A new study has compared the water governance and management systems of nearly 30 river basins around the world. Results indicated that governance systems with distributed political power and good co-ordination help to implement the principles of good governance in water management practice, and to adopt more advanced climate change adaptation policies.

An earthquake that killed nine people in Lorca, Spain, last year could have been triggered by groundwater being drained from the area for use in irrigation, according to scientists. The study found that the ground moved in the same places as subsidence has been occurring since the 1960s, due to the extraction of groundwater.

Under pressure from rising food prices, many nations have begun to acquire large tracts of agricultural land in foreign countries, a practice known as ‘land grabbing’. New research has now quantified current levels of land grabbing and demonstrated that it is accompanied by concerning levels of ‘water grabbing’ which could affect water supply in the ‘grabbed’ countries.

Applying a low voltage to polluted river sediment can boost microbes’ natural ability to degrade harmful polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) contaminants, according to a new study. The approach could be a cost-effective, sustainable strategy to bioremediate polluted sites.

Food security is being threatened by loss of soil nutrients that are essential for the high yield of crops. A recent study outlines strategies to ensure the sustainable production of food through a holistic approach to soil nutrient management.

Moderate levels of nitrogen in streams and rivers can make it difficult to assess the effects of pesticides on aquatic wildlife, because nutrients mask the pesticides’ impacts, according to recent research. This highlights the importance of considering nutrient levels when developing measures to protect aquatic ecosystems.

Land use changes over the last century in the Mediterranean area may be sparking shifts in weather patterns locally, across Europe, and around the globe, suggests a new study. The findings bring to light new complexities that can be integrated into climate models and predictions.

A recent study has analysed research on implementing the Water Framework Directive (WFD) in Europe and identified a number of research gaps that could be filled. For example, some countries, such as Hungary, Romania and Slovakia, have not been well studied and more research on the experiences of such countries would build up knowledge on the implementation of the WFD across Europe.

A method for assessing urban neighbourhoods’ resilience to flooding has been presented in a recent study. The method identifies features of urban landscapes that contribute to three elements of flood resilience: resistance, absorption and recovery. In a German case study, the tool shows that the features which make a waterfront neighbourhood of Hamburg more flood resilient include high bridges, open public spaces and flood-protected basements.

A recent study helps city planners find the greenest and most effective way of producing renewable energy, crops and water on rooftops. The researchers developed a method for analysing the performance and environmental impacts of different combinations of rooftop rainwater-harvesting-, energy- and food systems. It could aid efforts to promote urban self-sufficiency and a sustainable circular economy, they suggest.

Online retailers such as Myntra and Tjori have their consumer engagement teams working on to engage their customers till the time the lockdown eases.

DDoS attacks during the first three months of this year have seen a significant spike in attacks on educational websites.

Some MNC banks may seek clarity from RBI; companies in a fix over Chinese inflow in the rights issue.

Reliance and Facebook know a friction-less payments service is key to successful online commerce — but so are mom and pop shops. JioMart and WhatsApp’s embryonic Mumbai service is intended to first get Indians accustomed to messaged transactions with local businesses known as kirana: the tiny neighborhood stores where most Indians buy daily essentials.

DDoS attacks during the first three months of this year have seen a significant spike in attacks on educational websites.

Although the value of biodiversity and ecosystem services has been recognised, it is still not fully integrated into policy-making. A new report has developed an action plan that recommends that governments create a 'Natural Capital' minister in the Finance Ministry, develop a set of Natural Capital Accounts and form an inter-departmental committee to oversee programmes in this area.

Researchers have recommended new, improved ways of increasing the ecological value of European grasslands. Plant diversity ??? or species richness ??? can be increased by a factor of three through sowing grass and wildflower seed mixtures, together with a carefully controlled plan for animal grazing.

Crop pollination is a vital ecosystem service, yet the numbers of animal pollinator species, such as bees, are in decline. Now, a team of German and American researchers have demonstrated how crops that provide the highest levels of vitamins and minerals essential to our diet globally depend heavily on animals for pollination.

The drying of soils under global warming could disrupt the balance of nutrients in large areas of the Earth's land surface, according to new research. The study focused on ‘drylands' – arid areas with low levels of rainfall – which support over 38%% of the world's population. Such nutrient imbalances could diminish the provision of ecosystem services, such as food production and carbon storage, the researchers say.

Policies to manage marine ecological quality can be improved by combining economic and ecological concerns, finds a new study. Using this integrated perspective, researchers developed a model which identified the most cost-effective options for reducing nutrient pollution in the Baltic Sea within a 40-year time-span. The total cost of meeting the commonly agreed targets is estimated to be €1,487 million annually.

