of <a href="http://article.sapub.org/10.5923.j.aac.20110101.02.html">pollutants</a> from manufacturing and municipal activities in the greater Lagos metropolis. They include organic and inorganic pollutants which produce potential health risks for <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0269749118323960?via%3Dihub">fish</a>, shrimps and crabs – and <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0269749118323960?via%3Dihub">people</a> who eat them. </p>
<p>We conducted a <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0013935119307832">study</a>
to evaluate the effects of these pollutants on fish food and the environmental health of the Lagos lagoon. We aimed to provide environmental health management authorities with scientific data for effective protection of marine ecosystems and human health. We used a novel method for analysing sediment samples, to understand how the different pollutants distribute within the lagoon ecosystem and affect the organisms that live there.</p>
<p>We found that the complex combination of pollutants in Lagos lagoon interferes with fish and mammal biology – especially their endocrine systems – and is potentially harmful to humans. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347301/original/file-20200714-38-2vkofk.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347301/original/file-20200714-38-2vkofk.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347301/original/file-20200714-38-2vkofk.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347301/original/file-20200714-38-2vkofk.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347301/original/file-20200714-38-2vkofk.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347301/original/file-20200714-38-2vkofk.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347301/original/file-20200714-38-2vkofk.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347301/original/file-20200714-38-2vkofk.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Makoko hotspot with associated sawmill industrial waste.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Courtesy Author</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>How we tested the effect of pollutants</h2>
<p>The growth and industrialisation of big cities such as Lagos contribute <a href="https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/Amphibian-ecology-and-conservation-in-the-world-%3A-A-Hamer-Mcdonnell/6eed19ab8833e9bd5aa980666959dc5989a166ce">many pollutants</a> to water and land ecosystems. A number of pollution hotspots have also been identified in the area, including the city of Ikorodu, the slum area of Makoko and Idumota market. Plastic products, used tyres and car parts are some of the waste items that end up in the Lagos lagoon, through inappropriate waste disposal methods, dumping, and industrial and agricultural activities. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0130002">end-station</a> for these pollutants is the bottom of the lagoon. The sediments store pollutants and release them during heavy rainfall, winds and underwater turbulence. Bottom-dwelling organisms, particularly invertebrates, also stir up sediments during feeding and interactions between predators and prey, returning contaminants to the water. </p>
<p>In our study we tested three of the ways in which contaminants are released into the water in nature. This gave us a better understanding of how contaminants affect organisms in water. </p>
<p>The first method was elutriation, a process which simulates the natural process of mixing bottom soil and water, for example when boats disturb the water. In this process, pollutants are re-suspended in the water.</p>
<p>The second was polar extraction, which isolates pollutants that can dissolve in water and remain there in high concentrations. </p>
<p>The third was non-polar extraction. This method was used to evaluate the effects of pollutants that are transferred from sediment to organisms when they feed on particles of the bottom soil. Snails, earthworms, crabs and some fish can take in pollutants this way. </p>
<p>The different extraction methods produce results that are comparable to what happens in the natural environment. They allowed us to learn more about the complex interactions between water and bottom soil pollutants. We could also learn about the effects of pollutants on aquatic organisms, including the threat to their growth and reproduction.</p>
<p>We then exposed fish cells and rat cells to the pollutants extracted from the lagoon bottom soil. </p>
<p>Using animal cells (fish and rat) is a new way to avoid using live animals for research. It resolves the ethical dilemma associated with animal use in research and provides a deeper understanding of several biological processes. The molecular analysis of these cells can give an early warning of damage to animal and environmental health. Steps can then be taken to reduce harm. </p>
<h2>What we found</h2>
<p>Our <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0013935119307832">assessment</a> of contaminant loads at various parts of Lagos lagoon revealed a wide range of priority pollutants. These are pollutants with significant toxic potential for wildlife and humans. They include heavy metals such as mercury and cadmium, as well as organic compounds PCBs, phenols, PAHs and organotins. Some of these contaminants are known <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0166445X15301417?via%3Dihub">endocrine disrupting chemicals</a>. They also induce <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0147651318311576?via%3Dihub">enzyme systems</a> that may alter the pollutant into a less harmful chemical and eliminate it from the body.</p>
<p>We <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0130002">reported</a> that they produce hormonal imbalances with disruptive effects on the endocrine and chemical transformation systems of fish, crabs, shrimps and crocodiles. Such effects may lead to <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0269749118323960?via%3Dihub">changes</a> in reproductive organ development and result in gender confusion or the intersex condition. Documented effects on <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/10408444.2017.1397099">wildlife populations</a> include reductions in fish species. </p>
<p>Our <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0013935119307832">findings</a> showed that exposing cells to low concentrations of the pollutants extracted from Lagos lagoon sediments not only killed the cells, but also activated the enzymes that metabolise these pollutants. Ultimately, this reduces the ability of the cell to break down pollutants properly, with further consequences for growth and reproduction. </p>
<p>Pollutants from industrial and domestic sources in the Lagos lagoon represent a cocktail of environmental contaminants. They are capable of interfering with the growth and reproduction of fish and mammals that depend on the stability of the lagoon ecosystem. </p>
<p>These findings imply that there are potential risks for harmful effects on human health. The pollutants are potentially transferred to humans from aquatic food resources. They become more concentrated along the food chain. Given that the hormone systems of vertebrates are similar, pollutants that affect fish will <a href="https://www.hindawi.com/journals/jeph/2012/713696/">potentially affect</a> humans in similar or comparable ways. </p>
<p>This indicates possible negative health consequences for people who depend on the lagoon as a food source. </p>
<p>The heavy pollutant load may also be contributing to the observed decrease in fish catches at the lagoon in recent times. This effect may arise from the <a href="https://www.intechopen.com/books/marine-ecology-biotic-and-abiotic-interactions/marine-fisheries-in-nigeria-a-review">inability of enough fish eggs</a> and young fish to develop into adults. Or it could be from <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22975307/">damage to food and nursery habitats for young fish</a>. </p>
<h2>What needs to happen</h2>
<p>Until now, a lack of scientific information about pollution in the lagoon has made it difficult for regulatory bodies to develop and enforce water and food safety regulations. The information provided by our studies could contribute to developing protocols for treating industrial effluents. This is also in line with the <a href="https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/sdg14">United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 14</a>, on the protection of life under water. </p>
<p>We recommend that regulatory agencies develop and adopt a Nigerian version of REACh (Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals), the <a href="https://osha.europa.eu/en/legislation/directives/regulation-ec-no-1907-2006-of-the-european-parliament-and-of-the-council">European Union Regulation 1907/2006/EC</a> regarding chemicals. They should also do more to enforce the legal protection of natural habitats. </p>
<p>Government and industrial facilities should work together to find ways to reduce pollution before effluents reach the lagoon. </p>
<p>And finally, scientists need to routinely monitor the environment to see how species are responding.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/139987/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Aina Adeogun receives funding from
Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Trondheim, Norway Internal Grant for Faculty Members- Prof Augustine Arukwe's grants
2018 Society of Toxicology (SOT) Global Senior Scholar Award</span></em></p>Pollutants from industrial and domestic sources in the Lagos lagoon represent a cocktail of environmental contaminants.Aina Adeogun, Professor of Aquatic Toxicology, University of IbadanLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1346852020-04-15T11:11:15Z2020-04-15T11:11:15ZCoronavirus: lockdown’s effect on air pollution provides rare glimpse of low-carbon future<p>The COVID-19 pandemic has caused industrial activity to shut down and cancelled flights and other journeys, slashing greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution around the world. If there is something positive to take from this terrible crisis, it could be that it’s offered a taste of the air we might breathe in a low-carbon future.</p>
