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Scientists Discover Gigantic Global Reserve of Soil Carbon Underground

Soil carbon typically refers to the organic component, termed soil organic carbon (SOC). However, there is also an inorganic component, referred to as soil inorganic...

The upper solum (mollic epipedon) shows a dark color because of the heavy accumulation of organic matter, while the lower solum (calcic horizon) is whitish due to the presence of calcium carbonate. The soil type is Calcic Molli-Ustic Cambosols according to Chinese Soil Taxonomy. Credit: Zhang GanlinSoil carbon typically refers to the organic component, termed soil organic carbon (SOC). However, there is also an inorganic component, referred to as soil inorganic carbon (SIC), which is often composed of substances like calcium carbonate. SIC commonly accumulates in arid, less fertile regions, which has led many to believe it is not important.In a study published in Science, researchers led by Prof. Huang Yuanyuan from the Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) and Prof. Zhang Ganlin from the Institute of Soil Science of CAS, together with collaborators, have quantified the global store of SIC, challenging this long-held view.The researchers found a whopping 2,305 billion tons of carbon stored as SIC in the top two meters of soil worldwide, which is more than five times the carbon found in all of the world’s vegetation combined. This hidden pool of soil carbon could be key to understanding how carbon moves around the globe. Environmental Vulnerability of SIC“But here’s the thing: This huge carbon pool is vulnerable to changes in the environment, especially soil acidification. Acids dissolve calcium carbonate and remove it either as carbon dioxide gas or directly into the water,” said Prof. Huang.“Many regions in countries like China and India are experiencing soil acidification due to industrial activities and intense farming. Without remedial actions and better soil practices, the world is likely to face a disturbance of SIC in the next thirty years,” she added.Disturbances to SIC accumulated over Earth’s history have a profound impact on soil health. This disruption compromises the soil’s ability to neutralize acidity, regulate nutrient levels, foster plant growth, and stabilize organic carbon. Essentially, SIC plays a critical dual role in storing carbon and supporting ecosystem functions that depend on it.Carbon Loss and the Need for Inclusion in Climate StrategiesThe researchers revealed that approximately 1.13 billion tons of inorganic carbon are lost from soils to inland waters each year. This loss has profound but often overlooked implications for carbon transport between the land, atmosphere, freshwater, and ocean.While society has recognized the importance of soils as a fundamental part of nature-based solutions to combat climate change, much of the focus has been on SOC. It is now clear that inorganic carbon deserves equal attention.This study underscores the urgency of incorporating inorganic carbon into climate change mitigation strategies as an additional lever for maintaining and enhancing carbon sequestration. International programs such as the “4 per mille initiative,” which aims to increase (mostly) SOC by 0.4% annually, should also consider the critical role of inorganic carbon in achieving sustainable soil management and climate mitigation goals.By broadening the understanding of soil carbon dynamics to include both organic and inorganic carbon, the researchers hope to develop more effective strategies for maintaining soil health, enhancing ecosystem services, and mitigating climate change.Reference: “Size, distribution, and vulnerability of the global soil inorganic carbon” by Yuanyuan Huang, Xiaodong Song, Ying-Ping Wang, Josep G. Canadell, Yiqi Luo, Philippe Ciais, Anping Chen, Songbai Hong, Yugang Wang, Feng Tao, Wei Li, Yiming Xu, Reza Mirzaeitalarposhti, Heba Elbasiouny, Igor Savin, Dmitry Shchepashchenko, Raphael A. Viscarra Rossel, Daniel S. Goll, Jinfeng Chang, Benjamin Z. Houlton, Huayong Wu, Fei Yang, Xiaoming Feng, Yongzhe Chen, Yu Liu, Shuli Niu and Gan-Lin Zhang, 11 April 2024, Science.DOI: 10.1126/science.adi7918

Climate
CO2
Health

Researching extreme environments

PhD candidate Emma Bullock studies the local and global impacts of changing mineral levels in Arctic groundwater.

