It's World Water Day! This year's theme: Valuing Water.
********************************************************************************************
Do you know of a colleague and/or student who would be interested in receiving these Bulletin Board listings? Please forward this to them. A quick email to Geosciences-BBoard@att.net with the word “subscribe” in the subject line and the email address will be added to the weekly distribution. ********************************************************************************************
Here are Elaine's BBs as a PDF and a Word document:
Word: Download Bulletin_boards_22march2021
PDF: Download Bulletin_boards_22march2021
Note: If a link does not work, try pasting the URL into your browser.
Check out Elaine's coronavirus/COVID-19 section in the Environmental Science Bulletin Board.
Geoscience Bulletin Board – 22 March – compiled by Elaine J. Hanford
Pacific Ocean cooled faster than continent of Africa due to plate tectonics over past 400 million years
World Meteorological Organization considering redefining length of hurricane season
- https://www.yahoo.com/news/assumptions-hurricane-season-face-winds-151500599.html
- https://www.khou.com/article/weather/severe-weather/you-could-hear-about-tropical-activity-earlier-this-year-due-to-a-change-at-the-national-hurricane-center/285-9d4e9f20-344b-4670-bb47-d08bb07f7970
NWS releases names of storms for Hurricane Season 2021
Measuring geothermal heat flux in Antarctica
Dense seismic network in operation in seismically active Himalayan regions
CRUTEMS - New land surface air temperature global data set updated to 2019
- https://eos.org/editor-highlights/new-land-surface-air-temperature-global-dataset
- Paper: https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/2019JD032352
Seafloor sediment proxy yields high-resolution record of early Paleozoic climate
Newest version of Community Earth System Model
Sea cucumbers provide significant excremental contribution to reef habitats with bioturbation rates
Diatoms evolved to substitute zinc for cadmium and vice-versa
Angstrom-scale view of physical and chemical weathering processes
Ground radiant temperatures increase prior to volcanic eruptions
Visualizing gold exploration potential in the Pacific Ring of Fire & in Québec, Canada
• https://www.visualcapitalist.com/erupting-gold-exploration-potential-the-pacific-ring-of-fire/
• https://www.visualcapitalist.com/gold-exploration-quebec-cartier-benoist/
Visualizing the drainage basins of the 30 longest rivers
Massive dust storm hits across China
- https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/148052/early-season-dust-storm-hits-beijing
- https://www.npr.org/2021/03/15/977397941/desert-dust-sweeps-into-beijing-causing-chinas-worst-sandstorm-in-10-years
Large fast-moving asteroid 2001 FO32 will pass by Earth on the Spring Equinox
NASA using Navajo language to name features & rocks on Mars
Understanding reversals of the magnetic field of Earth
Pressure accumulated over a decade triggered eruption of Kilauea
- https://www.nsf.gov/discoveries/disc_summ.jsp?cntn_id=302313&org=GEO&from=news
- Paper: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-020-19190-1
Arctic freshwater affecting marine environments & currents in Atlantic Ocean
- https://www.nsf.gov/discoveries/disc_summ.jsp?cntn_id=302312&org=GEO&from=news
- Paper: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-021-21470-3
Camp Century ice core from Greenland reveals million-year-old plant fossils
Late Pleistocene glaciers & enigmatic stone stripes in the highlands of Ethiopia
- https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/03/210312155451.htm
- Paper: https://advances.sciencemag.org/content/7/11/eabb6826
New insight into formation of copper deposits – crystal mush kikes at Yerington, Nevada
- https://phys.org/news/2021-03-insight-formation-copper-deposits.html
- Paper: https://www.nature.com/articles/s43247-021-00128-4
Imagining into ferro-volcanism
- https://phys.org/news/2021-03-volcanoes-metal.html
- Paper: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-021-21582-w
Transform faults play active role in shaping ocean floor – extension & crustal accretion
Responses of biocrusts in arid regions to warming & drought
Quantifying movement of water from rivers to aquifers across the country – gradient driven
Latest cycle of geothermal exploration in Nevada – this time using UAV magnetometry
Human-caused most-powerful non-nuclear explosion of ammonium nitrate in Beirut created atmospheric wave that led to electron disturbances in ionosphere
- https://phys.org/news/2021-03-blast-shook-ionosphere.html