<p>The World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates that about <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/nature15371">3 million people die each year</a> from ailments caused by air pollution, and that more than 80% of people living in urban areas are exposed to air quality levels that <a href="https://www.who.int/phe/publications/air-pollution-global-assessment/en/">exceed safe limits</a>. The situation is worse in low-income countries, where 98% of cities fail to meet WHO air quality standards.</p>
<p>Measurements from the European Space Agency’s Sentinel-5P satellite show that during late January and early February 2020, levels of nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) over cities and industrial areas in Asia and Europe were lower than in the same period in 2019, by as much as 40%.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/322870/original/file-20200325-168885-1ib1grk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/322870/original/file-20200325-168885-1ib1grk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/322870/original/file-20200325-168885-1ib1grk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=454&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/322870/original/file-20200325-168885-1ib1grk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=454&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/322870/original/file-20200325-168885-1ib1grk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=454&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/322870/original/file-20200325-168885-1ib1grk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=571&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/322870/original/file-20200325-168885-1ib1grk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=571&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/322870/original/file-20200325-168885-1ib1grk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=571&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">As new daily cases of COVID-19 reached their peak in China, air pollution plummeted.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">ESA/NASA</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Two weeks after the nationwide lockdown was announced on March 23 in the UK, NO₂ pollution in some cities fell by as much as <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-52202974">60% compared to the same period in 2019</a>. NASA revealed that NO₂ pollution over New York and other major metropolitan areas in north-eastern USA was <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2020/drop-in-air-pollution-over-northeast/">30% lower in March 2020</a>, compared to the monthly average from 2015 to 2019.</p>
<p>Most NO₂ comes from road transport and power plants, and it can exacerbate respiratory illnesses such as asthma. It also makes symptoms worse for those suffering from lung or heart conditions. NO₂ emissions have been a particularly thorny problem for Europe, with many countries <a href="https://www.eea.europa.eu/data-and-maps/indicators/exceedances-of-air-quality-objectives-7/assessment-2">in breach of EU limits</a>.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/coronavirus-how-the-current-number-of-people-dying-in-the-uk-compares-to-the-past-decade-134420">Coronavirus: how the current number of people dying in the UK compares to the past decade</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>In a sense, we are conducting the largest ever global air pollution experiment. Over a relatively short period of time, we’re turning off major air pollutant sources in industry and transport. In Wuhan alone, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jan/24/wuhan-the-city-of-11-million-at-the-heart-of-the-coronavirus-outbreak">11 million people were in lockdown</a> at the height of the outbreak there. Across China, <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2020/02/21/806958341/restrictions-and-rewards-how-china-is-locking-down-half-a-billion-citizens">over half a billion</a>. China normally emits in excess of <a href="https://www.earth-syst-sci-data.net/10/1987/2018/essd-10-1987-2018.pdf">30 mega tonnes</a> of nitrogen oxides per year, with estimates for 2019 reaching <a href="https://www.atmos-chem-phys-discuss.net/acp-2019-1122/acp-2019-1122.pdf">40 mega tonnes</a>.</p>
<h2>Making air quality improvements permanent</h2>
<p>China emits over 50% of all the nitrogen dioxide in <a href="https://www.atmos-chem-phys-discuss.net/acp-2019-1122/acp-2019-1122.pdf">Asia</a>. Each tonne of NO₂ that isn’t emitted as a result of the pandemic is the equivalent of removing 62 cars per year from the road. So you could estimate that over China, even a moderate 10% reduction in NO₂ emissions is equivalent to taking 48,000 cars off the road. But the 40% drop in NO₂ on 2019 levels for January and February in some areas equates to removing a whopping 192,000 cars.</p>
<p>That’s an indication of what could be achieved permanently for air quality if car use was phased down and replaced with electrically powered mass transit. Electrifying transport in this way, with expanded train lines and more electric cars and charging stations, would slash tail pipe emission of air pollutants such as NO₂.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/322869/original/file-20200325-168889-tlgm35.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/322869/original/file-20200325-168889-tlgm35.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/322869/original/file-20200325-168889-tlgm35.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=255&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/322869/original/file-20200325-168889-tlgm35.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=255&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/322869/original/file-20200325-168889-tlgm35.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=255&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/322869/original/file-20200325-168889-tlgm35.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=320&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/322869/original/file-20200325-168889-tlgm35.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=320&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/322869/original/file-20200325-168889-tlgm35.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=320&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Surface concentrations of nitrogen dioxide over northern Italy, January 31 versus March 15 2020.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.esa.int/ESA_Multimedia/Videos/2020/03/Coronavirus_nitrogen_dioxide_emissions_drop_over_Italy">Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS); ECMWF</a>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>But electric vehicles are only as clean as the electricity that powers them. The recent improvements in air quality could be made permanent by replacing fossil fuel generation with renewable energy and other low-carbon sources. <a href="https://www.atmos-chem-phys.net/12/4429/2012/acp-12-4429-2012.pdf">Reducing monthly NO₂ emissions</a> from electricity generation by 10% would be the equivalent of turning off 500 coal power stations for a year. </p>
<p>Ironically, by shutting down swaths of the global economy, COVID-19 has helped expose another respiratory health crisis. The ensuing lockdowns have shown the improvements to air quality that are possible when emissions are reduced on a global scale. </p>
<p>The pandemic could show us how the future might look with less air pollution, or it may just indicate the scale of the challenge ahead. At the very least, it should challenge governments and businesses to consider how things can be done differently after the pandemic, to hold on to temporary improvements in air quality.</p>
<hr>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/263883/original/file-20190314-28475-1mzxjur.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/263883/original/file-20190314-28475-1mzxjur.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=140&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/263883/original/file-20190314-28475-1mzxjur.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=140&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/263883/original/file-20190314-28475-1mzxjur.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=140&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/263883/original/file-20190314-28475-1mzxjur.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=176&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/263883/original/file-20190314-28475-1mzxjur.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=176&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/263883/original/file-20190314-28475-1mzxjur.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=176&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/imagine-newsletter-researchers-think-of-a-world-with-climate-action-113443?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=TCUKengagement&utm_content=Imagineheader1134685">Click here to subscribe to our climate action newsletter. Climate change is inevitable. Our response to it isn’t.</a></em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/134685/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Paul Monks receives funding from Natural Environment Research Council. </span></em></p>As lockdowns have came into effect around the world, air pollution has plummeted.Paul Monks, Professor of Atmospheric Chemistry and Earth Observation Science, University of LeicesterLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1282722020-01-10T13:38:25Z2020-01-10T13:38:25ZAir pollution: your exposure and health risk could depend on your class, ethnicity or gender<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/309433/original/file-20200110-97145-1ie5tgt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C4254%2C2855&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Smoke covers a street market in Palermo, Italy. October 8 2019.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/palermo-italy-smog-over-street-market-1605742414">Radiokafka/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Poor air quality is responsible for over <a href="https://www.eea.europa.eu/publications/air-quality-in-europe-2018">half a million deaths in Europe</a> every year, but not everyone is equally at risk. Our <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/16/17/3127">new review found that across Europe</a>, the most deprived people have the worst air quality. This means that the people already experiencing multiple deprivations because of their social class, ethnicity or gender, also have the unhealthiest environments to live in.</p>