A quick scan of Emma Bullock’s CV reads like those of many other MIT graduate students: She has served as a teaching assistant, written several papers, garnered grants from prestigious organizations, and acquired extensive lab and programming skills. But one skill sets her apart: “fieldwork experience and survival training for Arctic research.” That’s because Bullock, a doctoral student in chemical oceanography at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), spends significant time collecting samples in the Arctic Circle for her research. Working in such an extreme environment requires comprehensive training in everything from Arctic gear usage and driving on unpaved roads to handling wildlife encounters — like the curious polar bear that got into her team’s research equipment. To date, she has ventured to Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, five times, where she typically spends long days — from 5:00 a.m. to 11 p.m. — collecting and processing samples from Simpson Lagoon. Her work focuses on Arctic environmental changes, particularly the effects of permafrost thaw on mercury levels in groundwater. “Even though I am doing foundational science, I can link it directly to communities in that region that are going to be impacted by the changes that we are seeing,” she says. “As the mercury escapes from the permafrost, it has the potential to impact not just Arctic communities but also anyone who eats fish in the entire world.” Weathering a storm of setbacks Growing up in rural Vermont, Bullock spent a lot of time outside, and she attributes her strong interest in environmental studies to her love of nature as a child. Despite her conviction about a career path involving the environment, her path to the Institute has not been easy. In fact, Bullock weathered several challenges and setbacks on the road to MIT. As an undergraduate at Haverford College, Bullock quickly recognized that she did not have the same advantages as other students. She realized that her biggest challenge in pursuing an academic career was her socioeconomic background. She says, “In Vermont, the cost of living is a bit lower than a lot of other areas. So, I didn’t quite realize until I got to undergrad that I was not as middle-class as I thought.” Bullock had learned financial prudence from her parents, which informed many of the decisions she made as a student. She says, “I didn’t have a phone in undergrad because it was a choice between getting a good laptop that I could do research on or a phone. And so I went with the laptop.” Bullock majored in chemistry because Haverford did not offer an environmental science major. To gain experience in environmental research, she joined the lab of Helen White, focusing on the use of silicone bands as passive samplers of volatile organic compounds in honeybee hives. A pivotal moment occurred when Bullock identified errors in a collaborative project. She says, “[Dr. White and I] brought the information about flawed statistical tests to the collaborators, who were all men. They were not happy with that. They made comments that they did not like being told how to do chemistry by women.” White sat Bullock down and explained the pervasiveness of sexism in this field. “She said, ‘You have to remember that it is not you. You are a good scientist. You are capable,’” Bullock recalls. That experience strengthened her resolve to become an environmental scientist. “The way that Dr. Helen White approached dealing with this problem made me want to stick in the STEM field, and in the environmental and geochemistry fields specifically. It made me realize that we need more women in these fields,” she says. As she reached the end of college, Bullock knew that she wanted to continue her educational journey in environmental science. “Environmental science impacts the world around us in such visible ways, especially now with climate change,” she says. She submitted applications to many graduate programs, including to MIT, which was White’s alma mater, but was rejected by all of them. Undeterred, Bullock decided to get more research experience. She took a position as a lab technician at the Max Planck Institute of Marine Microbiology in Bremen, Germany, where she studied methane emissions from seagrass beds — her first foray into chemical oceanography. A year later, she applied to graduate schools again and was accepted by nearly all of the programs, including MIT. She hopes her experience can serve as a lesson for future applicants. “Just because you get rejected the first time does not mean that you’re not a good candidate. It just means that you may not have the right experience or that you didn’t understand the application process correctly,” she says. Understanding the ocean through the lens of chemistry Ultimately, Bullock chose MIT because she was most interested in the specific scientific projects within the program and liked the sense of community. “It is a very unique program because we have the opportunity to take classes at MIT and access to the resources that MIT has, but we also perform research at Woods Hole,” she says. Some people warned her about the cutthroat nature of the Institute, but Bullock has found the exact opposite to be a true. “A lot of people think of MIT, and they think it is one of those top tier schools, so it must be competitive. My experience in this program is that it is very collaborative because our research is so individual and unique that you really can’t be competitive. What you are doing is so different from any other student,” she says. Bullock joined the group of Matthew Charette, senior scientist and director of the WHOI Sea Grant Program, which investigates the ocean through a chemical lens by characterizing the Arctic groundwater sampled during field campaigns in Prudhoe Bay, Alaska. Bullock analyzes mercury and biotoxic methylmercury levels impacted by permafrost thaw, which is already affecting the health of Arctic communities. For comparison, Bullock points to mercury-based dental fillings, which have been the subject of scientific scrutiny for health impacts. She says, “You get more mercury by eating sushi and tuna and salmon than you would by having a mercury-based dental filling.” Promoting environmental advocacy Bullock has been recognized as an Arctic PASSION Ambassador for her work in the historically underresearched Arctic region. As part of this program, she was invited to participate in a “sharing circle,” which connected early-career scientists with Indigenous community members, and then empowered them to pass what they learned about the importance of Arctic research onto their communities. This experience has been the highlight of her PhD journey so far. She says, “It was small enough, and the people there were invested enough in the issues that we got to have very interesting, dynamic conversations, which doesn’t always happen at typical conferences.” Bullock has also spearheaded her own form of environmental activism via a project called en-justice, which she launched in September 2023. Through a website and a traveling art exhibit, the project showcases portraits and interviews of lesser-known environmental advocates that “have arguably done more for the environment but are not as famous” as household names like Greta Thunberg and Leonardo DiCaprio. “They are doing things like going to town halls, arguing with politicians, getting petitions signed … the very nitty-gritty type work. I wanted to create a platform that highlighted some of these people from around the country but also inspired people in their own communities to try and make a change,” she says. Bullock has also written an op-ed for the WHOI magazine, Oceanus, and has served as a staff writer for the MIT-WHOI Joint Program newsletter, “Through the Porthole.” After she graduates this year, Bullock plans to continue her focus on the Arctic. She says, “I find Arctic research very interesting, and there are so many unanswered research questions.” She also aspires to foster further interactions like the sharing circle. “Trying to find a way where I can help facilitate Arctic communities and researchers in terms of finding each other and finding common interests would be a dream role. But I don’t know if that job exists,” Bullock says. Given her track record of overcoming obstacles, odds are, she will turn these aspirations into reality.

Water
Activism
Climate

Most UK dairy farms ignoring pollution rules as manure spews into rivers

Exclusive: 80% of Welsh dairy farms inspected, 69% of English ones, 60% in Scotland and 50% in Northern Ireland breaching regulationsThe majority of UK dairy farms are breaking pollution rules, with vast amounts of cow manure being spilled into rivers.When animal waste enters the river, it causes a buildup of the nutrients found in the effluent, such as nitrates and phosphates. These cause algal blooms, which deplete the waterway of oxygen and block sunlight, choking fish and other aquatic life. Continue reading...

The majority of UK dairy farms are breaking pollution rules, with vast amounts of cow manure being spilled into rivers.When animal waste enters the river, it causes a buildup of the nutrients found in the effluent, such as nitrates and phosphates. These cause algal blooms, which deplete the waterway of oxygen and block sunlight, choking fish and other aquatic life.Sixty nine per cent of the 2,475 English dairy farms inspected by the Environment Agency between 2020 and 2021 were in breach of environmental regulations, according to new data released under freedom of information laws.The problem is prevalent across the UK; in Wales 80% of the 83 dairy farms inspected by Natural Resources Wales between 2020 and 2022 were non-compliant with anti-pollution regulations. In Northern Ireland 50% of the 339 dairy farms inspected by the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs between 2020 and 2022 were not compliant, and in Scotland 60% of the 114 dairy farms initially inspected by the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency between 2020 and 2023 were in breach of regulations.Campaigners have linked this pollution scandal to that caused by the sewage crisis because it also involves ageing infrastructure and intensification of effluent discharges.They say that pricing pressures from supermarkets, where farmers are offered very little for milk, have caused producers to intensify their production by increasing the number of cows they keep.Charles Watson, the chair of the charity River Action, said: “The unacceptable pollution levels caused by the UK dairy industry is not dissimilar to the current UK sewage pollution crisis: aged infrastructure, designed for much lower volumes of effluent, being overwhelmed by the combination of intensification of use and more volatile weather conditions.”A pile of steaming manure. Campaigners are calling for better slurry management. Photograph: Wayne Hutchinson/Alamy“With a herd of 50 cows calculated to be capable of emitting the equivalent amount of pollution as a human settlement of 10,000 people, it is hardly surprising that the dairy industry is placing an unsustainable pollution burden on many river catchments across the country. Meanwhile, yet another chapter in the British river pollution scandal unfolds, our impotent regulators continue to watch on in a solely advisory capacity, and the giant supermarket groups happily count their profits at the cost of the continuous degradation of the environment.”River Action is calling for dairy processors to offer incentives to farmers who produce milk responsibly, either by less intensive farming or by investing to dispose of cow muck responsibly.It is also asking for a strengthened response from regulators, asking them to fully enforce existing anti-pollution rules. Many farms go years without inspections because regulators do not have enough staff owing to underfunding. River Action has asked the devolved national bodies responsible to expand and extend existing grant schemes to improve the infrastructure for slurry management.The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said: “We have set ambitious legally binding targets to reduce water pollution from agriculture and are taking wide-ranging action to clean up our waterways. This includes investing £74m in slurry infrastructure to help farmers cut agricultural runoff and rolling out new farming schemes to thousands of farmers to deliver environmental benefits and adopt more sustainable practices – all to reduce the amount of nutrients entering rivers.”

