Tag: environment

China’s coastal cities are sinking as seas rise at record speed

Sea levels are rising faster than at any time in 4,000 years, and China’s sinking coastal cities are on the front lines.

Source:Rutgers University

Summary:Sea levels are rising faster than at any time in 4,000 years, scientists report, with China’s major coastal cities at particular risk. The rapid increase is driven by warming oceans and melting ice, while human activities like groundwater pumping make it worse. In some areas, the land itself is sinking faster than the ocean is rising. Still, researchers see progress as cities like Shanghai adopt new technologies to stabilize the ground and prepare for the future.Share:

    

FULL STORY

Sea Levels Are Rising Faster Than in 4,000 Years
Scientists have found that modern sea level rise is accelerating faster than at any time in the past 4,000 years, and China’s coastal megacities are among the most at risk. Credit: Shutterstock

A team of scientists led by Rutgers University researchers has found that sea levels today are climbing more quickly than at any time in the past 4,000 years, with China’s coastal cities facing some of the most severe risks.

To uncover this trend, the researchers analyzed thousands of geological records from natural indicators such as ancient coral reefs and mangrove formations. These environments preserve long-term evidence of past sea levels. Using this data, the team reconstructed ocean changes stretching back almost 12,000 years to the start of the Holocene epoch, which began after the last major ice age.

Fastest Rate of Rise Since 1900

Published in Nature, the study reports that global sea levels have risen by an average of 1.5 millimeters (about one-sixteenth of an inch) per year since 1900. This pace is faster than any century-long period recorded in the last four millennia.

“The global mean sea level rise rate since 1900 is the fastest rate over at least the last four millennia,” said Yucheng Lin, who conducted the research as a postdoctoral associate at Rutgers and is a scientist at Australia’s national research agency, the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization in Hobart.

Lin worked under the guidance of Robert Kopp, a Distinguished Professor in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences at Rutgers. “Dr. Lin’s work illustrates how geological data can help us better understand the hazards that coastal cities face today,” said Kopp, who also authored the study.

What’s Driving the Acceleration

According to Lin, two main processes are responsible for today’s rapid sea level rise: thermal expansion and melting ice. As climate change warms the planet, oceans absorb heat, causing the water to expand. At the same time, melting glaciers and ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctica add vast amounts of water to the seas.

“Getting warmer makes your ocean take up more volume,” Lin said. “And the glaciers respond faster because they are smaller than the ice sheets, which are often the size of continents. We are seeing more and more acceleration in Greenland now.”

China’s Coastal Cities Face a Double Threat

While sea level rise is a global concern, China faces a particularly dangerous combination of natural and human factors. Many of its largest cities — including Shanghai, Shenzhen and Hong Kong — sit in delta regions made of soft, water-saturated sediment that naturally sinks over time.

Human activities have accelerated this sinking.

“We’ve been able to quantify the natural rate of sea level rise for this area,” Lin said. “But human intervention, mostly groundwater extraction, makes it happen much faster.”

Subsidence, the gradual sinking or settling of the Earth’s surface, can occur through natural geological changes or from human-driven causes such as overuse of groundwater.

Delta Regions Under Pressure

To assess the risk to China’s deltas, the researchers combined geological records, measurements of land subsidence, and data on human impacts. They focused on the Yangtze River Delta and Pearl River Delta, two areas that are home to several megacities and key industrial zones.

In Shanghai, parts of the city sank more than one meter (around three feet) during the 20th century because of extensive groundwater pumping, Lin said. That rate is vastly higher than the current global average for sea level rise.

Delta regions are naturally flat and fertile, making them ideal for farming, transport, and urban development. But those same features make them exceptionally vulnerable to flooding.

“Centimeters of sea level rise will greatly increase the risk of flooding in deltas,” Lin said. “These areas are not only important domestically, they’re also international manufacturing hubs. If coastal risks happen there, the global supply chain will be vulnerable.”

Efforts to Slow the Sinking

Despite the alarming data, Lin noted that there are reasons for optimism. Some Chinese cities have begun taking effective steps to manage the problem. Shanghai, for example, has slowed its rate of subsidence by controlling groundwater extraction and reinjecting freshwater into underground aquifers.

“Shanghai now is not sinking that fast anymore,” Lin said. “They recognized the problem and started regulating their groundwater usage.”

The research team also created vulnerability maps to help local governments and city planners identify high-risk zones and prepare for future sea level rise.

A Global Lesson

Although the study focuses on China, its implications reach far beyond. Many major coastal cities, including New York, Jakarta and Manila, are built on low-lying plains and face similar threats.

“Deltas are great places, good for farming, fishing, urban development and naturally draw civilizations to them,” Lin said. “But they are really flat yet prone to human-caused subsidence, so sustained sea level rise could submerge them really fast.”

Modeling the Past to Protect the Future

The paper is an application of PaleoSTeHM, an open-source software framework for statistically modeling paleo-environmental data that Lin developed as a postdoctoral associate.

Praveen Kumar, a postdoctoral associate in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, also contributed to the study.