<p>In Wales, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/pubmed/fdw084">deprived areas have the highest levels</a> of major pollutants, such as nitrogen dioxide and particulate matter, from traffic exhausts, industrial pollution and wood-burning stoves. Particulate matter forms a fine mist of toxic debris that <a href="https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/ambient-(outdoor)-air-quality-and-health">affects more people than any other type of pollution</a>. Inhaling it can contribute to heart attacks and respiratory diseases, including lung cancer. </p>
<p>For the very smallest particles, there’s no safe threshold below which “<a href="https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/ambient-(outdoor)-air-quality-and-health">no damage to health is observed</a>”, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Nitrogen dioxide meanwhile is linked to <a href="https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/ambient-(outdoor)-air-quality-and-health">reduced lung function and growth in children and exacerbates asthma</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/309436/original/file-20200110-97130-eqf5cb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/309436/original/file-20200110-97130-eqf5cb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/309436/original/file-20200110-97130-eqf5cb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/309436/original/file-20200110-97130-eqf5cb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/309436/original/file-20200110-97130-eqf5cb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/309436/original/file-20200110-97130-eqf5cb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/309436/original/file-20200110-97130-eqf5cb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Particulates are microscopic solids that escape combustion, often through car exhausts.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/car-exhaust-pipe-coming-out-diesel-1058593964">Andrekoehn/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2014.12.014">England and the Netherlands</a>, areas where more people live on income support or where there is a larger non-white population experience poorer air quality. In <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/jech-2016-208674">France, deprivation is clearly linked</a> to higher pollution in nearly all areas, with small exceptions in some rural areas. In Italy, places with <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Tiziana_Laureti/publication/285817154_Estimating_the_effects_of_road_transportation_on_environmental_quality/links/56e002d408aec4b3333cf76c.pdf">higher numbers of single mothers have more air pollution</a>.</p>
<p>Ethnicity is also a factor when it comes to pollution. Asian and Latin American immigrants <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoforum.2015.12.008">in Madrid</a> are exposed to higher levels of pollution, but European immigrants aren’t. Whereas in Barcelona, all immigrants regardless of ethnicity have poorer air quality than native-born people. In <a href="https://doi.org/10.1289/ehp.1002564">southern Sweden</a>, higher levels of nitrogen oxides occur in areas with non-Nordic mothers. In <a href="https://www.vlieghinder.nl/images/knipsels/AircraftNoise_Epidemiology21(6)_november_2010(2).pdf">Switzerland</a>, foreign nationals and the unemployed are both likely to live nearer to main roads and so encounter higher levels of particulates in the air they breathe.</p>
<p>The EU has pressured national governments to deal with air pollution, but 19 countries still <a href="https://meta.eeb.org/2019/04/30/air-pollution-14-governments-fail-to-produce-crucial-plans/">exceed the agreed nitrogen dioxide limits</a> and 14 are breaching these limits for particulates smaller than 10 microns. But even air with pollutants at these supposedly safe limits may not be safe to breathe. The lower the level of air pollution, the lower the impact on health, and it’s likely that the WHO’s ongoing review will recommend even lower levels.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/recycling-poorer-countries-can-now-refuse-plastic-waste-imports-this-could-make-the-system-fairer-117707">Recycling: poorer countries can now refuse plastic waste imports – this could make the system fairer</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Poverty makes pollution worse</h2>
<p>Not only does your exposure to air pollution mirror existing inequalities, but so does your vulnerability to the health consequences. The same level of air pollutant will affect different people differently. For example, children, whose bodies are still forming, will be <a href="https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1414123">more affected than fully grown adults</a>.</p>
<p>Vulnerability also varies among adults. In deprived areas, more people are likely to have existing health conditions, making them more vulnerable to poor air quality. A UK study found that even a general improvement in air quality over time benefited the most deprived least, and <a href="https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/10/10/105009/pdf">the gap between rich and poor</a> – in terms of the levels of particulates in the air – actually increased. Often poorer populations have <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1068/a35240">lower levels of car ownership</a> but are exposed to more motorists driving through their neighbourhoods.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/309441/original/file-20200110-97134-853off.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/309441/original/file-20200110-97134-853off.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=472&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/309441/original/file-20200110-97134-853off.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=472&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/309441/original/file-20200110-97134-853off.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=472&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/309441/original/file-20200110-97134-853off.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=593&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/309441/original/file-20200110-97134-853off.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=593&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/309441/original/file-20200110-97134-853off.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=593&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Expanding electrified public transport can help reduce air pollution and overcome inequalities in access to affordable transport.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://unsplash.com/photos/gbwm6sEFb2Q">Yaoqi LAI/Unsplash</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Traffic is a major source of air pollution. Cities need to provide cheap, reliable mass transport systems, such as trams, buses and underground rail, but they also need to create separate infrastructure for cyclists and walkers to make it much easier for drivers to switch. More electric vehicle charging zones, pedestrianisation of city roads and more barriers to private cars entering the city will also help.</p>
<p>Efforts to improve air quality should target areas with vulnerable people first and should prioritise public health. Rather than seeking to beautify already affluent areas, action on pollution should address existing inequality by providing good quality public transport and investing in healthcare for deprived communities. Pollution is political – and so are its remedies.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/128272/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jon Fairburn receives funding from the UK government to produce the air quality index in the Index of Multiple Deprivation for England. He also works with the World Health Organisation (WHO) on the issue of air pollution. </span></em></p>Pollutants like nitrogen dioxide are a silent killer, but everyone isn’t equally at risk.Jon Fairburn, Professor of Sustainable Development, Staffordshire UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1127552019-09-11T12:17:02Z2019-09-11T12:17:02ZIn dandelions and fireflies, artists try to make sense of climate change<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/291823/original/file-20190910-190016-875y1e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Visitors walk through Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama's installation 'Fireflies on the Water.'</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/maurizio_mwg/2985709941">maurizio mucciola/flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/">CC BY-NC-ND</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Climate change is real, it’s accelerating and it’s terrifying. We are adding carbon to the atmosphere at a rate <a href="https://www.ametsoc.net/sotc2017/SoC2017_ExecSumm.pdf">100 times faster than any previous natural increases</a>, such as those that occurred at the end of the last ice age.</p>