Pollution
Animals
Water

Standing Rock Youth Council Delivers Right to Self-determination in the Context UNDRIP at the 23rd Session of UNPFII

Standing Rock Youth Council Delivers Recommendations at the 23rd Session of the UNPFII  ‘Enhancing Indigenous Peoples’ Right to Self-determination in the Context of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples: Emphasizing the Voices of Indigenous Youth’ We, the Standing Rock Youth Council, members of the Standing Rock sovereign Lakota/Nakota/Dakota Indigenous nation, are here […] The post Standing Rock Youth Council Delivers Right to Self-determination in the Context UNDRIP at the 23rd Session of UNPFII first appeared on Indigenous Environmental Network.

Standing Rock Youth Council Delivers Recommendations at the 23rd Session of the UNPFII  ‘Enhancing Indigenous Peoples’ Right to Self-determination in the Context of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples: Emphasizing the Voices of Indigenous Youth’ We, the Standing Rock Youth Council, members of the Standing Rock sovereign Lakota/Nakota/Dakota Indigenous nation, are here […] The post Standing Rock Youth Council Delivers Right to Self-determination in the Context UNDRIP at the 23rd Session of UNPFII first appeared on Indigenous Environmental Network.

Indigenous

Earth Day 2024: Houston area offers variety of ways to celebrate the planet

Several family-friendly events, many of which are free, are being held around the Houston region before, on and after Earth Day, which is Monday.

Reliant EnergyEmployees from Reliant Energy plant flowering plants at the Houston Botanic Garden as part of an Earth Day event on Thursday, April 18, 2024.Earth Day is Monday, but Houston-area residents can celebrate the planet and advocate for protecting it throughout the upcoming weekend and beyond. Several family-friendly events, many of which are free, are being held around town leading up to the holiday, which started in 1970. There are Earth Day events at local parks, museums, artists studios and the Houston Botanic Garden, where a flower-planting event was held Thursday. The lineup includes an inaugural celebration organized by the Healthy Port Communities Commission, which is holding a free event at Hidalgo Park in Houston's Second Ward. The park is situated near the Houston Ship Channel, a heavily polluted industrial area that was deemed as a "sacrifice zone" by Amnesty International. Erandi Trevino, the Houston organizer for the Austin-based nonprofit Public Citizen, which is part of the coalition, said she put together the event as a way to give back to an impacted community while calling attention to the importance of protecting the environment. "The reality for a lot of people is living right across the street from a chemical plant or a refinery or the Houston Ship Channel," Trevino said. "Hidalgo Park does embody that." The following is a rundown of 12 Earth Day events happening around the Houston area: SATURDAY Earth Day Community Clean-Up Challenge | 9 a.m. at 6345 Windswept Ln. The Houston Millennials organization is holding a trash-collecting competition to help clean up the southwest part of town while calling attention to the need for a cleaner environment. Participants can volunteer individually or as part of small teams, and prizes will be awarded to the winning teams after the 11:30 a.m. weigh-in. Light bites and beverages will be provided to volunteers, along with clean-up equipment such as gloves and trash bags. Visit the event webpage for more information. Sugar Land Earth Day Festival | 10 a.m.-1 p.m. at Houston Museum of Natural Science-Sugar Land, 13016 University Blvd. in Sugar Land Visitors to the pollinator garden at the Sugar Land museum can discover creatures and their habitats, learn about biodiversity in the ecosystem and participate in hands-on activities related to Earth Day. Tickets start at $5 for museum members and $15 for non-members and can be purchased online. Artful Earth: A Spring Celebration | 11 a.m.-4 p.m. at Spring Street Studios, 1824 Spring St. Head to Sawyer Yards for a free, art-centric Earth Day event that will include light bites and beverages, open artist studios, three exhibitions and guided meditation and sound bowls. Representatives from the Houston Botanic Garden, The Ranch Houston and Cornelius Nursery will be on hand, and original, Earth Day-themed art pieces in a variety of mediums will be available for $150 apiece, with proceeds benefitting the botanic garden and the Spring Street Studios building fund. Visit the event website for more information. Picnic in the Park | noon-4 p.m. at Evelyn's Park, 4400 Bellaire Blvd. The Evelyn's Park Conservancy is celebrating Earth Day and the Bellaire park's seventh anniversary with this free, family-friendly event, where 5,000 seedlings from a variety of tree species will be among the many giveaways. There also will be computer recycling a "Crush the Can" event and a community rock-painting project, along with vendors, a cake-cutting and entertainment for children and adults. Visit the event website for more information. Green Mountain Energy Earth Day at Discovery Green | noon-5 p.m. at Discovery Green, 1500 McKinney St. All are welcome at this free downtown event put on by the Discovery Green Conservancy and the Citizens' Environmental Coalition. It will feature the Houston Public Works Water Works Festival along with an afternoon of art, dancing, music and Earth Day-themed short films. Visit the event website for more information. SUNDAY Healthy Port Communities Inaugural Earth Day Celebration | 11 a.m.-4 p.m. at Hidalgo Park, 7000 Avenue Q Houston's Second Ward will serve as the site for a new Earth Day event being organized by the Healthy Port Communities Coalition, which includes nonprofits such as Air Alliance Houston and Public Citizen. The free, family-friendly celebration is being held near the Houston Ship Channel, a heavily polluted industrial area that has been deemed as a "sacrifice zone" by Amnesty International. Sunday's event will include presentations about the dangers of plastics to people and the planet, and attendees also can enjoy live music, door prizes, food trucks and vendors. Those who plan to go are encouraged to walk, bike or use public transportation. Earth Day Bash | 9 a.m.-5 p.m. at Children's Museum Houston, 1500 Binz St. A variety of Earth Day-related activities are planned at the children's museum, including a water filtration demonstration, physics experiments from Rice University representatives, talks about ants and birds and a tree sapling giveaway. Tickets cost $17 and can be reserved online. Akaal Pachamama Earth Day at Old Town Harrisburg | noon-7 p.m. at 6632 Harrisburg Blvd. Attendees are asked to wear green and white to this free Earth Day celebration in the Second Ward, where there will be a pop-up market featuring a variety of local vendors. There also will be entertainment from 3-7 p.m. The Energy Corridor District's Earth Day Celebration | 1-4 p.m. at Terry Hershey Park, 15200 Memorial Dr. Admission is free to this family-friendly event in West Houston, where attendees can enjoy local food trucks, DJ music, a fashion show featuring clothing made with recycled materials, eco-friendly vendors and educational booths. They also can contribute to a communal art piece, and there will be tree seedling giveaways and children's activities such as games and face painting. More information can be found on the event webpage. MONDAY "Wild Texas" Mural Unveiling | 10-11 a.m. at Houston Botanic Garden, 1 Botanic Ln. The Houston Botanic Garden, Houston Parks Board and Gulfgate Redevelopment Authority will celebrate Earth Day by unveiling a 300-foot mural located along the Sims Bayou Greenway. "Wild Texas," by artist David Cobb, was more than six months in the making and "celebrates the diverse landscape of Texas in a stunning display of color and community spirit," according to event organizers. Earth Day HTX | 3:30 p.m. at Watonga Park, 4100 Watonga Blvd. The City of Houston and Apache Corporation are teaming up to plant 2,500 trees at Watonga Park in the northwest part of town, utilizing both volunteers from the community as well as employees from the Houston-based energy company. The event is part of a broader reforestation initiative by the Houston Parks and Recreation Department. APRIL 27 Earth Day Celebration | 10 a.m.-2 p.m. at Houston Arboretum & Nature Center, 4501 Woodway Dr. This free, post-Earth Day event will feature a scavenger hunt, interactive activities and crafts and the chance to see and learn about a variety of plants and animals. More information is available at the event website.

