Environment Archives

A stream filling a glass of water. Water quality may be headed for a rise as scientists work to develop new technology that uses bacteria to detect harmful heavy metals in water.

Water Quality Monitoring by Bacterial Biosensors

March 20, 2023March 14, 2023 Science Connectedbacteria, heavy metals, water contamination, water pollution, water testing

Water quality may be headed for a rise as scientists work to develop new technology that uses bacteria to detect harmful heavy metals in water.

People putting plastic bottles in recycling bin.

Biology Environment Sustainable Living

Bacteria Has Natural Capacity to Recycle Plastics

March 10, 2023March 9, 2023 Science Connectedbacteria, plastic pollution, recycling

A common bacterium, Comamonas testosteroni, might hold the key to breaking down and recycling plastic waste on a large scale.

Researchers have developed a recycling system that can transform plastic waste and greenhouse gases into sustainable fuels and other valuable products–using just the energy from the sun. Image credit: University of Cambridge

Climate Change Environment New Technologies

Sunlight Powers Recycling of Carbon Dioxide and Plastic

February 15, 2023February 14, 2023 Science Connectedbiofuel, carbon dioxide, plastic pollution, recycling, solar power

A new recycling method uses sunlight to simultaneously convert carbon dioxide and plastic waste into sustainable biofuels and useful chemical products.

Brown algae are particularly widespread on rocky shores in temperate and cold latitudes and there absorb large amounts of carbon dioxide from the air worldwide. Credit: Hagen Buck-Wiese/Max Planck Institute For Marine Microbiology

Ecology Environment Marine and Freshwater Biology Oceanography

How Brown Algae Mucus Combats Carbon Dioxide

February 10, 2023February 14, 2023 Science Connectedalgae, carbon dioxide, carbon fixing, climate change, seawater

Mucus produced by brown algae may be the key to protecting the ocean, as a new study uncovers how carbon dioxide gets captured and converted.

A field of sorghum. Bioenergy sorghum hybrids can restore carbon levels in soil, improve soil fertility, provide biomass for biofuel production, and combat climate change. Credit: K-State Research and Extension; license CC by 2.0

Botany Climate Change Environment

Bioenergy Sorghum: The Green Crop of the Future

February 8, 2023February 14, 2023 Science Connectedagriculture, environmental protection, green energy, soil health

Bioenergy sorghum hybrids can restore carbon levels in soil, improve soil fertility, provide biomass for biofuel production, and combat climate change.