Increased soil biodiversity can reduce nitrogen pollution, improve nutrient uptake by plants and even increase crop yields, new research suggests. The two-year study found that levels of nitrogen leaching from soil with an abundant soil life were nearly 25% lower than for soil with a reduced level of soil life. Practices which enhance soil biodiversity such as reduced tilling, crop rotation and organic farming may therefore help reduce the environmental impacts of fertilisers and improve agricultural sustainability, the researchers say.

Assessing threats to biodiversity is necessary for effective spatial planning and balancing sustainable development with conservation. This study details a fine-scale assessment of the effect of a range of threats to coastline habitats within a Marine Protected Area (MPA) in the Mediterranean Sea. The study provides an example of how local-scale assessments can contribute to national conservation policy.

The risk of alien species introduction via trade in plants is higher if the plants are from poorly regulated countries with high forest cover, calculates a recent study. For introductions via the vehicle and timber trades, the risk is higher if the exporting country is politically unstable. These findings could help border controls focus their surveillance efforts on imports from countries with risky socioeconomic profiles.

Woody networks in agricultural landscapes are known to harbour high intrinsic biodiversity (i.e. diversity of plant species) and functional biodiversity (i.e. ecosystem services that arise from biodiversity). In order to clarify the drivers of intrinsic and functional biodiversity in woody networks, researchers analysed the plant species diversity, pollinator resource value (PRV), and potential edibility value (PEV) of a woody network in northern Belgium. The analysis confirmed that woody elements are a rich source of intrinsic and functional biodiversity and identified several important drivers. From a policy perspective, this research highlights the value of protecting existing woody elements and thoughtfully designing and locating new ones to maximise intrinsic and functional biodiversity in the countryside.

Energy demand is on the rise globally, and this is predicted to continue in coming decades. Increasing energy production to meet this demand requires materials — both metals and non-metal minerals — from a number of countries. As some materials are in short supply, it is important to consider material dependency and availability when developing national energy plans for the future. This study is the first to address material dependency effects on a nation’s energy development plans, with the UK and Turkey as case studies.

Wildfires are projected to become an increasingly common occurrence and are a major driver of habitat disturbance, yet little research to date has examined how the relationship between fire and landscape attributes affects large carnivores, such as the grey wolf (Canis lupus). The results of this study suggest that wolves are remarkably resilient to fire, persisting and breeding in a human-dominated landscape even under intensive fire regimes. However, burnt landscapes may induce higher exposure to human disturbance and persecution due to limited refuge conditions.

Working with text in MATLAB has evolved over time. Way back, text data was stored in double arrays with an internal flag to denote that it was meant to be text. We then transformed this representation so character arrays were their very own type. And I mentioned earlier that we introduced a string datatype to make working with text data more efficient and natural. Let me show you a little more.... read more >>

EU pesticide regulations have encouraged farmers in developing countries to adopt alternative pest management practices and employ safer means of handling pesticides, according to a recent study which investigated green bean farming in Kenya.

Nanoparticles (NPs) have unique physical and chemical properties, but their increasing use in technological innovations has raised concerns about possible risks to the environment and human health. A new Chinese study has assessed the effects of NPs on plants and ecosystems. The findings indicated that NPs restrict wheat growth and damage soil ecosystems, which may have implications for the environment, agricultural productivity and human health.

A new review of the anti-microbial substance triclosan argues that past risk assessments have underestimated its toxicity to aquatic organisms. New data from Germany suggest that aquatic organisms are frequently overexposed to damaging levels of triclosan in waterways, and the researchers suggest it could be restricted under EU legislation.

Applying a low voltage to polluted river sediment can boost microbes’ natural ability to degrade harmful polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) contaminants, according to a new study. The approach could be a cost-effective, sustainable strategy to bioremediate polluted sites.

Nutrient pollution in The Netherlands is falling as a result of national and EU policies, new research has shown. However, many waters still routinely fail to meet environmental quality standards. The study, which focused on the headwaters of 167 rivers where agricultural fertilisers are the main cause of pollution, showed that up to 76% of these did not meet water quality standards.

Ocean acidification and eutrophication may affect the growth of microscopic algae - phytoplankton - with knock-on impacts for marine food chains and fisheries, warns a new study. By growing phytoplankton under different scenarios the researchers found that phytoplankton species are affected differently according to the acidity and nutrient content of the water.

Natura 2000 sites may not be adequately protected in Eastern Europe, according to a recent publication. Researchers in the Czech Republic found that, despite being designated as a Natura 2000 site, environmentally damaging activities continued in the Šumava National Park. They recommend that good environmental education is needed to help post-communist countries implement Natura 2000 and better recognise its value and importance.

