The costs and benefits of sustainable land management have been collated in a new review. Data from a global archive was analysed for the costs of sustainable practices and technologies and for land users’ perceptions of cost–benefit ratios. Most respondents had a positive view of the short-term cost-benefit ratio, and a strongly positive view of the long term. Low upfront costs, long-term planning and security of land tenure were identified as important factors to facilitate these practices.

The factors enabling eco-innovation have been analysed across 19 European countries in a new study. Regulations and environmental subsidies were found to be more important factors in Eastern Europe than in wealthier Western European countries. External research and development (R&D) was also more relevant in Eastern Europe, demonstrating the need for specific technology transfers from other countries and competitors.

A recent study has analysed risks to European renewable industries from the Chinese supply of critical raw materials. The offshore wind sector was found to be the most vulnerable of the renewable industries to supply risks. EU and industry strategies should be able to deal with these supply risks in the short term, but there are potential long-term risks to solar and wind sectors. The development of alternative technologies less reliant on these raw materials, and methods to recycle these materials is, therefore, a priority.

Researchers have developed a methodology that allows the analysis of how an existing product design meets design guidelines required for the circular-economy perspective, and which guidelines would need to be incorporated to create a better circular-design product. The results, based on a case study of small electrical equipment in Spain, indicate that the most urgent priority is to incorporate circular-design guidelines related to extending life span and to product/components re-use, while there is a moderate need to include guidelines related to the use of simple removable connections or a modular product structure.

To support the move towards a circular economy, in which resources are kept in use for as long as possible to minimise waste, there is great potential for the bioeconomy — those parts of the economy linked to the use of renewable biological resources — to adopt innovative business models and practices, says a new study. However, the study found that bioeconomy businesses instead perceive the circular economy in terms of well-established practices, such as recycling.

It is possible to design long-term coastal defence strategies that can be adapted to a range of potential climate change impacts, if prevention measures are considered over larger rather than smaller coastal scales, according to recent research.

Maintaining and restoring the world's drylands or arid zones could provide a win-win option for addressing climate change, according to new research. Drylands not only store large amounts of carbon, but improving how they are managed could reduce the vulnerability of ecosystems and humans.

Environmental impact studies which are conducted early on in the development of wave and tidal-power schemes allow the schemes' technology to be adapted to consider their impacts on marine ecosystems, according to a recent study which reports on a Swedish research wave park.

The thinning of Iceland’s ice caps could be influencing volcanic activity, according to new research. The study developed a model to predict the changes in pressure on magma caused by thinning ice and applied it to the recent activity of two Icelandic volcanoes. The results suggest that the effects of thinning ice may increase volcanic activity in some cases, but reduce it in others.

Continuing economic development and public health measures are likely to outweigh the impact of climate change on malaria prevalence, according to new research. The research found that the prevalence of malaria has declined over the past century despite rising temperatures.

Tiny organisms called phytoplankton, which are crucial components of marine ecosystems, have been slowly disappearing over the last century, according to researchers. The decline is worrying because it may have profound effects on marine life, fisheries and carbon cycling. The study suggests the decline in phytoplankton could be linked to climate change.

A recent study has evaluated the economic and environmental merits of different designs of coal-fired power plants, all with carbon capture and storage (CCS), to replace an old power station in Germany. An integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) plant with pre-combustion CO2 capture was found to offer the best profit for plant operators and significantly lower the life cycle emissions of CO2.

Scientists have calculated carbon budgets for croplands in Europe, based on field measurements from nine sites across Europe. They found that significant soil carbon losses occurred from cropping even though some farmers used measures to enhance carbon-sequestration. These results may challenge findings from some other modelling studies if they turn out to be typical for all EU croplands.

Land cleared in the tropics loses nearly twice as much carbon and produces less than half the annual crop yield as land in temperate zones, according to researchers. Their analysis of the trade-off between crop production and the loss of carbon stored in vegetation highlights the need to target reforestation in the tropics.

By 2080, parts of Germany could be susceptible to the spread of malaria for up to six months a year, according to new research. The study mapped areas at risk of an outbreak, considering predicted climate change-driven rise in air temperature and data on the spread of malaria.

A new study has combined measurements of carbon dioxide (CO2) fluxes with estimates of other greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from farming operations for 15 European crop sites over several years. It estimated that the sites lost on average 138g of carbon per m2 per year. The total GHG balance (including non-CO2 emissions) was equivalent to an average carbon loss of 203g of carbon per m2 per year.

Rising levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) is likely to cause some soils to release large quantities of two potent greenhouse gases (GHGs), nitrous oxide and methane, according to a recent analysis. The results suggest that the contribution of soils and terrestrial ecosystems to slow climate change has been overestimated.

