Producing materials such as steel, plastics and cement in the United States alone inflicts $79 billion a year in climate-related damage around the world, according to a new study by engineers and economists at the University of California, Davis.

Images of coastal houses being carried off into the sea due to eroding coastlines and powerful storm surges are becoming more commonplace as climate change brings a rising sea level coupled with more powerful storms. In the U.S. alone, coastal storms caused $165 billion in losses in 2022.

Now, a study from MIT shows that protecting and enhancing salt marshes in front of protective seawalls can significantly help protect some coastlines, at a cost that makes this approach reasonable to implement.

The new findings are being reported in the journal Communications Earth and Environment, in a paper by MIT graduate student Ernie I. H. Lee and professor of civil and environmental engineering Heidi Nepf. This study, Nepf says, shows that restoring coastal marshes “is not just something that would be nice to do, but it’s actually economically justifiable.” The researchers found that, among other things, the wave-attenuating effects of salt marsh mean that the seawall behind it can be built significantly lower, reducing construction cost while still providing as much protection from storms.

Read More: Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Caption: Graduate student Ernie I. H. Lee uses drone imaging and machine learning to help map salt marsh species, plant height, and shoots per bed area. (Photo Credit: Courtesy of the researchers)

Climate change has significantly increased the amount of land burned by wildfires across the world, according to the most robust study of its kind.

New research is investigating how climate and land-use change, as well as government policies, will affect the spread of some diseases that pose a particular threat to humans, animals or plants.

Exploring how volatile organic compounds (VOCs) enhance plant defense and offer sustainable pest control solutions.

Gardens offer a steady and reliable source of nectar all year round, helping to keep pollinators fed when farmland sources are limited, researchers have discovered.

Around 12,000 years ago, the most recent ice age had ended, Earth’s climate warmed, and glaciers shrank back. 

Iron is a micronutrient indispensable for life, enabling processes such as respiration, photosynthesis, and DNA synthesis. 

Microbes in the environment, not fossil fuels, have been driving the recent surge in methane emissions globally, according to a new, detailed analysis published Oct 21 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences by CU Boulder researchers and collaborators.

The combined impact of so-called ‘forever chemicals’ is more harmful to the environment than single chemicals in isolation, a new study shows.