Nutrient leaching, the movement of plant nutrients from soil to water, can have negative effects on aquatic ecosystems due to eutrophication, which reduces the oxygen available in water, causing species and habitat loss. Ecological Recycling Agriculture (ERA), which is based on ecological principles and integrates crop production and animal husbandry, may limit this effect. This study investigated the impact of ERA on agricultural fields in Finland, showing that the practice can reduce nitrogen leaching and may help to achieve agricultural nitrogen-reduction targets.

Active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) — responsible for the biological activity of drugs — have been widely found in the environment, yet the precise sources and relative importance of emissions via wastewater are not quite clear. This study assessed emissions from three health institutions in Germany — a hospital, a psychiatric hospital, and a nursing home — and found their contribution was low compared to that from households. However, more research is needed to understand the environmental effects of neurological drugs, emissions of which were in some cases relatively high.

Researchers have recommended that fish from some sections of the River Po and the River Lambro, one of the Italian River Po tributaries, should not be eaten due to high levels of some endocrine-disrupting chemicals in the river sediments and fish. This recommendation is based on an extensive update regarding pollution levels of such substances in the rivers.

Silver nanoparticles are used in a range of household products. This study investigated the risk to plants of these nanoparticles in soil, showing that risk was overall low but increased when soils contained high levels of chlorine. The researchers, therefore, suggest that the risk of silver nanoparticles to plants may increase in salty soils or those irrigated with poor-quality water. These findings could be important for future risk assessments.

The presence and accumulation of micropollutants1 (anthropogenic trace contaminants) in aquatic environments is an area of policy concern for the EU. In order to better understand how these chemicals enter and are transported within water systems, this study investigated the occurrence and concentration of a broad spectrum of micropollutants across Austria’s water system. Municipal waste-water effluents were found to be the emission pathway with the highest concentrations of some micropollutants. The study also demonstrated that levels of other micropollutants are higher in rivers, atmospheric deposition and groundwater than in waste-water effluents and that these sometimes exceeded environmental quality standards for surface waters.

Today I will show you how I plotted this treble clef symbol in MATLAB:... read more >>

I like to think of geometric transformations of images (stretching, shrinking, rotating, etc.) by starting with the geometric transformations of points. You could think of a geometric point transformation as just moving a point from one location to another, like this:... read more >>

A recent analysis of indoor industrial air pollutants could be useful for implementing REACH (Registration, Evaluation and Authorisation of Chemicals). Implementation of REACH should be based on sound analytical methods and targeting of priority chemicals, according to the researchers.

A recent study has compared the impact of future power generated from large, central stations with power generated from smaller distributed generators (DG) in California on air quality. It concluded that although DG produces more emissions, its impact on air quality is likely to be smaller than central power stations due to complex interactions between air chemistry and transport.

Environmental policy makers increasingly rely on computer models to test traffic policies. Researchers have investigated the impact of reducing speed limits on traffic emissions using two different models, but the models produced some contradictory results. The researchers therefore warn policy makers to interpret model results very carefully and to avoid relying on simple 'macroscopic' models.

Predicting the effects of changing levels of atmospheric gases on agricultural crops is vital to ensuring food security under global environmental change. As well as yield, impacts on the nutritional value of crops must be considered. A new study has now shown that increased ozone decreases yields and increases the proportion of protein in the grain. Conversly, elevated levels of CO2 boosts wheat yields, but it also reduces protein proportion in two different ways.

Industrial emissions of black carbon were responsible for the retreat of the glaciers in the European Alps that marked the end of the so-called ‘Little Ice Age’, according to a new study. The researchers explain how black carbon deposits could have caused glaciers to melt more rapidly from the mid-19th century and suggest that human activities were already having a visible influence on the climate before the effects of carbon dioxide were evident.

Emissions of the greenhouse gases (GHGs) tetrafluoromethane (TFM) and hexafluoroethane (HFE) reported by industry accounted for only around half actual levels measured in the atmosphere between 2002 and 2010, new research reveals. The semiconductor and aluminium production industries, the two main sources of these gases, have reported success in their voluntary efforts to control these emissions. However, this does not match ‘top-down’ atmospheric monitoring, the researchers say.

A new study quantifies the economic and environmental potential of powering docked ships in European ports using local electricity networks. The authors give key recommendations on policy actions to enable implementation in European harbours.

Health impact assessments (HIAs) provide information on the potential health impacts of policies, and are important for developing regulation on air pollution. In this study, researchers evaluated the metrics currently used in air quality HIAs to provide recommendations for their use in policy.

European buildings built in the 1950s, 60s and 70s may contribute towards levels of toxins in the body, a new study suggests. Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) were found at elevated levels in children that lived in houses and studied in schools built during this period, before PCBs were more thoroughly regulated in the construction industry. Although food is generally a more concentrated source of these toxins, the authors say exposure through these environments should be minimised wherever possible.