| |
 | Posted by Admin |
|
|
|
These forest ecosystems sequester more carbon than we thought.
Mangroves store on average five times more carbon than forests in the world. This was demonstrated by Daniel Donato, the U.S. Forest Service, and his American colleagues, Indonesian and Finnish by measuring the concentration of carbon in the soil of 25 mangrove ecosystems of the Indo-Pacific.
Mangroves are sets of trees and shrubs that grow in tropical, coastal low tide or swept to the mouth of some rivers. Long and tangled roots of these trees slow the flow of the tides and thus encourage sedimentation in the mangrove, particles containing organic carbon transported by water (plant or animal remains). The researchers assessed the amount of carbon stored in these sediments: it is well above the amount of carbon from the cycle of decomposition trees and retained in the upper layer of soil – amount already high compared to that of carbon product from other forests.
Click to continue »
| |
| Posted by Admin |
|
|
|
Neutralization technology, using microorganisms, industrial waste and pollution caused by humans has been developed in Tomsk, reports the site rian.ru.
Specialists from the Research Institute of Biology and Biophysics of Tomsk State University (TGU) have developed a technology to clean industrial waste and technogenic pollution using microorganisms neutralizers.
Most companies use today to neutralize their industrial waste to thermal treatment, leading to atmospheric release of toxic substances. If we buried in the ground on special polygons, toxic waste, the surrounding environment is also polluted. The work done by researchers at the Laboratory of Biotechnology and biokinetics of TGU, works based on the use of these microorganisms neutralizers, to convert efficiently without adverse ecological consequences, industrial waste, and also eliminate technogenic pollution caused in particular by oil spills, and restore ecosystems that have suffered.
Click to continue »
| |
| Posted by Admin |
|
|
|
The Czech Ministry of Environment has recently launched a contest called “pro zivotni Prostredni Chytra Resen” (intelligent solutions for the environment) to high school and college students. Among competing projects, three have garnered considerable media attention:
=> Treatment of wastewater by genetically engineered bacteria
Lenka Vackova [1], a PhD student at the University of Chemical Technology Prague (VSCHT) [2] has developed a new method of ecological wastewater treatment, based on the use of genetically modified bacteria. These are introduced in “duckweed”, to enable them to act in the denitrification process. Genetic modification is the ability for bacteria to effect the selective degradation of certain toxic substances. The bacterial solution is mixed with polyvinyl alcohol, to create the duckweed.
The main interest of this method are to avoid the use of chemicals and water savings, through the lenses. According to researcher Jiri Wanner [3], the binding European legislation on the use of genetically modified organisms remains a problem. So even if the project received the favor of the jury, industrial applications will be difficult to implement.
Click to continue »
| |
| Posted by Admin |
|
|
|
The rock debris covering some glaciers in the Himalayas slowing their melting under the effect of global warming. This confirms the complex relationship between climate and retreat or advance of the ice mountain.
Dirk Scherler and colleagues at the University of Potsdam and the University of California at Santa Barbara, paints a mixed picture of the receding glaciers of the Himalayas, from photographs taken by satellites ASTER, SPOT and LANDSAT between 2000 and 2008. While over 65 percent of glaciers receding influence of the monsoon in the eastern part of the Himalayas, those who are partially covered with rock debris are relatively stable.
In the 2000s, several studies have established that the Himalayan glaciers, source of seven major rivers of Asia, retreated several yards each year and lost tens of centimeters thick under the influence of global warming. According to the 2007 IPCC report, “an accelerated melting of glaciers would lead to a higher rate in some river systems in the past two or three decades, leading to floods on the rise, with falling rocks from slopes destabilized, and the drying up of some water resources. This will be followed by a low water as and when the glaciers retreated. ”
Click to continue »
| |
| Posted by Admin |
|
|
|
The policies of the species should focus on implementation and management of large areas connected by corridors of habitat
The reserves for tigers in Asia could support more than 10,000 wild tigers – three times the current number – if they were managed as areas on a large scale in a position to ensure the sites of coupling is what supports the study “A Landscape-Based Conservation Strategy to Double the Wild Tiger Population “published in the journal Conservation Letters .
The number of wild tigers has decreased from about 100,000 in the early twentieth century to about 3200 due to poaching, habitat destruction and conflict man-tiger. Most of the remaining animals are scattered in small isolated pockets scattered in the 13 Asian countries.
Click to continue »
| |
| Posted by Admin |
|
|
|
Russian specialists working in Antarctica have been able to map the subglacial Lake Vostok, reports the site nauka.izvestia.ru.