<p>The effects are easily made visible through dramatic images of <a href="https://climate.nasa.gov/climate_resources/4/graphic-dramatic-glacier-melt/">rapidly shrinking glaciers</a> or the <a href="https://www.sciencenews.org/article/brazil-amazon-rainforest-fires-climate-emissions-oxygen,%20https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2019/08/look-no-further-than-brazils-amazon-fire-for-the-dangers-of-deregulation/">Amazon rainforest on fire</a>. </p>
<p>But pictures like these can distance us from environmental catastrophe, turning it into something spectacular, arresting – even paralyzing. They don’t communicate the everyday impact of climate change, <a href="https://theconversation.com/climate-change-is-happening-in-your-garden-heres-how-to-spot-it-65730">which is also taking place in our own backyards</a>.</p>
<p>In the book I’m currently writing, I’ve made these smaller, less obvious effects my focus. I explore the work of artists and poets who help us understand how the smallest changes to the environment can signal large-scale damage. </p>
<p>They build on a crucial legacy left by Victorian observers of the natural world who emphasized the need to pay careful attention to the tiny details of our surroundings.</p>
<h2>Observant Victorians</h2>
<p>No one was more insistent on the importance of looking closely at the ordinary and the everyday than the 19th-century art critic and social thinker John Ruskin. </p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/291638/original/file-20190909-109957-za45hz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/291638/original/file-20190909-109957-za45hz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/291638/original/file-20190909-109957-za45hz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=873&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/291638/original/file-20190909-109957-za45hz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=873&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/291638/original/file-20190909-109957-za45hz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=873&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/291638/original/file-20190909-109957-za45hz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1097&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/291638/original/file-20190909-109957-za45hz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1097&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/291638/original/file-20190909-109957-za45hz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1097&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">John Everett Millais’ 1853 portrait of Ruskin.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b7/Millais_Ruskin.jpg">Ashmolean Museum</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>His <a href="https://www.lancaster.ac.uk/depts/ruskinlib/Modern%20Painters">advice</a> to “go to Nature … rejecting nothing, selecting nothing and scorning nothing” inspired many artists of the era – British artists like <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Ruskin_(painting)#/media/File:Millais_Ruskin.jpg">John Everett Millais</a> and <a href="http://www.victorianweb.org/painting/brett/paintings/25.jpg">John Brett</a>, and American painters <a href="https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/opencollection/objects/2359">John Henry Hill</a> and <a href="https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/exhibitions/ask/william_trost_richards">William Trost Richards</a>. </p>
<p>Meanwhile, books and articles, such as J.G. Wood’s “<a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=Be9RDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA3&dq=Common+Objects+of+the+Country&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjf8becyrrkAhUQZd8KHRwMCk4Q6AEwAHoECAAQAg#v=onepage&q&f=false">Common Objects of the Country</a>” and Anne Wright’s “<a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=p6fewQEACAAJ&dq=the+observing+eye&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjfm6apyrrkAhWknOAKHZLECN8Q6AEwAnoECAAQAQ">The Observing Eye</a>,” <a href="https://www.press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/V/bo5519168.html">popularized scientific observation</a> as a practice available to all, teaching people to find wonder in the world about them – in “<a href="https://www.lancaster.ac.uk/users/ruskinlib/eSoV/texts/vol35/vol35p37.html">the sky, the leaves and pebbles</a>,” as Ruskin wrote.</p>
<p>Many contemporary artists have picked up the baton, showing how three very ordinary species from the natural world – dandelions, fireflies and lichens – can stimulate our imagination and make us think about climate change in new ways.</p>
<h2>The resilience of dandelions</h2>
<p>Few plants are more ubiquitous than the dandelion.</p>
<p>In the 19th century, its yellow flowers and decorative fluffy seed-heads often appeared in sentimental paintings of <a href="https://arthive.com/artists/64493%7EWilliam_John_Hennessy/works/345871%7EDandelion_clock">children gathering dandelions in meadows</a> or of <a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Q_qzgkdqzz0/VJnHy4lIB1I/AAAAAAAEFpY/a_mFmpUp-zg/s1600/Charles%2BEdward%2BPerugini%2BTutt%27Art%40-%2B(1).jpg">young women blowing on gossamer puff-balls</a>. They flourished in <a href="https://archive.org/details/athome00sowe/page/20">nursery rhyme illustrations</a> and on decorative <a href="http://www.demorgan.org.uk/gillow-0">tiles</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/291641/original/file-20190909-109923-od9hii.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/291641/original/file-20190909-109923-od9hii.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/291641/original/file-20190909-109923-od9hii.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=351&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/291641/original/file-20190909-109923-od9hii.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=351&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/291641/original/file-20190909-109923-od9hii.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=351&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/291641/original/file-20190909-109923-od9hii.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=441&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/291641/original/file-20190909-109923-od9hii.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=441&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/291641/original/file-20190909-109923-od9hii.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=441&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Dandelions dotted the landscapes of 19th-century children’s picture books.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://archive.org/details/athome00sowe/page/20">New York Public Library</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The flower was useful in the kitchen, too: Victorians ate it <a href="https://convivialsupper.com/2017/04/09/dandelion-salad-recipe-victorian-food-blog-1844/">in salads</a> and drank it <a href="http://www.columbia.edu/itc/cerc/danoff-burg/invasion_bio/inv_spp_summ/Taraxum_officinale.htm">in teas</a>. </p>
<p>But at some point in the 19th century, its status morphed. Dandelions became a weed. </p>
<p>As all gardeners know, they are persistent. Weedkillers like sodium arsenite were introduced in the late 19th century. After World War II, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/herbicide">powerful chemicals were developed for lawn maintenance</a>, doing far more damage <a href="https://www.naturalnews.com/025534_Roundup_research_toxic.htm">to people and the environment</a> than dandelion roots. Gardening websites are still full of references to “<a href="https://medium.com/@thereejackson/the-war-on-dandelions-23b0a9457ce6">the war on dandelions</a>.” </p>
<p>Today, British artist <a href="https://www.edwardchell.com/soft-estate/">Edward Chell</a> wants us to think about the damage done to these exiled weeds. He picks dandelions and other wild flowers on Britain’s motorway verges – micro-habitats choking with pollutants that nonetheless sustain diverse vegetation.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/291645/original/file-20190909-109957-shqu0g.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/291645/original/file-20190909-109957-shqu0g.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/291645/original/file-20190909-109957-shqu0g.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=775&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/291645/original/file-20190909-109957-shqu0g.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=775&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/291645/original/file-20190909-109957-shqu0g.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=775&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/291645/original/file-20190909-109957-shqu0g.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=974&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/291645/original/file-20190909-109957-shqu0g.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=974&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/291645/original/file-20190909-109957-shqu0g.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=974&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Edward Chell’s ‘Dandelion Taraxacum officinale: Road Dust M4.’</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.edwardchell.com/prints/nggallery/page/1">Edward Chell, 2011. Road dust on 400gsm acid free watercolour/drawing paper 135 x 105 cm.</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Using a silhouette drawing technique borrowed from the late 18th century, he draws the plant in outline and fills it with a mixture of ink and dust taken from the motorway. His images show the beautiful fragility of roadside weeds. But they’re also records of toxicity, made with the residue of the internal combustion engine: unburned hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides and particulate matter. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.edwardchell.com/prints/">The jagged edges of the dandelion</a> have a starring role in his series. But for Chell, the flower no longer symbolizes sentimentality and innocence, as it did in the Victorian era; instead, it’s mutated into a chilling commentary on roadside pollution.</p>
