Nature & Environment : Science World Report

Feb 23, 2012 10:34 AM EST

AGU: Oil Sands Pollution Comparable to a Large Power Plant

It takes a lot of energy to extract heavy, viscous and valuable bitumen from Canada's oil sands and refine it into crude oil. Companies mine some of the sands with multi-story excavators, separate out the bitumen, and process it further to ease the flow of the crude oil down pipelines. About 1.8 mil...

Feb 23, 2012 09:56 AM EST

For Disaster Debris Arriving from Japan, Radiation Least of the Concerns

The first anniversary is approaching of the March, 2011, earthquake and tsunami that devastated Fukushima, Japan, and later this year debris from that event should begin to wash up on U.S. shores â€“ and one question many have asked is whether that will pose a radiation risk.

Feb 22, 2012 09:40 PM EST

Great Barrier Reef Sperm Bank to Preserve Corals for Future [PHOTOS]

Never again the Great Barrier Reef will be genetically as diverse as today. This scientists agree on and kick off a new initiative to preserve as much as possible of this bio-diversity.

Feb 22, 2012 03:13 PM EST

Solved! Mystery that Stumped Ecosystem Modelers

As scientists warn that the Earth is on the brink of a period of mass extinctions, they are struggling to identify ecosystem responses to environmental change. But to truly understand these responses, more information is needed about how the Earth's staggering diversity of species originated.

Feb 22, 2012 11:14 AM EST

Hold the Salt: Coastal Drinking Water More Vulnerable to Water Use Than Climate Change

Human activity is likely a greater threat to coastal groundwater used for drinking water supplies than rising sea levels from climate change, according to a study conducted by geoscientists from the University of Saskatchewan and McGill University in Montreal.

Feb 22, 2012 10:20 AM EST

Heavy Snow in Lebanon and Syria

From February 17 to 19, 2012, a severe storm blasted the Lebanese coast with 100-kilometer (60-mile) winds and dropped up to 2 meters (7 feet) of snow on parts of the country, news sources said. Temperatures dropped to near freezing along the coast while snowplows struggled to clear the main roadway...

Feb 21, 2012 04:11 PM EST

UC Geographers Present Research on Climate Change, Day Laborers and More at National Conference

University of Cincinnati geography faculty members and graduate students will present research at the Feb. 24-28 national meeting of the Association of American Geographers.

Feb 21, 2012 01:54 PM EST

Glacial Carbon may Hold Record of Environmental Change

New clues as to how the Earth's remote ecosystems have been influenced by the Industrial Revolution are frozen in glaciers, according to a paper in the March issue of Nature Geoscience. "Remote regions are often perceived as being pristine and devoid of human influence," said Aron Stubbins, the stud...

Feb 21, 2012 01:41 PM EST

Global Permafrost Zones in High-resolution Images on Google Earth

Thawing permafrost will have far-reaching ramifications for populated areas, infrastructure and ecosystems. A geographer from the University of Zurich reveals where it is important to confront the issue based on new permafrost maps -- the most precise global maps around. They depict the global distr...

Feb 21, 2012 01:20 PM EST

EARTH: Gold, Lead and Death in Nigeria

Throughout the Zamfara region in northwestern Nigeria, children are dying at an alarming rate. What exactly could be causing such an epidemic? The answer lies in the unique geology. Lead-rich gold ores permeate the area, and mining them provides critical income for many families in need. Families ge...

Feb 21, 2012 10:54 AM EST

Conservation Risk Highest Off Coasts of Canada, Mexico, Peru and New Zealand: UBC Research

Combining economic outlook and fisheries population growth rates for all countries currently reported to fish in the ocean, UBC fisheries researchers William Cheung and Rashid Sumaila developed a conservation risk index to reveal the economic-conservation trade-offs of fishing.

Feb 21, 2012 10:29 AM EST

Carbon Storage Project Combines Innovation and Outreach

Geologists are hoping to learn a great deal about geologic carbon sequestration from injecting 1 million metric tons of carbon dioxide into sandstone 7,000 feet beneath Decatur, Ill. And they're hoping the public learns a lot from the endeavor, too.