- Paper: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-021-82355-5
Ocean trawling destroys seafloor & releases massive amounts of emissions from marine sediments
Deep-sea buoys trigger tsunami warnings
About 125,000 years ago during last interglacial Greenland was green and lush
Geologist calls for exploration of “elephant country” in South Africa
Still debating “the golden spike” that defines beginning of the Anthropocene – maybe they should recognize it began at the beginning of the Holocene
Meandering rivers create point bars
“river of rocks” influencing tectonic activity in the Caribbean – low-viscosity asthenosphere flow
- https://phys.org/news/2021-03-geologists-powerful-river-caribbean.html
- Paper: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-021-21723-1
Armored mud balls in Franklin County, Massachusetts
Book Review: “Notes from Deep Time”
The origins of the largest aquamarine crystal
Traces of primordial magma found in rocks in Greenland
- https://www.iflscience.com/environment/traces-of-the-primordial-magma-ocean-found-for-the-first-time/
- Paper: https://advances.sciencemag.org/content/7/11/eabc7394
PEACH is 5-year project to monitor the Gulf Stream off Cape Hatteras – 10-minute video
Benthic habitats & communities of islands & seamounts of Nazca Desventuradas Marine Park
Stratus Ocean Reference Station buoy launched in tropical Pacific
After 6,000 years of dormancy, Mount Fagradalsfjall erupts in Iceland
Exploring the plumbing of Steamboat Geyser
- https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/03/210315160708.htm
- https://www.ksl.com/article/50127248/yellowstones-steamboat-geyser-much-deeper-than-old-faithful-researchers-say-but-still-a-science-mystery
Even before the Brunt Ice Shelf calved, the ocean floor was teeming with life
Environmental Science Bulletin Board – 22 March – compiled by Elaine J. Hanford
World Water Day – 22 March 2021 – images of polluted waters around the world
CRISPR - regulation, public trust and question of ethics regarding gene editing – “model embryo”
- https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-00672-1
- https://www.smh.com.au/national/scientists-create-model-embryos-in-lab-raising-major-ethical-questions-20210317-p57bkc.html
- https://www.smh.com.au/national/australia-s-embryo-research-laws-face-strain-after-monash-breakthrough-20210318-p57c0s.html
US Dept of Interior announces details for public forum on federal O&G program
Webinar: Quantifying Ecosystem Functions to Facilitate Wetland Monitoring & Assessment
No such thing as a “natural disaster” – we’re doing it to ourselves
Permanent daylight savings time would reduce human health risks – Sunshine Protection Act of 2021
- https://www.yahoo.com/news/daylight-saving-time-ends-sunday-185500890.html
- https://www.timeanddate.com/time/dst/daylight-saving-health.html
K2 Gold mining company wants to transform 22,500 acres of public lands into open pit cyanide heap leach mine between dusty Owens Valley floor and Death Valley National Monument
Influx of firefly tourists is harming the species along with habitat loss, light pollution & insecticides
- https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/firefly-tourism-has-a-surprising-dark-side/ar-BB1eB9xm
- https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/csp2.391
Intense sand storm turns skies orange in Beijing, China
Outflow from Glen Canyon Dam will drop to 4,000 cfs – about one-third average release rate
15 countries with highest per capita carbon emissions – if that matters
Gas prices at the pump are significantly increasing
Strong winds are churning up deep water in the Great Lakes – impacting water quality
Drinking water crisis in Jackson, Mississippi
- https://www.clarionledger.com/story/news/2021/03/07/more-communities-helping-jackson-mississippi-water-crisis-continues/4619598001/
- https://news.yahoo.com/crumbling-infrastructure-leaves-water-buckets-100058315.html
- https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/14/us/jackson-mississippi-boil-water-tests-winter-storms/index.html
Soil erosion is a problem at solar farms
Bad policies proposed in the CLEAN Future Act
- https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/biden-s-climate-rhetoric-doesn-t-excuse-bad-policy/ar-BB1eBElz
- CFA hype: https://energycommerce.house.gov/newsroom/press-releases/ec-leaders-introduce-the-clean-future-act-comprehensive-legislation-to
- HR 981-page Bill: https://energycommerce.house.gov/sites/democrats.energycommerce.house.gov/files/documents/CFA%20Bill%20Text%202021.pdf
You are what you eat – but what fish are you really eating?