<h2>The magic of fireflies</h2>
<p>In a threatened world, nature exerts a nostalgic pull. For many Americans, thoughts of fireflies transport them to the long, warm summer evenings of childhood. </p>
<p>Fireflies enjoy a double life: By day, they are unremarkable, dull-brown insects; by night, they are captivating sparks that dance together. </p>
<p>Victorian writers and artists saw magic in these floating dots of light, comparing them to <a href="https://fireflyforestwatcher.files.wordpress.com/2014/06/meeting-1.jpg">fairies and goblins</a>. The firefly’s grip on the imagination was so strong that it inspired scientists to search for ways <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-fireflies-glow-and-what-signals-theyre-sending-118574">to explain the mysteries of bioluminescence</a>.</p>
<p>The magic of fireflies persists. Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama has constructed several firefly installations that were inspired by <a href="http://www.sacred-texts.com/shi/atfj/atfj46.htm">a Japanese folktale about an old man in a field who was robbed on a pilgrimage</a>. In Japanese culture, fireflies stand for the soul: In the tale, thousands of fireflies attack the man’s assailants after his death.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.phxart.org/fireflies">The Phoenix Art Museum features one of Kusama’s installations</a>. Visitors can stand in a pitch-black room of mirror-lined walls, polished black granite floor and a black plexiglass ceiling, from which 250 LED lights hang and flicker like fireflies on a continuous two-and-a-half minute loop. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/qX_uV3hKsuc?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Yayoi Kusama’s ‘Infinity Mirror Room’ at the Phoenix Art Museum.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>To stand here is to experience infinity. It recalls the extraordinary beauty, yet fragility, of our natural environment. </p>
<p>And then you might wonder: When did I last see fireflies? </p>
<p>Fireflies <a href="https://www.firefly.org/why-are-fireflies-disappearing.html">have become increasingly uncommon</a> – victims of habitat loss, pesticides and light pollution. Kusama’s project, involving so many dancing electric dots of light, may be understood as a deeply ironic one. </p>
<h2>The sagacity of lichen</h2>
<p>It’s not just artists who give significance to the small and overlooked. </p>
<p>Art historians can direct our attention to something we take for granted. </p>
<p>Mid-Victorian paintings are best known for their depictions of modern life, for dramatizing the personal side of historical events and for introducing us to stunning landscapes.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/291646/original/file-20190909-109935-up3ck0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/291646/original/file-20190909-109935-up3ck0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/291646/original/file-20190909-109935-up3ck0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=924&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/291646/original/file-20190909-109935-up3ck0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=924&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/291646/original/file-20190909-109935-up3ck0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=924&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/291646/original/file-20190909-109935-up3ck0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1161&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/291646/original/file-20190909-109935-up3ck0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1161&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/291646/original/file-20190909-109935-up3ck0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1161&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">John Everett Millais’ 1852 painting ‘A Huguenot on St Bartholomew’s Day Refusing to Shield Himself from Danger by Wearing the Roman Catholic Badge.’</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/41/Sir_John_Everett_Millais._A_Huguenot%2C_on_St._Bartholomew%27s_Day_Refusing_to_Shield_Himself_from_Danger_by_Wearing_the_Roman_Catholic_Badge..jpg">Manson and Woods, Ltd.</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>But I suggest viewers concentrate on the apparently insignificant in these works; examine and think about the lichen that clings to rocks, tree trunks and walls in paintings like Millais’ “<a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sir_John_Everett_Millais._A_Huguenot,_on_St._Bartholomew%27s_Day_Refusing_to_Shield_Himself_from_Danger_by_Wearing_the_Roman_Catholic_Badge..jpg">A Huguenot</a>” or Brett’s “<a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:John_Brett_Val_d%27Aosta_1858.jpg">Val d'Aosta</a>.” </p>
<p>The very lichen that was painted in the mid-19th century likely contained traces of the substances that would destroy it.</p>
<p>For lichen is – as the Victorians came to realize – <a href="https://www.anbg.gov.au/lichen/ecology-polution.html">a bellwether for a polluted climate</a>. Too much pollution near a big industrial city, and it disappears from tree trunks and stones. </p>
<p>Because of its quiet beauty and its vulnerability to environmental change, lichen has become a powerful symbol for <a href="https://www.dianerogers.co.uk/flora-flowers-lichen">fabric artists</a>, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Extra-Hidden-among-Wesleyan-Poetry/dp/0819578053">poets</a> and <a href="https://olafureliasson.net/archive/artwork/WEK101810/moss-wall">installation artists</a>.</p>
<p>Yet lichen is the consummate survivor. It appears quickly <a href="https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/a18126/tiny-lichens-internalize-nuclear-fallout/">after nuclear disaster</a> or on <a href="http://scienceline.ucsb.edu/getkey.php?key=5453">newly solidified lava</a>. What’s more, lichen possesses properties – collaboration, determination, endurance – that humans will need to survive climate change.</p>
<p>“We are all lichens now,” <a href="http://opentranscripts.org/transcript/anthropocene-capitalocene-chthulucene/">wrote eco-scholar Donna Haraway</a>, referring to the <a href="https://courses.lumenlearning.com/microbiology/chapter/lichens/">symbiosis and codependence</a> that characterizes lichen – and that increasingly will come to define the human experience. </p>
<p>Looking at 19th-century depictions of nature doesn’t just lead to a nostalgic lamentation of all that’s been lost.</p>
<p>Instead, it inspires us to try to grapple with the present – and spurs us to intervene in our future.</p>
<p>[ <em>Like what you’ve read? Want more?</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=likethis">Sign up for The Conversation’s daily newsletter</a>. ]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/112755/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kate Flint does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Images of wildfires are powerful, but can make climate catastrophe seem like something spectacular and distant. So some artists are focusing on the plants and bugs in our immediate surroundings.Kate Flint, Provost Professor of Art History and English, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and SciencesLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1220442019-09-03T20:04:23Z2019-09-03T20:04:23ZWe should be cautious, but not concerned: there’s little evidence PFAS exposure harms our health<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/290021/original/file-20190829-184248-1ayg3k1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C5106%2C3406&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Firefighting foam containing PFAS can get into waterways. But the evidence doesn't give us reason to worry about our health.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">From shutterstock.com</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Per- and poly-fluorinated alkyl substances (<a href="https://www.epa.vic.gov.au/your-environment/land-and-groundwater/pfas-in-victoria">PFAS</a>) are persistent organic pollutants found most commonly in firefighting foam.</p>
<p>Every now and again, concerns around the possible health effects of exposure to PFAS pop up in the news. These chemicals don’t readily break down, and can accumulate in the environment. </p>
<p>PFAS contamination of water and fish was recently <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-08-08/discovery-of-toxic-chemical-pfas-in-fish-and-water/11387492">reported in Mackay</a> and <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-08-14/inpex-pfas-environment-animals-at-risk-darwin-harbour/11412180">Darwin Harbour</a>. Even my local free weekly paper in Adelaide had “PFAS food fright” plastered across the front page not long ago, arising from groundwater contamination near the local fire station.</p>
<p>Yes, PFAS might have been picked up in a few new places. But the latest evidence suggests the levels at which we’re exposed are very unlikely to affect our health.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-chemicals-in-firefighting-foam-arent-the-new-asbestos-85461">The chemicals in firefighting foam aren't the new asbestos</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>What are PFAS?</h2>