A recent study has projected changes in the spread of malaria caused by climate change and climate variability in Africa by including the effect of variations in land use on local climate. It concludes that the risk of malaria epidemics is likely to shift from the north to the south of the Sahel, and to highland areas previously free of the disease.

The majority of respondents to a UK survey would like to see labels explaining the carbon footprint of the food they buy. 72% of the supermarket shoppers questioned were in favour of carbon labels on food. The survey also found that 42% had changed their shopping habits in the last 10 years in response to environmental concerns.

A recent study has highlighted the potential of one form of solar power, Concentrating Solar Power (CSP), to make a significant contribution to meeting future electricity demands from renewable sources in Europe.

Concerns about the negative impacts of ‘sunshade’ geoengineering on global food security are not supported by a recent modelling study, the first to simulate yield changes in a geoengineered climate. However, to mitigate climate change, the researchers suggest actions to reduce CO2 emissions are safer than introducing geoengineering projects, partly because some regions may actually suffer reduced crop yield in a geoengineered climate.

Wildfires could release up to nine times more stored carbon from drained peatland at high latitudes than from untouched peatland in the same region, according to a recent study. As climate change is expected to both dry out peatland and increase the frequency of wildfires, the results have serious implications for the role of northern peatlands as carbon sinks or sources.

Despite Atlantic cod and haddock extending further into Arctic waters, a new study reveals there is little competition for food between the invaders and native polar cod. However, it is uncertain whether climate change will increase competition between the species as range expansion of the Atlantic species progresses.

Researchers have demonstrated that hatching in polar cod can begin as early as January in Arctic seas that receive large freshwater input, compared to April-July in seas with little freshwater input. Since early hatching leads to higher survival rates, the effects of climate change may enhance polar cod’s survival by favouring conditions that allow winter hatching to occur.

Scientists have found that retreating glaciers and melting permafrost in Alaska are releasing up to 70% more methane – a potent greenhouse gas – than previously thought. If this estimate is true for the rest of the Arctic, this could have serious implications for global warming, say the scientists.

Climate change is likely to exacerbate the urban heat island (UHI) effect. A new study has therefore examined possible climate change adaptation measures that can alleviate the UHI effect and illustrated how these strategies can be practically applied. While the study provides real-life examples to demonstrate how the measures can be used, it does not include any quantitative assessment of their impacts.

Grasses growing at the bottom of our oceans lock away large quantities of ‘blue carbon’, according to a new study. The results suggest that the soil that seagrass grows on is capable of storing more carbon than soils on land and as a result of the current global decline in seagrass, vast stores of carbon may be being released into the ocean and atmosphere.

Green spaces in cities can have a cooling influence which helps reduce the ‘urban heat island effect’. New research from Portugal has demonstrated that even a small community garden can provide a significant cooling impact that can help efforts to adapt to climate change.

Climate change is a particular threat to island nations and effective adaptation is vital. A new analysis examines current adaptation measures in tropical Oceania and identifies guidelines for implementing resilient, ecosystem-based adaptation (EbA). Among its recommendations, local communities should be fully involved in planning adaptation measures.

Coastal wetlands can substantially reduce erosion, property damage and human deaths in the face of rising sea levels and severe storms, recent research concludes. Understanding whether wetlands can provide effective coastal protection is essential to developing effective climate change adaptation strategies.

The ecological impacts of micro wind turbines (up to 50 kW) are treated in a diverse way by different local authorities in the UK during the planning approval process, research suggests. The study calls for ecologists, policymakers, planners and industry representatives to improve the integration of ecological information within planning, and for greater guidance for local authorities on the ecological considerations of micro-turbines.

Greenland’s four major glaciers could contribute 19 to 30 mm to sea level rise by 2200, according to a new study. The researchers developed a sophisticated model which provides new insight into the effects of climate change on Greenland’s glaciers, by capturing the complex processes involved in their movement and melt.

Noise caused by construction of Germany’s first offshore wind farm caused significant habitat disturbance for harbour porpoises, according to a recent study. Its results suggest that porpoises avoided areas up to 20 kilometres from the noise source during construction of the wind farm’s foundations.

Agricultural intensification can significantly affect soil ecosystems and the services they provide, new research suggests. Examining soils across Europe, the study demonstrates that high intensity arable land uses have lower diversity and biomass of soil organisms than lower intensity arable or permanent grassland, affecting the carbon and nitrogen cycles in the environment.

Despite the substantial impacts warming and drought can have on soil bacteria and fungi, these are not sustained if external conditions re-stabilise, a new study suggests. Small-scale experiements in five countries across Europe to show that even if warming and droughts continued for over a decade, there were no lasting effects on key properties of soils, such as growth rates, when the soils were allowed to re-stabilise in a laboratory over seven days.