- https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/bait-and-switch-fish-fraud-rampant-worldwide-new-study-shows/ar-BB1eCfX7
- https://sustainablefisheries-uw.org/sustainability-mislabeled-fish-usa/
Tourists get upset when lion kills wild dog – guess we better go kill all the lions for being territorial
Book Review: “Under a White Sky” – can engineers fix the environmental problems they created?
FEMA grants for flood-prone areas not being used because of the financial strings that are attached (cost-sharing)
US Forest Service to receive $285M for maintenance & recreation infrastructure on national forests & grasslands under Great American Outdoors Act
UN report “Making Peace with Nature” urges valuing the fundamental “natural capital”
- https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/a-new-un-report-proposes-a-radical-shift-in-the-way-we-think-about-nature/ar-BB1dOknw
- UN Report: https://www.unep.org/resources/making-peace-nature
$98M solar farm proposed for Louisiana
Wanting clarification of “policy” on conservation goals – especially in Western states
US Army COE says Detroit Dam in Oregon could fail during seismic event
China to crackdown on sand mining in Yangtze River
Attempting to battle Chronic Wasting Disease in white-tailed deer in Ohio
American High-Speed Rail Act proposes $205B introduced into Congress – despite other projects that have not yet succeeded
New River Gorge in West Virginia is most recently designated National Park – but geology is ancient
- https://eos.org/features/the-new-river-gorge-ancient-river-old-mines-new-national-park
- National Park Service info: https://www.nps.gov/neri/index.htm
Visualizing “green energy” investments – lots of hype but still only 11% of energy output
- https://www.visualcapitalist.com/capturing-the-renewable-energy-shift/
- US EIA: https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/us-energy-facts/
Exploring Ivvavik National Park in Arctic Canada
- https://www.nationalparkstraveler.org/2021/03/exploring-canadas-most-accessible-arctic-national-park
Two excerpts from “The Monsanto Papers” which chronicles life of exposure to Roundup herbicides
- Part 1: https://www.ehn.org/monsanto-papers-2650517822.html
- Part 2: https://www.ehn.org/monsanto-papers-book-2650597124.html
Previously unknown bacterial species found on ISS
- http://www.sci-news.com/biology/methylobacterium-international-space-station-09458.html
- Paper: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2021.639396/full
Air pollution levels in 2020 exceeded WHO recommendations for small particulate matter
Development continues to cause urban flooding
Recent summer droughts in Europe repeating conditions of a few thousand years ago
Humans live in chemical soup – newly detected chemicals include 55 never reported & 42 “mystery chemicals” found in residents of San Francisco, California
- https://phys.org/news/2021-03-evidence-chemicals-people.html
- https://www.ucsf.edu/news/2021/03/420061/ucsf-study-finds-evidence-55-chemicals-never-reported-people
Perspective: the 30x30 campaign – “protecting” the ocean from people
Dem blocks effort to adjust flood insurance rates – adjustment would more accurately reflect risks, reduce vulnerability & discourage construction in high-risk areas
States sue to overturn “illegal” government action to stop Keystone XL Pipeline
Endangered birds losing their songs & cannot find mates
- https://www.zmescience.com/science/this-endangered-bird-is-losing-its-song/
- https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-56417544
March 2020 M5.7M earthquake in Utah – “no one is coming to save you”
Advanced nuclear reactors are not safer than conventional plants
Dams in Hawaii that date to the sugar cane plantations need repair or removal
Lessons to be learned from millennia of history of the Nile River - adapt
Legal battle over 115-year-old Truckee Canal – to line or not to line – municipal water supply & water rights
Lake in SW Turkey is turquoise from heavy metal pollutants from Yatagan power plant
Plague of mice hits rural eastern Australia
- https://www.reuters.com/article/us-australia-mice-idUSKBN2BB0VX
- https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/australasia/australia-mice-plague-farmers-harvest-b1819574.html
- https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2021/mar/03/are-poison-packed-drones-the-answer-to-eastern-australias-mouse-plague
CRS Report: US Energy in 21st Century – a primer
Lazarus taxon - video
CORONAVIRUS
Coronavirus COVID-19 statistics by country (click on USA to get State statistics)
- https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/
- https://time.com/5800901/coronavirus-map/
- interactive maps: https://geodacenter.github.io/covid/map.html
Pandemic now impacting demographics – with 7.8+B people on the planet that may not be a bad thing
News media finally realizing Florida pandemic response was a good one
Fauci backed study that found 3-foot as good as 6-foot social distancing – but debate continues
- https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/fauci-backed-a-study-that-found-3-foot-social-distancing-in-schools-was-as-good-as-the-recommended-6-feet-at-stopping-the-spread-of-covid-19/ar-BB1eBB2b
- Paper: https://academic.oup.com/cid/advance-article/doi/10.1093/cid/ciab230/6167856
- https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/03/study-finds-3-ft-distancing-in-schools-is-enough-but-debate-is-far-from-over/
Understanding VAERS
Perspective: Preparing for the next pandemic – will it truly be a deep dive into failures of the pandemic? Or the antibiotic resistance now being nurtured by human activity? Or re-emerging disease?