<p>PFAS (also known as perfluoroalkyl acids, or PFAAs) are long chains of carbon atoms studded with fluorine molecules. They include compounds such as perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS).</p>
<p>PFAS are inert, water repellent and heat resistant. This makes them ideal for applications ranging from stain-resistant fabrics, to non-stick cookware, to firefighting foams.</p>
<p>Their chemical properties mean they’re very resistant to breakdown and persist in the environment for many years. Even though these PFAS started to be <a href="http://www.nsf.org/consumer-resources/health-and-safety-tips/water-quality-treatment-tips/perfluorooctanoic-acid-and-perfluorooctanesulfonic-acid-in-drinking-water">phased out in 2000</a>, they still linger in some places where firefighting foams were used extensively, such as fire stations and airports.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/289639/original/file-20190827-184211-qepmdd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/289639/original/file-20190827-184211-qepmdd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=309&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/289639/original/file-20190827-184211-qepmdd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=309&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/289639/original/file-20190827-184211-qepmdd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=309&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/289639/original/file-20190827-184211-qepmdd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=388&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/289639/original/file-20190827-184211-qepmdd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=388&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/289639/original/file-20190827-184211-qepmdd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=388&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The chemical structure of perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOA), a typical PFAS.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Ian Musgrave</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Where do PFAS come from?</h2>
<p>In an Australian context, the most important sources of PFAS originate in their use for firefighting. The firefighting foam enters the soil around the site where a fire has occurred, or gets into storm-water drains. From there, it ends up in either the groundwater or streams, and ultimately the ocean.</p>
<p>Drinking water is not a major source of PFAS in Australia, as we typically don’t use groundwater for drinking. But in some places, groundwater contaminated with PFAS is used to irrigate food plants, and can enter the food chain through plants retaining PFAS from the water. This is the basis of the headline in
my local paper, as many local residents use bore water for their fruit and vegetable gardens. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/companies-should-take-charge-of-the-potential-toxins-in-common-products-78174">Companies should take charge of the potential toxins in common products</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>In a food chain, small amounts of PFAS can be concentrated as you move up the chain from plants to insects to fish. That is, insects may feed on affected plants, and fish may eat affected insects. So fish in rivers or bays contaminated with PFAS runoff can be a substantial source of PFAS. This is the issue in Mackay and Darwin.</p>
<p>Notably, the exposure people might face from eating affected fish or crops is below the levels people exposed to PFAS in an industrial sense, like firefighters, would encounter. </p>
<h2>PFAS and health: the experts respond</h2>
<p>PFAS take a long time to break down in organisms. For example, in humans, it takes around <a href="https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2015-09/documents/pfoa-pfos-provisional.pdf">five years</a> for half an ingested dose of PFOA to pass through the system.</p>
<p>The build-up of a chemical that’s hard to remove from our bodies is always of concern. I wrote in an <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-chemicals-in-firefighting-foam-arent-the-new-asbestos-85461">earlier article</a> in 2017 that despite this, the potential health risks appeared to be low.</p>
<p>Since then, the <a href="http://www.health.gov.au/internet/main/publishing.nsf/Content/ohp-pfas-expert-panel.htm">Australian Expert Health Panel for PFAS</a> looked in detail at the evidence, publishing its findings last year. </p>
<p>If anything, there appears to be even less risk from PFAS than we thought. </p>
<h2>How do we study these potential health effects?</h2>
<p>We can do studies on animals; these are indicative but can be misleading. For example, the effects of PFAS on what’s called <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peroxisome_proliferator-activated_receptor">peroxisome proliferation receptors</a> that regulate fats have been measured in rodents. </p>
<p>The effects occur at concentrations typically <a href="https://academic.oup.com/toxsci/article-lookup/doi/10.1093/toxsci/kfn166">1,000 times higher</a> than average human blood concentrations, and around 100 times the blood <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs00420-007-0213-0">concentrations in contaminated workers</a>. The human system is less sensitive than the mouse system, so mouse and rat studies may overestimate toxicity to humans.</p>
<p>We can do longitudinal studies where we follow PFAS exposure and health outcomes in humans over time. But a lack of good exposure monitoring and the difficulty in accounting for other environmental influences makes it hard to reach clear conclusions. </p>
<p>Studies of industrial workers exposed to high environmental levels of PFAS give an idea of what exposure to high levels can do, but are less helpful for low levels.</p>
<p>But synthesising all this data, as done by the expert panel, helps overcome these limitations. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-microplastics-make-their-way-up-the-ocean-food-chain-into-fish-69148">How microplastics make their way up the ocean food chain into fish</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>The most pressing concern on people’s minds is cancer, but there’s <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.3109/10408444.2014.905767">no consistent evidence</a> PFAS is associated with cancer. One study even found exposure to PFOA <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24468211">decreased the incidence of bowel cancer</a>. </p>
<p>The <a href="http://www.health.gov.au/internet/main/publishing.nsf/Content/ohp-pfas-expert-panel.htm">expert health panel report</a> concluded “there is no current evidence that suggests an increase in overall cancer risk”. </p>
<p>The other major concern is heart disease risk. But studies of people who have been chronically exposed to significant levels of PFOA <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs00420-007-0213-0">have not shown statistically significant increases</a> in heart disease.</p>
<p>Similarly, no consistent findings have linked PFAS to any other health concerns previously expressed, which have included reduced kidney function, altered immune response, and earlier menopause.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/290025/original/file-20190829-184240-9ct4vt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/290025/original/file-20190829-184240-9ct4vt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=311&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/290025/original/file-20190829-184240-9ct4vt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=311&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/290025/original/file-20190829-184240-9ct4vt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=311&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/290025/original/file-20190829-184240-9ct4vt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=391&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/290025/original/file-20190829-184240-9ct4vt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=391&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/290025/original/file-20190829-184240-9ct4vt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=391&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">In Australia, the most common source of PFAS is firefighting foam.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">From shutterstock.com</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>What’s the take home message?</h2>
<p>The panel concluded there is mostly limited or no evidence for PFAS having any link with human disease.</p>
<p>Though they noted even though the evidence for PFAS exposure and links to health effects is very weak and inconsistent, health effects for people exposed to PFAS cannot be ruled out based on the current evidence.</p>
<p>But the take home message is don’t panic. Most people will be getting less than the <a href="https://www1.health.gov.au/internet/main/publishing.nsf/Content/2200FE086D480353CA2580C900817CDC/$File/fs-Health-Based-Guidance-Values.pdf">tolerable daily intake</a> of these chemicals from their food and water (that is, below a threshold that would cause any potential adverse health effects).</p>