Animals
Chemicals
Education

National Park Service approves new Crater Lake operator, ending Aramark’s tenure

Hospitality company ExplorUS will take over the contract, effective immediately.

A new concessioner is officially in place at Crater Lake National Park.The National Park Service announced Thursday that it has approved the transfer of the current concessions contract to Kansas-based hospitality company ExplorUS, ending the rocky tenure of Crater Lake Hospitality, a subsidiary of Philadelphia-based Aramark.Aramark faces a litany of serious accusations around its management of the park since 2018, including unsafe housing conditions, environmental hazards and public health code violations. An investigation by The Oregonian/OregonLive, which analyzed 224 pages of federal reports and interviewed 15 former employees, showed years of systemic issues.In February, after the allegations came to light, the National Park Service announced its intention to terminate the contract with Aramark at Crater Lake. Less than a month later, Aramark struck a deal with ExplorUS to take over the contract, which is set to end in 2030.The National Park Service said the new operator will immediately take over the primary visitor services at Crater Lake, including Crater Lake Lodge, the Mazama Campground, all public dining areas, gift shops and the boat tours. In a news release, park officials said they are “striving for a seamless transition of services but ask for flexibility and patience from park visitors.”“We look forward to working with ExplorUS as they invest in facilities, staff training, visitor services, and other improvements to make visitors’ and employees’ experiences at Crater Lake even better,” Crater Lake National Park Superintendent Craig Ackerman said in the release.The National Park Service did not specify whether ExplorUS would be taking over the employee dormitories, the source of many complaints during Aramark’s tenure, nor did the agency say whether employees would still be living in the Rim Dormitory, which received a score of zero out of five in its 2023 inspection.Neither park officials nor ExplorUS immediately responded to requests for more information Thursday.In a statement released in March, ExplorUS CEO Frank Pikus said the company is “committed to working with the National Park Service to enhance and protect the visitor experience” at Crater Lake.According to the company, ExplorUS runs hospitality operations at more than 50 locations across the U.S., including Muir Woods in California, Acadia National Park in Maine and Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico. It also operates in state parks, national forests and other outdoor recreation areas, including campgrounds in Washington’s Gifford Pinchot National Forest.ExplorUS previously said it plans to transition all current Crater Lake Hospitality employees to its company, and intends to offer all visitor services this summer. The company also intends to honor all reservations and deposits for future stays.Information about available park services will be posted online at nps.gov/crla.--Jamie Hale covers travel and the outdoors and co-hosts the Peak Northwest podcast. Reach him at 503-294-4077, jhale@oregonian.com or @HaleJamesB.Our journalism needs your support. Subscribe today to OregonLive.com.

Forests
Health

Advancing technology for aquaculture

MIT Sea Grant students apply machine learning to support local aquaculture hatcheries.

