Environment
Need some good news about the environment? The Optimist Daily is your go-to herald of positive environmental news, highlighting eco-friendly solutions and scientific progress around climate action, circularity, conservation, and more. Learn about everything eco in our Environment section.
Aquaculture gains sustainability credibility
The discussion over the opening of federally-owned public lands to more commercial purposes, or even selling some of them off entirely, is a hot topic this year. But what about areas of the oceans and seas that are also managed by the U.S. government? Recent federal agency decisions on future Read More...
Fighting urban air pollution in cities with low hedges instead of taller trees
The harmful impact of urban air pollution could be combated by strategically placing low hedges along roads in a built-up environment of cities instead of taller trees, a new study has found. The study, just published in the journal Atmospheric Environment, points out that low hedges reduce the Read More...
South Korea’s new president fulfills promise, shuts down 10 coal-power plants
On his fifth day in office South Korea’s newly elected president, Moon Jae-in fulfilled an election promise and announced that the country will temporarily shutter 10 coal power plants now and will shut them down completely within his five-year term. The South Korean capital, Seoul, is among Read More...
Forgotten trees: Survey finds enough new forests to cover 50 percent of the U.S.
It appears we have missed a few trees. A new survey of the world’s dryland habitats has found a massive amount of previously unreported forests. The newly discovered forests cover an area equivalent to about 50 percent of the size of the U.S. The discovery is good news for reversing global Read More...
This is how clothing companies can tackle microfiber pollution
Microfiber pollution is a major source of pollution in the world’s oceans as these fibers are gobbled up in aquatic organisms, including the fish that end up on our plate. In fact, a single fleece jacket can release a million fibers in a single washing. The apparel industry has been slow to the Read More...
This electric container vessel will replace 40,000 diesel truck journeys
Norwegian chemicals company Yara has developed an electric container vessel that will be capable of fully autonomous travel in 2020. The new ship will replace 40,000 of the diesel truck journeys the company makes hauling fertilizer from its plant to ports every year. The battery-powered ship Read More...
A supermarket in Norway solves the battery recycling challenge
You know you need to recycle batteries. You put them aside. And then…? It’s not easy to do the right thing when it comes to recycling batteries as there often are no easy places to go to. A supermarket in Norway is changing that. The store has introduced a battery recycling vending machine that Read More...
This device generates clean air and electricity from air pollution
Researchers in Belgium have developed a process that purifies air, and at the same time, generates power. The device must only be exposed to light in order to function. The device is similar to an electrolyser that can extract hydrogen from water. The researchers have discovered that polluted air Read More...
Vertical ocean farming could restore marine ecosystems
The premise on which it’s based is simple, too: the oceans are the planet’s life support system because they regulate its climate and provide half of the oxygen we breathe. Its fish provide a staple diet for 50 per cent of the people on the planet. Its water, thanks to Read More...
How to fix climate change: put cities, not countries, in charge
Climate change is the most urgent challenge facing humankind. Other issues make headlines: terrorism kills; inequality affects everyday life for billions around the globe. But climate is paramount, because in sustainability human survival itself is at stake. Why then have the nations governing the Read More...