<p>To err on the side of caution, it’s sensible to minimise exposure by not <a href="https://www.health.qld.gov.au/public-health/industry-environment/pollution-notices/mackay-pfas">consuming fish from affected areas</a> or limiting bore water use for irrigating suburban gardens near contamination sites.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/is-your-health-at-risk-from-fish-and-frying-pans-5000">Is your health at risk from fish and frying pans?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/122044/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ian Musgrave has received funding from the National Health and Medical Research Council to study adverse reaction to herbal medicines and has previously been funded by the Australian Research Council to study potential natural product treatments for Alzheimer's disease. He has collaborated with SA water on studies of cyanobacterial toxins and their implication for drinking water quality.</span></em></p>Episodes of reported PFAS contamination are never far from the news. Here’s a run-down of what PFAS is, and why we have little reason to worry about its potential effects on our health.Ian Musgrave, Senior lecturer in Pharmacology, University of AdelaideLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1087272018-12-13T19:17:23Z2018-12-13T19:17:23ZThe contest for the worst air pollutant<p>In its report published on June 28, 2018, the French <a href="https://www.anses.fr/en/content/ambient-air-quality-anses-recommends-surveillance-13-butadiene-and-enhanced-monitoring">Agency for Health Safety</a> (ANSES) presented a list of 13 new priority air pollutants to monitor.</p>
<p>Several air pollutants that are harmful to human health are already regulated and closely monitored at the European level (in accordance with the guidelines from <a href="http://extwprlegs1.fao.org/docs/pdf/eur49733.pdf">2004</a> and <a href="https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:32008L0050&from=fr">2008</a>): NO2, NO, SO<sub>2</sub>, PM10, PM2,5, CO, benzene, ozone, benzo(a)pyrene, lead, arsenic, cadmium, nickel, gaseous mercury, benzo(a)anthracene, benzo(b)fluoranthene, benzo(j)fluoranthene, benzo(k)fluoranthene, indeno(1,2,3,c,d)pyrene and dibenzo(a,h)anthracene.</p>
<p>While some pollutants like ozone and PM10 and PM2.5 particles are famous and often cited in the media, others remain much less known. It should also be noted that this list is still limited, considering the significant number of substances emitted into the atmosphere.</p>
<p>So, how were these 13 new pollutants identified by ANSES? What were the criteria? Let’s take a closer look.</p>
<h2>The selection of candidates</h2>
<p>Identifying new priority substances to monitor in the ambient air is a long but exciting process. It’s a little like choosing the right candidate in a beauty contest. First, independent judges and experts in the field must be chosen. Next, the rules must be determined for selecting the best candidates from among the competition.</p>
<p>Over the past two years, the working group of experts developed a specific method for considering the physical and chemical diversity of the candidates present in ambient air.</p>
<p>To gather all the participants at this “beauty contest”, the experts first created a core list of chemical pollutants of interest that were not yet regulated. The experts did not include certain candidates, such as pesticides, pollen and mould, greenhouse gases and radioelements, because they were being assessed in other studies or were outside their scope of expertise.</p>
<p>This core list is based on information provided by Certified Associations of Air Quality Monitoring (AASQA) and French research laboratories like the Laboratoire des Sciences du Climat et de l'Environnement (LSCE) and the Laboratoire Interuniversitaire des Systèmes Atmosphériques (LISA). It is also informed by consultation with experts from national and international organizations like the European Environment Agency (EEA) and from Canada and the United States (US-EPA), as well as by inventories established by international organisations like WHO.</p>
<p>Finally, this list was supplemented by an in-depth study of recent international and national scientific publications on what are considered “emerging” pollutants.</p>
<p>This final list included 557 candidates – just imagine the stampede.</p>
<h2>Ranking the finalists</h2>
<p>The candidates are then divided into four categories, based on the data available on atmospheric measurements and their intrinsic danger.</p>
<p>Category 1 includes substances that present potential health risks. Then there are categories 2a and 2b for candidates on which more data must be acquired from air measurements and studies on health impacts. Non-priority substances – with concentrations in the ambient air and health effects that do not reveal any health risks – are placed in category 3.</p>
<p>Certain exceptional candidates were reclassified, such as ultrafine particles (with diameters of less than 0,1 µm) and carbon soot, due to their potential health impacts on the population.</p>
<p>Finally, the experts prioritised the identified pollutants in category 1 to select the indisputable winner of this unusual beauty contest.</p>
<h2>And the winner is…</h2>
<p>Gas 1,3-Butadiene ranked number one out of the 13 new air pollutants to monitor, according to ANSES. It is followed by ultrafine particles and carbon soot, for which increased monitoring is recommended.</p>
<p>1,3-Butadiene is a toxic gas that originates from several combustion sources including exhaust-pipe emissions from motor vehicles, heating, and industrial activities (plastic and rubber). Several temporary measurement campaigns in France revealed that the pollutant frequently exceeded its toxicological reference value (<a href="https://www.anses.fr/en/content/toxicity-reference-values-trvs">TRV</a>)–a value that establishes a relationship between a dose and the effect.</p>
<p>Its top spot on the podium comes as no surprise: it had already won a trophy in the United Kingdom and Hungary, two countries that have reference values for its concentration in the air. In addition, the <a href="https://monographs.iarc.fr/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/mono100F-26.pdf">International Agency for Research on Cancer</a> (IARC) classified 1,3-butadiene as a known carcinogen for humans as early as 2012.</p>
<p>As for the ten other pollutants on the ANSES list, increased monitoring is recommended. These ten pollutants, with exceedances in TRV observed in specific (especially industrial) contexts are, in decreasing order of risk, manganese, hydrogen sulfide, acrylonitrile, 1,1,2-trichloroethane, copper, trichloroethylene, vanadium, cobalt, antimony and naphthalene.</p>
<p>This selection is a first step toward 1,3-butadiene being added to a list of substances that are <a href="https://www.airparif.asso.fr/en/pollution/differents-polluants">currently regulated in France</a>. If the French government forwards this proposal to the European Commission, by the end of 2019 it could be included in the ongoing revision of the 2008 directive on monitoring air quality.</p>
<p>Since this classification method is adaptive, there is a good chance that new competitions will be organised in the coming years to identify other candidates.</p>
<hr>
<p><em>This article was published from the French by the <a href="https://blogrecherche.wp.imt.fr/en/2018/11/28/contest-worst-air-pollutant/">Institut Mines Télécom</a>.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/108727/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Laurent Alleman received funding from ANSES, INCA-INSERM and the Haut de France region</span></em></p>The number of substances emitted into the atmosphere is immense and growing, but some are particularly harmful to health and are subject to increased monitoring.Laurent Alleman, Associate professor, IMT Nord Europe – Institut Mines-TélécomLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/920152018-04-04T19:13:26Z2018-04-04T19:13:26ZWhy ozone levels pose a challenge to food security<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/212657/original/file-20180329-189810-9smwl8.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C233%2C4083%2C2158&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">When present in the lowest atmospheric layer -- the troposphere, 8-14 kilometers above earth -- ozone becomes a concern for human and plant health.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7f/Moon_Limb_%26_Troposphere.JPG/4096px-Moon_Limb_%26_Troposphere.JPG">Wikimedia</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Ozone is a well-known and interesting gas. It is thought of as a “good” gas when present in the stratosphere, where it forms the <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/global-warming/ozone-depletion/">ozone layer</a> sitting 15 to 30 kilometres above Earth that protect life from detrimental ultraviolet radiation.</p>
<p>But when present in the lowest atmospheric layer – the <a href="https://spaceplace.nasa.gov/troposphere/en/">troposphere</a>, which extends 8 to 14 kilometres above Earth – ozone becomes a concern for human and plant health. It is also the third most important greenhouse gas after carbon dioxide and methane. There’s substantial evidence that ozone is one of the most phytotoxic (toxic to plants) air pollutants, <a href="https://academic.oup.com/jxb/article/63/2/527/504895">causing significant damage to agricultural crops worldwide</a>.</p>
<h2>A combination of pollutants</h2>
<p>This is partly because ozone is a secondary air pollutant: it is not emitted directly, but is formed when other primary pollutants – mainly oxides of nitrogen (NO<sub>x</sub>), carbon monoxide (CO) and volatile organic compounds (VOC), which are emitted mainly from the burning of fossil fuels in transport, industry and power generation – undergo photochemical reactions under sunny conditions.</p>
<p>Several hours are required for these photochemical reactions to occur, meaning that ozone concentrations are often higher downwind of urban and industrial centres.</p>
<p>Some important agricultural regions located close to urban and industrial centres experience elevated ozone concentrations, these include the Midwestern USA, much of <a href="https://icpvegetation.ceh.ac.uk/publications/documents/ICPVegetationozoneandfoodsecuritybrochure-published.pdf">mainland Europe</a>, the South Asia’s <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs11356-016-8178-8">Indo-Gangetic plains</a>, and the <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ehs2.1203/full">coast of China</a>.</p>