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, aquaculture in the United States represents a $1.5 billion industry annually. Like land-based farming, shellfish aquaculture requires healthy seed production in order to maintain a sustainable industry. Aquaculture hatchery production of shellfish larvae — seeds — requires close monitoring to track mortality rates and assess health from the earliest stages of life.  Careful observation is necessary to inform production scheduling, determine effects of naturally occurring harmful bacteria, and ensure sustainable seed production. This is an essential step for shellfish hatcheries but is currently a time-consuming manual process prone to human error.  With funding from MIT’s Abdul Latif Jameel Water and Food Systems Lab (J-WAFS), MIT Sea Grant is working with Associate Professor Otto Cordero of the MIT Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Professor Taskin Padir and Research Scientist Mark Zolotas at the Northeastern University Institute for Experiential Robotics, and others at the Aquaculture Research Corporation (ARC), and the Cape Cod Commercial Fishermen’s Alliance, to advance technology for the aquaculture industry. Located on Cape Cod, ARC is a leading shellfish hatchery, farm, and wholesaler that plays a vital role in providing high-quality shellfish seed to local and regional growers. Two MIT students have joined the effort this semester, working with Robert Vincent, MIT Sea Grant’s assistant director of advisory services, through the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP).  First-year student Unyime Usua and sophomore Santiago Borrego are using microscopy images of shellfish seed from ARC to train machine learning algorithms that will help automate the identification and counting process. The resulting user-friendly image recognition tool aims to aid aquaculturists in differentiating and counting healthy, unhealthy, and dead shellfish larvae, improving accuracy and reducing time and effort. Vincent explains that AI is a powerful tool for environmental science that enables researchers, industry, and resource managers to address challenges that have long been pinch points for accurate data collection, analysis, predictions, and streamlining processes. “Funding support from programs like J-WAFS enable us to tackle these problems head-on,” he says.  ARC faces challenges with manually quantifying larvae classes, an important step in their seed production process. "When larvae are in their growing stages they are constantly being sized and counted,” explains Cheryl James, ARC larval/juvenile production manager. “This process is critical to encourage optimal growth and strengthen the population."  Developing an automated identification and counting system will help to improve this step in the production process with time and cost benefits. “This is not an easy task,” says Vincent, “but with the guidance of Dr. Zolotas at the Northeastern University Institute for Experiential Robotics and the work of the UROP students, we have made solid progress.”  The UROP program benefits both researchers and students. Involving MIT UROP students in developing these types of systems provides insights into AI applications that they might not have considered, providing opportunities to explore, learn, and apply themselves while contributing to solving real challenges. Borrego saw this project as an opportunity to apply what he’d learned in class 6.390 (Introduction to Machine Learning) to a real-world issue. “I was starting to form an idea of how computers can see images and extract information from them,” he says. “I wanted to keep exploring that.” Usua decided to pursue the project because of the direct industry impacts it could have. “I’m pretty interested in seeing how we can utilize machine learning to make people’s lives easier. We are using AI to help biologists make this counting and identification process easier.” While Usua wasn’t familiar with aquaculture before starting this project, she explains, “Just hearing about the hatcheries that Dr. Vincent was telling us about, it was unfortunate that not a lot of people know what’s going on and the problems that they’re facing.” On Cape Cod alone, aquaculture is an $18 million per year industry. But the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries estimates that hatcheries are only able to meet 70–80 percent of seed demand annually, which impacts local growers and economies. Through this project, the partners aim to develop technology that will increase seed production, advance industry capabilities, and help understand and improve the hatchery microbiome. Borrego explains the initial challenge of having limited data to work with. “Starting out, we had to go through and label all of the data, but going through that process helped me learn a lot.” In true MIT fashion, he shares his takeaway from the project: “Try to get the best out of what you’re given with the data you have to work with. You’re going to have to adapt and change your strategies depending on what you have.” Usua describes her experience going through the research process, communicating in a team, and deciding what approaches to take. “Research is a difficult and long process, but there is a lot to gain from it because it teaches you to look for things on your own and find your own solutions to problems.” In addition to increasing seed production and reducing the human labor required in the hatchery process, the collaborators expect this project to contribute to cost savings and technology integration to support one of the most underserved industries in the United States.  Borrego and Usua both plan to continue their work for a second semester with MIT Sea Grant. Borrego is interested in learning more about how technology can be used to protect the environment and wildlife. Usua says she hopes to explore more projects related to aquaculture. “It seems like there’s an infinite amount of ways to tackle these issues.”

Technology
Food
Science

South Texas farmers are in peril as the Rio Grande Valley runs dry — again

With the hottest days still ahead, local leaders have declared emergencies. And farmers are lobbying for the U.S. government to pressure Mexico to release water.