The subglacial Lake Vostok, buried under a layer of ice more than 4 km thick, has still not been achieved physically by the researchers. Nevertheless, Russian scientists [1] were able to map this lake. They obtained data on the lake as a result of seismic and radar complex.
Click to continue »
| |
| Posted by Admin |
|
|
|
Scientists at the Technical University in North Rhine-Westphalia in Aachen (RWTH), University of Bonn and Cologne and the Helmholtz Research Centre Jülich (North Rhine-Westphalia – Westphalia) study the influence of soils on climate. The German Agency for funds for research (DFG) supports this new joint project for the next four years. The DFG has almost doubled funding, this project will receive over $ 3 million per year.
Because of the abrupt changes in current times, the role of soils on atmospheric processes has been somewhat neglected. Yet soils and vegetation are an important part of the “climate machine” land. Therefore this group of researchers trying to better understand the complex relationship between “ground” and “atmosphere”.
Click to continue »
| |
| Posted by Admin |
|
|
|
Upon taking office, the Obama administration had announced its intention to regulate emissions of Greenhouse Gases (GHG) emissions by focusing on legislation. After the failure of the climate legislation in the Senate last August, following its abandonment of mid-term elections in favor of Republicans, the administration now undertakes to regulate by decree, with the help of the Agency for Protection of Environment (EPA).
Click to continue »
| |
| Posted by Admin |
|
|
|
Under the theme “Chemistry: our life, our future”, in 2011, celebrates the International Year of Chemistry, with numerous activities in research centers and universities. The University of Barcelona is one of the institutions that disseminate the importance of their knowledge.
In order to sensitize the population about the benefits of scientific knowledge in general and the field of chemistry in particular, the United Nations proclaimed 2011 the International Year of Chemistry, with the theme “Chemistry: our life, our future.”
The scientific and technological advances are based chemistry have greatly influenced the quality of life and progress of mankind. The contribution of chemistry in solving current world problems is therefore essential. The year 2011 coincides with the centenary of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry awarded to Marie Curie, which provides an opportunity to acknowledge the contribution of the scientist to science and to claim the role of women in this field.
As part of this celebration, during 2011 the University of Barcelona (UB) has organized several activities, the first of which has been the deployment of a commemorative banner on the facade of the School of Chemistry. Moreover, until 2 February, is carrying out the tenth edition of We Chemistry Laboratory, Involving approximately 1,300 high school students.
Click to continue »
| |
| Posted by Admin |
|
|
|
A report on the study opportunities offered by the use of Bio-Synthetic Natural Gas (Bio-SNG, synthetic natural gas from biomass) in the transport and heating was published November 10, 2010. It was conducted at the request of NEPIC (North East Process Industry Cluster), The National Grid and Centrica by CNG services. It addresses both the problem of biomass supply, technological solutions to production of Bio-SNG, the possibility of using the existing network of British gas for transportation and economic aspects of its operations.
The methane produced from biomass is an attractive renewable energy source whose use can significantly reduce carbon dioxide emissions compared to fossil fuels. Moreover, the exploitation of bio-methane does not require the development of new equipment or infrastructure. Indeed, he may, for example, be distributed by the gas transmission network already existing in the UK or used to propel without prior modification, vehicles equipped to run on compressed natural gas. Until now, bio-methane used was obtained mainly by anaerobic digestion [1], a process which is not ideal for applications where obtaining methane is sought (which is not the case when the we just want to treat the waste). For the production capacity of bio-methane is growing significantly, we must move to an industrial process of production by “thermally” which allows, among others, to use biomass resources inadequate to the process of anaerobic digestion. This process involves the gasification of biomass at high temperature to produce synthesis gas or syngas (carbon-containing gas mixture), treated subsequently for the Bio-SNG. Although not technically mature, this mode of production should not, according to the study, require new fundamental developments.
Click to continue »
Mangroves store on average five times more carbon than forests in the world. This was demonstrated by Daniel Donato, the U.S. Forest Service, and his American colleagues, Indonesian and Finnish by measuring the concentration of carbon in the soil of 25 mangrove ecosystems of the Indo-Pacific.
Dirk Scherler and colleagues at the University of Potsdam and the University of California at Santa Barbara, paints a mixed picture of the receding glaciers of the Himalayas, from photographs taken by satellites ASTER, SPOT and LANDSAT between 2000 and 2008. While over 65 percent of glaciers receding influence of the monsoon in the eastern part of the Himalayas, those who are partially covered with rock debris are relatively stable.