<p>In these regions, ozone concentrations frequently become high enough to affect crop physiology, growth and yield. Hemispheric transport of ozone and its precursors can also occur so that emissions in one continent influence concentrations in another, for example, North American emissions can affect <a href="https://www.biogeosciences.net/9/271/2012/bg-9-271-2012.pdf">ozone-induced yield losses in Europe</a>.</p>
<p>Ozone enters plant leaves through stomata – pores that facilitate gas exchange – where it reacts with cellular components, producing a series of chemical reactions that create strong <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10693912">oxidative stress</a>. Damage ranges from visible leaf injuries such as yellowing (chlorosis) and stippling and localised cell deaths (necrosis), to subtle physiological changes such as reduced photosynthesis and premature senescence. These effects ultimately reduce crop yields.</p>
<h2>A growing concern</h2>
<p>Ozone levels have <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/2005JD006937/full">doubled since pre-industrial times</a> due to anthropogenic emissions. Because of stringent air-quality controls, peak ozone levels have declined over the last few decades in Europe and North America. However, the <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1352231004002808?via%3Dihub">“background ozone”</a>, which is the ozone concentration in absence of local anthropogenic sources, has been increasing over the past few years globally.</p>
<p>In developing countries, especially South and East Asia, <a href="https://www.elementascience.org/article/10.1525/elementa.243/">ozone levels are rising</a> and this trend will continue at least until 2030 unless emissions of ozone precursors (NO<sub>x</sub> and VOCs) are reduced significantly.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/212666/original/file-20180329-189795-sbnkjp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/212666/original/file-20180329-189795-sbnkjp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/212666/original/file-20180329-189795-sbnkjp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/212666/original/file-20180329-189795-sbnkjp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/212666/original/file-20180329-189795-sbnkjp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/212666/original/file-20180329-189795-sbnkjp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/212666/original/file-20180329-189795-sbnkjp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Milkweed can be used to monitor for ozone as the leaves are sensitive to the pollutant. Ozone damage is seen on the upper leaf surface (black in colour).</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/widnr/11208270106">Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources/Flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>It is important to note that regions experiencing high current and future ozone levels also hold a prominent position in global agriculture and food production and are vulnerable to food insecurity.</p>
<p>China and India are important examples of countries where ozone pollution already threatens crop production. In India, up to <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11356-017-9729-3">14 and 6% yield losses in wheat and rice</a>, respectively, are estimated to have been caused by ozone.</p>
<h2>Far-reaching socioeconomic implications</h2>
<p>Ozone thus adds yet another factor to the existing nexus of poverty, malnourishment and climate-change effects that challenge food and nutrition security in some of these regions. It is also important to consider that instability of these food systems will have far-reaching <a href="https://equityhealthj.biomedcentral.com/track/pdf/10.1186/s12939-017-0603-1">socioeconomic implications</a> via changes in food prices, farm incomes, consumer behaviours and nutritional access for different groups of society, including women.</p>
<p>Studies indicate that crop losses due to environmental factors often <a href="http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/0971521513495293">hit farmers</a> by increasing debts and <a href="http://documents.wfp.org/stellent/groups/public/documents/newsroom/wfp281745.pdf">intensifying workloads</a> as well as altering gender relations.</p>
<p>At the same time, closing the yield gaps in existing and future agricultural regions is essential for global food security.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/212667/original/file-20180329-189810-1ccx7d0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/212667/original/file-20180329-189810-1ccx7d0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/212667/original/file-20180329-189810-1ccx7d0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/212667/original/file-20180329-189810-1ccx7d0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/212667/original/file-20180329-189810-1ccx7d0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/212667/original/file-20180329-189810-1ccx7d0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/212667/original/file-20180329-189810-1ccx7d0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/212667/original/file-20180329-189810-1ccx7d0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Kadhi Chawal from India. Rice, India’s most common staple diet is directly impacted by ozone pollutants.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kadhi_Chawal_from_India.jpg">Barthateslisa/Wikimedia</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/">CC BY-NC</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Farmers and policymakers often fail to identify air pollution as a contributor to lower crop yields and air quality concerns remain focussed on cities and urban centres where elevated pollution impacts human health. Therefore, it is important that media, scientists and environmental activists take a lead to reach out to farmers, public and policymakers, and provide them with evidence of risk and damage and cooperate in understanding where solutions are required to abate ozone pollution and its consequences.</p>
<h2>Integrating ozone pollution</h2>
<p>Recognising these challenges, scientists should consider integrating ozone pollution in seasonal crop-yield forecasts. Researchers at Stockholm Environment Institute are developing <a href="https://www.sei-international.org/do3se">ozone risk and damage assessment tools</a> for crops. A recent <a href="https://www.elementascience.org/article/10.1525/elementa.244/">report</a> highlights the importance of ozone-monitoring networks in rural areas for assessing background ozone concentrations and the frequency of high ozone episodes.</p>
<p>This is particularly important because air-quality monitoring is generally focused on urban and semi-urban areas. This report synthesised information from 15 ozone-monitoring networks over the world, including the <a href="https://www.eea.europa.eu/themes/air/links/institutions/emep-european-monitoring-and-evaluation-programme">European Monitoring and Evaluation Programme</a>, along with data collected by individual researchers or smaller regional to national networks.</p>
<p>Such networks will allow integration of information on ozone pollution with the potential to provide early warnings of ozone episodes (which can often last for days to weeks) helping farmers to minimize crop loss through suitable management practices.</p>
<p>Research to develop resilient agricultural systems would ideally integrate adaptation to avoid the worst effects from ozone pollution alongside climate change through improved crop breeding and agronomic practices. However, it is an absolute necessity to understand the linkages and interactions between air quality, climate change, agriculture, food supply, and associated socio-economic implications at the local, regional and global scale to generate a complete picture of the problem and thereby offer effective solutions.</p>
<hr>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/202296/original/file-20180117-53314-hzk3rx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/202296/original/file-20180117-53314-hzk3rx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=121&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/202296/original/file-20180117-53314-hzk3rx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=121&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/202296/original/file-20180117-53314-hzk3rx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=121&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/202296/original/file-20180117-53314-hzk3rx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=152&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/202296/original/file-20180117-53314-hzk3rx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=152&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/202296/original/file-20180117-53314-hzk3rx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=152&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><em>Created in 2007, the Axa Research Fund supports more than 500 projects around the world conducted by researchers from 51 countries</em>.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/92015/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Divya Pandey 's research project is funded by AXA Research Fund.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Lisa Emberson receives funding from the the UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), the Norwegian Research Council and the Swedish International Development and Cooperation Agency.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sofie Mortensens research for this article has been funded by SIDA.</span></em></p>When present in the lowest atmospheric layer, ozone becomes a concern for human and plant health.Divya Pandey, Research Associate, Stockholm Environment Institute, York, Stockholm Environment InstituteLisa Emberson, SEI York Centre Director, University of YorkSofie Mortensen, Research Associate, Stockholm Environment InstituteLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.