Sign up for The Brief, The Texas Tribune’s daily newsletter that keeps readers up to speed on the most essential Texas news. MERCEDES — Across the street from a red barn, a 40-acre field once covered by a sea of green sugar cane leaves now sits dry and thirsty. Irrigation water is dangerously elusive for the fields of the Rio Grande Valley. Mike England, who owns England Farms and Cattle Company located 29 miles east of McAllen, raises cattle and has grown several types of crops including cotton, corn and — until recently — sugar cane. Earlier this year, the state’s last sugar mill closed due to a lack of water — effectively ending the decades-old industry. In recent years, the mill yielded 160,000 tons of raw sugar and 60,000 tons of molasses, according to the sugar mill. It also employed about 500 workers in a normal production year. England had no choice but to destroy the 500 acres worth of sugar cane he'd grown. "And now that I don't have any water, what am I going to plant there?" England said. Several factors contribute to the Valley’s water scarcity, including a lack of rainfall and Mexico’s slow delivery of water to the United States under the terms of a 1944 treaty. Levels at the Amistad International and Falcon International reservoirs are dire. And the Rio Grande Basin reached record low levels last fall and has not improved, according to a report from the National Weather Service in Brownsville. Aerial view of farmer and rancher Mike England's land near Mercedes on April 18. Credit: Ben Lowy for The Texas Tribune England lobbied Hidalgo County officials to issue a disaster declaration in hopes of raising awareness on farmers' plight at the state and national level. He's been successful. On Tuesday, Hidalgo County commissioners extended a disaster declaration issued by the county’s highest-elected official, Judge Richard F. Cortez, citing "exceptional drought conditions." The declaration does not impose water restrictions. Those decisions are left up to individual water systems. Cities in South Texas are putting those into place already, ahead of the summer’s hottest days. McAllen, the largest city in Hidalgo County with more than 144,000 residents, is currently under Stage 2 of their Water Conservation and Drought Contingency Plan, which is triggered when water supply from Amistad and Falcon Dam are below 25%. Levels are currently at 22%, according to Mark Vega, general manager of the McAllen Public Utility. The Rio Grande Valley Sugar Growers’ sugar mill in Santa Rosa. Two years of drought and a dwindling water supply forced Texas’ last sugar mill to close after more than 50 years of operation. Credit: Eli Hartman/The Texas Tribune At Stage 2, the city limits the use of water sprinkling systems for residences and businesses. It also limits water for washing vehicles with exceptions for commercial car washes, and restricts the refilling or adding of water to swimming pools. Just east of Hidalgo County, Cameron County Judge Eddie Treviño, Jr., also issued a disaster declaration on Monday. Also in place is Gov. Greg Abbott’s own disaster proclamation stemming from the 2022 drought — the worst in a decade. It applies to dozens of counties including Hidalgo and Cameron counties, authorizing the use of all state resources to reasonably cope with the disaster. Abbott renewed the declaration this month. Brian Jones, a state director for the Texas Farm Bureau and a fourth generation farmer, met with U.S. State Department officials this week to stress the need to pressure Mexico into releasing more water. Under terms of the 1944 treaty, Mexico is required to deliver water to the U.S. from six tributaries that feed into the Rio Grande. In exchange, the U.S. delivers water from the Colorado River to Mexico. Related Story April 12, 2024 The treaty requires the Mexican government to release 1,750,000 acre-feet of water every five years for an average annual amount of 350,000 acre-feet. The current five-year cycle doesn't end until October 2025, so while Mexico hasn't yet violated the terms of the treaty, it is behind on its water deliveries by more than 700,000 acre-feet as of April 6, according to International Boundary & Water Commission, the agency tasked with overseeing the water and boundary treaties. Mexican officials cite their own drought conditions for their inability to deliver water to the U.S. The treaty provides for some flexibility depending on the severity of the drought. But Frank Fisher, public affairs chief for the commission, said there are political factors there that are complicating the situation. Still, he insists the commission is continuing to engage with their Mexican counterparts at the Comisión Internacional de Límites y Aguas Entre México y Estados Unidos. He adds the state department is actively trying to resolve the issue diplomatically, including negotiating a new addition to the treaty which would amend how Mexico would meet its water obligations. "We can't give up, it's too crucial for folks of South Texas,” Fisher said. Mexican officials echoed Fisher. Manuel Morales, secretario de la Sección Mexicana for CILA, was adamant that Mexico's intention has always been to comply with its obligations under the treaty. In his 38 years of planting, Jones said 2024 is his first without irrigation water, which affects row crops such as sorghum, cotton and corn as well as specialty crops such as vegetables and citrus. Jones warns they're all on the verge of meeting the same fate as the sugar cane industry. "Right now, we do have a delay in water deliveries, that's the reality this current cycle, but our intention is to mitigate that deficit as much as possible," Morales said. "We want to continue complying with the treaty." Jones believes the citrus industry could fall next given that the industry consists of permanent trees that need additional water to produce a crop on top of the water they need to stay alive. Overall, the Valley stands to lose $495.8 million this year in total crop production, according to a December report from Texas A&M AgriLife Extension. Jones is already feeling those losses –– he only planted half his farm this year. He's had to cut employees entirely and cut back the hours of others. England has resorted to the same measures. "It kills me because these guys are some of the best people I've ever known," England said. "One of them has worked for me for 40-some-odd years. We were just past teenagers when he started here. You think I liked laying him off?" While both farmers hope the state department leans on Mexico to fulfill its water obligations, Jones doesn't believe Mexican officials have any intention of releasing water any time soon. "They're keeping it, they're using it," Jones said. "They're growing products that are competing with our products." Jones, echoing a familiar and drastic refrain, said it would take a hurricane or other major tropical event for them to make up their large deficit by October 2025. "Waiting on the weather is not a great plan, but actually waiting on the weather seems like a better plan than waiting on Mexico," Jones said. Hidalgo County is waiting for neither the weather nor Mexico. In March, the county hired H2O Partners, an Austin-based environmental consulting firm, to help develop a countywide plan to address projected water shortages. As part of that strategy, Cortez, the county judge, requested records from the IBWC and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality for data on inflows to the Rio Grande. Water marks are seen on the dam gates and concrete at the Falcon Dam in Starr County on Aug. 18, 2022. The reservoir levels are below 25%, triggering some local water restrictions. Credit: Michael Gonzalez for The Texas Tribune Cortez said the county’s analysis suggests that Mexico’s noncompliance with the treaty doesn’t account for all the missing water and believes that the flows from the U.S. side had also dropped. "There could be nothing wrong with it, there could be more demand north from us that are using it more than others," Cortez said. "If that's the case, then that's what it is, but if I don't ask the questions, I don't know the answers." The county’s disaster declaration would enable the county to access state funding if it suffered damages from wildfires such as the historic wildfires that scorched the Texas Panhandle in February and March. Cortez added that affected farmers in the county would be in a position to receive financial relief in the likely scenario of financial losses from the water shortage. The declaration would allow farmers such as Jones and England to apply for loans at a lower interest rate. But without more water, that type of financial assistance won't solve their issues. "Without water, what are we using to grow our crops? What are we able to pay back those loans with?" Jones said. This year, England did what little he could on a few acres of land –– planting hay on land that still had a bit of moisture and planting cotton on their best sandy land. "I just took a chance on a few acres of planting," England said. "But we're in desperate need of a rain right now or it's not going to make anything." Mike England walks across one of the fields on his farm near Mercedes on April 18. Credit: Ben Lowy for The Texas Tribune Reporting in the Rio Grande Valley is supported in part by the Methodist Healthcare Ministries of South Texas. Disclosure: Texas A&M AgriLife and Texas Farm Bureau have been financial supporters of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune's journalism. Find a complete list of them here. Tickets are on sale now for the 2024 Texas Tribune Festival, happening in downtown Austin Sept. 5-7. Get your TribFest tickets before May 1 and save big!