The largest ice sheet in the world, the east Antarctic ice sheet, may succumb to climate change faster than thought, according to recent research. Warming ocean currents, triggered by shifting wind patterns, could accelerate melting of the ice sheet, leading to a rise in sea levels, say the researchers.

Climate change, tourism and population growth are all accelerating land degradation in the Mediterranean region, according to recent research. This can have severe impacts: the amount of available agricultural land per capita in the region could have dropped by half by 2020, compared with 1961, the study estimates. This article was updated 6.11.14 to correct an error in the valuation of ecosystem services provided by Mediterranean coastal wetlands.

Despite their general absence from climate policy discussions, the world’s mountain grasslands and shrublands (MGSs) store between 60.5 and 82.8 billion metric tonnes of carbon, a new study estimates - more than three times that of ocean and coastal ecosystems. This research, which is the first to provide a global inventory of carbon stored in MGSs, argues that these ecosystems should be accounted for in climate policy.

New areas of land suitable for agriculture will open up under climate change’s effects, new research predicts, particularly in far northern regions of the world. However, the overall quality of land for farming will decline and many regions, including Europe, could lose large areas of suitable land.

Marine biodiversity conservation in the north-east Atlantic needs a combination of more adaptable management strategies and international co-operation, a new study says. This is required to deal with a potential increase in marine conservation hotspots under climate change.

The damaging effects of sea-level rise on Black Sea beaches have been estimated in a new study. Diminishing river sediment supply caused by river dams is also an erosion threat. These new results suggest that erosion could cause over 90% of these beaches to retreat by at least 20% of their width. A publicly available database created by the researchers could be useful for developing coastal protection schemes.

Driven by trade, the spread of alien species is increasing worldwide. This study combined 60 years of trade data with that on biodiversity and climate to model the spread of plant species across 147 countries. The model predicts significant increases in plant invasions in the next 20 years, especially for emerging economies. The authors say trade legislation must consider biological invasion and focus on regions at high risk.

Soil and plants store around 5% of the world’s carbon, but carbon storage in some soils is in decline. Recent research has found that climate change accounted for 9–22% of carbon declines in organic soils in semi-natural habitats throughout England and Wales from 1978–2003. The researchers say monitoring soils rich in carbon should be a priority to ensure that more carbon is not released to reinforce climate change.

Glaciers are sensitive indicators of climate change. This study focused on hanging glaciers in the French Alps, where warming is increasing the risk of glaciers collapsing. The authors applied a state-of-the-art numerical model to a particularly hazardous glacier in Mont Blanc to simulate how it will respond to climate change. The results suggest the glacier may become unstable in the current century, posing a risk to the inhabitants of the valley below.

The solar energy market is hampered by multiple barriers to adoption in the EU and worldwide, according to a new review. Researchers from Sweden and Spain found that lack of government commitment as well as various sociotechnical, management and economic barriers prevent photovoltaic technologies from being more readily adopted.

There is a large potential to improve the global efficiency of energy, land and phosphorus use, finds new research which modelled the effects of four worldwide scenarios between 2010 and 2050. An ‘ambitious resource strategy’ could moderate the increases in energy use (+25% globally instead of +80% in the baseline scenario), phosphorus use (+9% instead of +40%) and arable land (-9% globally, instead of + 4%).

Waves hitting Europe’s Atlantic coast during the winter of 2013–2014 were the most powerful in nearly 70 years, reports a new study. They caused significant coastal erosion and the study found examples of beaches which are now several metres lower. The study’s authors say that coastal planners should consider increasingly stormy conditions in the north-east Atlantic, as predicted by some climate change models.

Huge amounts of soil carbon have been discovered up to 1 metre below grassland in a recent UK study. Yet most carbon inventories do not assess soil deeper than 30cm. Furthermore, this research suggests that intensive management of grassland, involving high rates of fertiliser use and livestock grazing, may deplete carbon at these depths.

Floods are devastating natural hazards, which can cause loss of life and substantial damage to buildings and other infrastructure. Assessing future flood risk is complicated by the influence of climate change, land-use change and economic development in an area. A study on an Alpine valley suggests that land- use change and urbanisation will affect future flood risk by 2030 more than climate change, but risks can be reduced by adopting low-cost adaptation strategies, such as building restrictions in flood-prone areas and residents taking their own precautions against flooding.

Researchers have proposed a global roadmap for decarbonisation over the coming decades. The roadmap is based on the idea of a simple heuristic, described by the researchers as ‘carbon law’, of halving carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions every decade from 2020 to 2050. The researchers say that, if combined with the development of new technologies and efforts to reduce CO2 emissions from land use, this target could lead to a carbon-neutral global economy by 2050.