- https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-021-01291-z
- https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-021-01264-2
- https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-021-01237-5
Italy seizes 400K doses of AZ vaccine after man dies hours after receiving shot
It is time to restore our freedom rather than further attempts at compliance and control
Questioning reports of vaccine efficacy – more data needed along with transparency & access to raw data
AZ vaccine halted in Europe after link to deadly blood clots – resumed after determination that the benefits outweigh the risks
Herd mentality reflects concerns for AZ vaccine – blood clots & fatalities in Europe
Coastal Zone Management Bulletin Board – 22 March – compiled by Elaine J. Hanford
Residents on Outer Banks may face 50% increase in taxes to “protect” coastal property
• https://www.yahoo.com/news/tiny-town-big-decision-willing-121315761.html
Environmental group objects to Mumbai coastal road clearance
Proposal to increase Louisiana share of offshore O&G revenue and for wind energy
• https://www.nola.com/news/environment/article_0c2320e6-82a5-11eb-92f3-533f128ba00b.html
Dispute between Somalia & Kenya over stretch of Indian Ocean believed to hold O&G deposits
• https://www.africadaily.net/reports/Sea_of_troubles_The_Somalia-Kenya_marine_border_spat_999.html
• https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/kenya/article/2001406589/kenya-will-lose-lamu-if-somaliawins-case
• https://www.modernghana.com/news/1068137/kenya-v-somalia-maritime-dispute-thedifficult.html
Manatee County considering rolling back some regulations for development in coastal areas vulnerable to flooding & storm surge
New market report on Territorial Border and Coastal Surveillance System Industry
Call for Congressional action to keep coastal waters free from sewage
Computer modeling suggests coastal wastewater infrastructure (sewer lines & cesspools) may flood
• https://www.hawaii.edu/news/2021/03/14/wastewater-leakage-coast-water/
California Coastal Commission unanimously rejected appeal of Riverfront Project
Surigao del Sur coastal road bypass may be beneficial to Lianga economy
• https://news.yahoo.com/surigao-del-sur-coastal-road-000000577.html
Opportunities for public input to coastal resiliency planning & Meganticook River Watershed
Residents challenge permit to pump ocean-access waterway dredge material to Sunset Beach disposal site
• https://www.coastalreview.org/2021/03/residents-appeal-south-jinks-creek-permit/
Efforts to improve water quality in coastal fishing communities in North Carolina
• https://www.coastalreview.org/2021/03/groups-launch-fisheries-water-quality-effort/
Dare County approves process to help recover cost of $11M beach nourishment project
• https://www.coastalreview.org/2021/03/plan-to-fund-avon-nourishment-advances/
Delaware launched Coastal Corridors Study to assess travel routes for beach-resort access
• https://www.capegazette.com/article/deldot-begins-coastal-corridors-study/216547
Legal petition asking to extend offshore oil leasing halt
Norwegian Petroleum Directorate revises offshore Norway resource estimate
Discussions to continue between Greece & Turkey toward fair sharing of resources in Eastern Mediterranean
Politics amid the South China Sea dispute
Greymouth Beach “starved” of gravel from river beds becomes more vulnerable to storms
UK issues updated Marine Science Research (MSR) guidance
Primer for operational staffs and tactical leaders (Part 1) on Chinese Maritime Militia & Fishing Fleets
Efforts to eradicate European green crabs from Stinson Beach Seadrift Lagoon in California was unsuccessful – species responded with dramatic population increase – lesson learned
• https://scienmag.com/when-eradicated-species-bounce-back-with-a-vengeance/
• Paper: https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/fee.2277
Florida Governor recommends $260M for relief for seaports
• https://www.wesh.com/article/relief-for-seaports/35866572
"Experience is the name so many people give to their mistakes." - Oscar Wilde
Comments