Government
Water
Conservation

‘It’s only been six weeks since they found lead in applesauce’

Lead still plagues American’s water and homes 40 years after the first federal bans

In the United States, despite a decades-long ban, millions of people still face the invisible threat of lead poisoning in their homes and water systems. Lead is a potent neurotoxin that impairs brain development in children and causes an array of health issues in adults, including high blood pressure and kidney damage, according to a U.S. National Institute of Health study and almost every other journal on the issue.The threat of lead is silent. Those affected often show no apparent symptoms, yet the damage can be lifelong and irreversible. Children exposed to lead can experience far-reaching societal consequences, according to various studies, including lower IQ and a host of behavioral problems. They earn less throughout their lives and work fewer years.More than 50% of all children in the United States under six years old have detectable lead in their blood, according to a 2021 study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).Removal of the source is the only way to reduce harm. Nevertheless, startling federal data reveals that 22 million Americans still get their drinking water through lead pipes, and around 38 million homes still contain lead-based paint.The issue predominantly plagues urban centers like Chicago, New York, Philadelphia, Cleveland, and Detroit, with some overlap for lead pipes and paint. Chicago tops the list on both fronts, with an alarming 400,000 lead pipelines—contaminating the water of 75% of city blocks. A recent study published in March 2024 in JAMA highlights a troubling statistic: nearly 70% of Chicago’s children under six live in these neighborhoods. Black and Hispanic communities are disproportionately affected, with less frequent testing yet higher exposure rates. While the paint is more challenging to track, it’s estimated that 99% of homes built in Chicago before 1978 have some level of paint toxicity. That constitutes a vast majority of the city’s housing stock.Despite the known risks, efforts to remove lead from our homes and water have been slow, hindered by decades of political inertia and lobbying in Congress. In late 2023, the Environmental Protection Agency proposed a new rule that seeks to rid the country of lead pipes in 10 years.Reckon spoke to Dr. Mary Jean Brown, adjunct professor of social and behavioral sciences at Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health, about why lead persists and what you can do about it.Reckon:The country seems awash with various toxic harms that advocacy groups and state and federal governments are trying to address. Many of these threats are seemingly new. Yet the ban on lead pipes was introduced 40 years ago. Why do we still see them in so many municipalities?Dr. Mary Jean Brown:Lead is a very useful metal that we’ve had since Pompeii, the Roman Empire, and in most places where water was being transported from one place to another. It was well into the 1980s that the city of Chicago still required all water pipes to be lead. In Alabama, one of the problems is that the only way you can really know if it’s a lead pipe is if you dig it up, take a key, and scratch it. It scratches easily because it’s soft. Most places don’t have a really good inventory of where their lead pipes are.I have some idea of what kinds of housing are most likely to have lead pipes. And certainly, the Gulf Coast of Alabama will have some of this housing. It’s not going to be like the high rises in New York City. Because you can’t run 100 housing units on two-inch water pipe. In the south, it’s pretty common as it will be in housing that was built before 1986, for the most part, because that’s when the federal ban went into effect for the use of lead water pipes.We’re building all kinds of beautiful things in cities, like parks, civic centers and theaters. Why are we not replacing the pipes when we build or pull up roads? This seems like a public health crisis. One reason is that we have a tendency in this business to put one source of lead in competition with another. Our focus until maybe 10 to 15 years ago, was lead paint and lead paint contaminated house dust and soil. We were worried about children who had blood levels that were considered very high, about 15 to 25 micrograms per deciliter. Now we worry about blood levels of 3.5 micrograms per deciliter. So, as we got better at lowering blood lead levels, we began to realize there are other sources that certainly are not as concentrated as what we were looking at in the 80s and the 90s, but they are still contributing to children’s blood lead levels.That’s combined with our inability to find a safe blood level for children. If a child has a blood level of five micrograms per deciliter, most places will go in and look at the house and try to figure out where the exposure is coming from to stop the exposure. That can keep the blood level from going up, but any damage that may have been done in the process of getting to five is probably irreversible. We need to prevent children from being exposed before they have a lead level that triggers an intervention. It’s a very tiny amount—3.5 micrograms per deciliter is 35 parts per billion. But you don’t have to have very much to get you up there, but that can do a very big amount of damage.We need to be proactive and remove lead from its sources, including pipes, paints, contaminated soil, and dust, especially around houses built before 1978. This includes industrial emissions, including putting lead in cinnamon for applesauce pouches.Applesauce! Is that thing?It’s only been six weeks since they found lead in applesauce. They found lead in cinnamon in the dollar stores as well. There’s always these new products that are coming to market. The customs people are pretty good about testing things, but things slip through. And there’s lead in spices and traditional teas and other things that people bring with them when they move to the States.Is there a ban on lead paint across the board?There’s a ban on lead in residential house paints, but there’s no ban on lead in the paint that goes on the line on roads or the paint that goes on your boat. It’s unfortunate that these other sources of lead paints tend to bleed into the residential market. You mentioned the effects that lead can have on children in small doses. What does exposure actually do to a child’s health and their development?Small children under the age of six have brains that are developing very quickly, making them vulnerable. The target organ of lead for those children is the brain, but it also interferes with every enzyme system in the body. What happens with these children with regard to blood levels is that it’s a risk factor, not a diagnosis. It shows that these children are at risk and struggling in school. They’re at risk of having poor impulse control, which affects their judgment and their ability to control emotions. Those two factors can put them on a really bad life course. Children who have blood levels above five or six micrograms per deciliter are more likely not to make the transition in school when academic performance standards change.What signs should families look for?In the third grade, children move from learning to read to reading to learn. In the eighth grade, you move from memorizing arithmetic facts to using math concepts. Children with lead in their blood can have trouble making those transitions. They’re also four times more likely to be involved with the juvenile justice system because they can’t control their impulses and they have poor judgment. They are also more likely to repeat a grade in school and less likely to graduate from high school.But I want to be very clear that this is a risk factor. If you give me a kindergarten class where everybody had a lead level of five or higher when they were two years old and another class where nobody had lead levels, I can tell you that the second kindergarten kids are, on average, doing better than the first. But that doesn’t mean that Susan, who was in the first kindergarten, is not going to MIT. There are just too many other factors that influence IQ.The thing about lead is it’s one factor we can do something about.It seems, generally speaking, that underperforming schools exist in low-income areas where lead could be present. It seems like a double blow, alongside other societal issues. Is that something you’ve seen in your research?Yeah, sure. First off, low-income rental properties are not as well maintained. It’s not in the nature of paint to remain intact. There’s peeling and the person who’s living in that unit doesn’t control the condition of the paint the way the person who owns it does. That’s number one.Number two, there certainly has been redlining and housing discrimination over years and years, which also adds to this picture. These various impacts are cumulative. If you have a disorganized family, a family where education is not a priority or a lousy school, then you add lead-in. It’s bad.There is an endpoint to how resilient a person can be.How can people protect themselves? Is there anything they can look out for in their water or on their walls that might help them identify lead?That’s a very good point. You can get a lead paint inspection. You hire somebody, and they come in with a machine and it tells you how much lead is in the paint on the wall. You can also buy test kits, usually at Home Depot or Amazon. That changes color. You just rub it and you can see that if it turns dark pink or dark blue, it’s lead paint. This is really important for people to do if they’re going to do any kind of renovation in a house because that really liberates a lot of lead.They need to know the EPA has a wonderful book, Renovate Right. That will tell people exactly how to do it or have their contractor do it.

Water
Business
Education

New major crosses disciplines to address climate change

Combining engineering, earth system science, and the social sciences, Course 1-12 prepares students to develop climate solutions.

Lauren Aguilar knew she wanted to study energy systems at MIT, but before Course 1-12 (Climate System Science and Engineering) became a new undergraduate major, she didn't see an obvious path to study the systems aspects of energy, policy, and climate associated with the energy transition. Aguilar was drawn to the new major that was jointly launched by the departments of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) and Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences (EAPS) in 2023. She could take engineering systems classes and gain knowledge in climate. “Having climate knowledge enriches my understanding of how to build reliable and resilient energy systems for climate change mitigation. Understanding upon what scale we can forecast and predict climate change is crucial to build the appropriate level of energy infrastructure,” says Aguilar. The interdisciplinary structure of the 1-12 major has students engaging with and learning from professors in different disciplines across the Institute. The blended major was designed to provide a foundational understanding of the Earth system and engineering principles — as well as an understanding of human and institutional behavior as it relates to the climate challenge. Students learn the fundamental sciences through subjects like an atmospheric chemistry class focused on the global carbon cycle or a physics class on low-carbon energy systems. The major also covers topics in data science and machine learning as they relate to forecasting climate risks and building resilience, in addition to policy, economics, and environmental justice studies. Junior Ananda Figueiredo was one of the first students to declare the 1-12 major. Her decision to change majors stemmed from a motivation to improve people’s lives, especially when it comes to equality. “I like to look at things from a systems perspective, and climate change is such a complicated issue connected to many different pieces of our society,” says Figueiredo. A multifaceted field of study The 1-12 major prepares students with the necessary foundational expertise across disciplines to confront climate change. Andrew Babbin, an academic advisor in the new degree program and the Cecil and Ida Green Career Development Associate Professor in EAPS, says the new major harnesses rigorous training encompassing science, engineering, and policy to design and execute a way forward for society. Within its first year, Course 1-12 has attracted students with a diverse set of interests, ranging from machine learning for sustainability to nature-based solutions for carbon management to developing the next renewable energy technology and integrating it into the power system. Academic advisor Michael Howland, the Esther and Harold E. Edgerton Assistant Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, says the best part of this degree is the students, and the enthusiasm and optimism they bring to the climate challenge. “We have students seeking to impact policy and students double-majoring in computer science. For this generation, climate change is a challenge for today, not for the future. Their actions inside and outside the classroom speak to the urgency of the challenge and the promise that we can solve it,” Howland says. The degree program also leaves plenty of space for students to develop and follow their interests. Sophomore Katherine Kempff began this spring semester as a 1-12 major interested in sustainability and renewable energy. Kempff was worried she wouldn’t be able to finish 1-12 once she made the switch to a different set of classes, but Howland assured her there would be no problems, based on the structure of 1-12. “I really like how flexible 1-12 is. There's a lot of classes that satisfy the requirements, and you are not pigeonholed. I feel like I'm going to be able to do what I'm interested in, rather than just following a set path of a major,” says Kempff. Kempff is leveraging her skills she developed this semester and exploring different career interests. She is interviewing for sustainability and energy-sector internships in Boston and MIT this summer, and is particularly interested in assisting MIT in meeting its new sustainability goals. Engineering a sustainable future The new major dovetail’s MIT’s commitment to address climate change with its steps in prioritizing and enhancing climate education. As the Institute continues making strides to accelerate solutions, students can play a leading role in changing the future.    “Climate awareness is critical to all MIT students, most of whom will face the consequences of the projection models for the end of the century,” says Babbin. “One-12 will be a focal point of the climate education mission to train the brightest and most creative students to engineer a better world and understand the complex science necessary to design and verify any solutions they invent." Justin Cole, who transferred to MIT in January from the University of Colorado, served in the U.S. Air Force for nine years. Over the course of his service, he had a front row seat to the changing climate. From helping with the wildfire cleanup in Black Forest, Colorado — after the state's most destructive fire at the time — to witnessing two category 5 typhoons in Japan in 2018, Cole's experiences of these natural disasters impressed upon him that climate security was a prerequisite to international security.  Cole was recently accepted into the MIT Energy and Climate Club Launchpad initiative where he will work to solve real-world climate and energy problems with professionals in industry. “All of the dots are connecting so far in my classes, and all the hopes that I have for studying the climate crisis and the solutions to it at MIT are coming true,” says Cole. With a career path that is increasingly growing, there is a rising demand for scientists and engineers who have both deep knowledge of environmental and climate systems and expertise in methods for climate change mitigation. “Climate science must be coupled with climate solutions. As we experience worsening climate change, the environmental system will increasingly behave in new ways that we haven’t seen in the past,” says Howland. “Solutions to climate change must go beyond good engineering of small-scale components. We need to ensure that our system-scale solutions are maximally effective in reducing climate change, but are also resilient to climate change. And there is no time to waste,” he says.

Climate
Science
Education

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