The National Science Foundation and NASA supported the research.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/10/251023031627.htm

The Federal Climate Information Website Will No Longer Be Updated

In June, the Trump administration announced that the government’s 15-year-old website, climate.gov, which was the primary source of information about climate change and science, would no longer be updated. Links to the old site redirect viewers to an address at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). As of 2021, the old website was receiving 900,000 visits per month and was a trusted source of information about the climate, according to NPR. The jobs of those who authored stories, created photos, and designed materials were eliminated.

Climate change effects include wildfire, ocean acidification, desertification, and coastal flooding caused by storms and sea level rise. |  Credit: CalFire

However, as the Guardian reports, a group of climate communications experts is rebuilding the climate.gov content at climate.us through a new nonprofit. The organization will offer services about climate to others such as local governments that are trying to adapt to global warming. The website is in development, and the organization has a presence on social media accounts like BlueSky and Facebook. 

According to Rebecca Lindsey, who was the managing editor of the government’s old site, the new entity includes several of her former federal colleagues, many of whom are grieving over losing not only a job but also a vocation. Lindsey added that there is a need for content that helps people develop climate literacy. Being outside of government gives the new group new opportunities to have fun by using platforms like TikTok.

The organization has launched a crowdfunding effort and hopes to get more permanent operating support from a foundation. Lindsey said that all of the climate information released prior to July 1 is still up on a government site, but you have to know where to look for it.

Meanwhile, the National Weather Service is trying to rapidly hire 450 people, including some meteorologists to fill jobs that were cut by DOGE, or the Department of Government Efficiency. Hundreds of forecasters were cut at NOAA after Trump took office, and there were warnings that there could be dangerous consequences if weather predictions were slowed.

However, applicants for the new meteorologist positions are being asked how they would promote Trump’s agenda by identifying one or two of his executive orders that they find significant, and how they would implement them if hired. Some experts are alarmed that the ideology of a potential weather forecaster could be considered. One told the Associated Press that he questioned whether forecasts would be made better based upon someone’s ideology.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION

https://h2oradio.org

The Polluted Tijuana River Is Polluting the Air in San Diego

Some people who reside in the southern portion of San Diego County, California, say it stinks to live there. Literally. For years, residents have complained that odors emanating from the polluted Tijuana River, which flows from Mexico into the U.S. toward the Pacific Ocean, are causing eye, nose and throat irritation, respiratory problems, fatigue, and headaches.

A new study shows that turbulence in polluted waters of the Tijuana River transfers contaminants to the air. In this photo, culverts at the Saturn Boulevard river crossing generate high turbulence, enhancing the transfer of toxic wastewater pollutants. The location was identified by members of the local community as a source of particularly strong odors.  |  Credit: Beatriz Klimeck / UC San Diego

Now, a new study from scientists at UC, San Diego Scripps Institution of Oceanography; UC, Riverside; San Diego State University; the National Science Foundation; and National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) says the residents are not imagining things. The research found that the contaminated river is contaminating the air—releasing large quantities of the toxic gas hydrogen sulfide—commonly known as “sewer gas” because of its rotten egg smell.

In September 2024, the team had set up air quality monitors in San Diego’s Nestor community in the South Bay. One location was where water tumbles from a culvert, which as it falls, creates enough turbulence to send aerosolized particles of pollutants from the river into the air.

The scientists measured peak concentrations of hydrogen sulfide that were some 4,500 times what is typical for an urban area. In addition, they identified hundreds of other gases released into the air by the river and its ocean outflow, showing for the first time, a direct link between poor water quality and bad air quality—a connection lead investigator Kimberly Prather says had not been made before.

Untreated sewage and industrial waste have plagued the Tijuana River for decades, causing long-term closures of beaches. In July, the U.S. and Mexico signed a memorandum of understanding that requires both nations to expedite stormwater and sewage infrastructure projects on each side of the border.  

Last week, EPA announced the completion of a ten-million-gallon-per-day expansion of the South Bay International Wastewater Treatment Plant in San Diego, which could help mitigate the issue, but as inewsource reports, it’s unclear as to when it will be operating at its new capacity.

The paper was published in the journal Science.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION

https://h2oradio.org

Heat Waves Are Becoming More Frequent and Intense in Rivers

Heat waves are becoming more frequent and intense across the U.S., so perhaps this summer you took a dip in a river to cool off. However, according to new research it might not have been as refreshing as it once was. 

Credit: Dillon Groves/Unsplash

A new study from Penn State found that heat waves are happening in rivers too, and they’re accelerating faster than and lasting nearly twice as long as the heat waves in the air. It’s a surprising finding, given that many rivers are fed by snowmelt and underground streams, but the team found that periods of abnormally high temperatures in rivers are becoming more common, more intense, and longer-lasting than they were 40 years ago. Lead author Li Li (李黎) wrote in The Conversation that the increased heat puts stress on aquatic ecosystems and can also raise the cost of treating drinking water. 

The team collected river data at nearly 1,500 sites in the contiguous United States between 1980 and 2022. They found that temperatures rose above 59 °F (15 °C)—a threshold that can stress many species—at 82 percent of study areas for an average of 11.6 days per year. The places where the waters warmed the fastest were in the Northeast, the Rocky Mountains, and Appalachia.

The authors say climate change is driving river heat waves, as rising air temperatures affect water conditions. Changing precipitation patterns with global warming are shrinking winter snowpacks, leaving less meltwater to support river health. Low, slow-moving water warms more easily and holds less oxygen, creating dangerous conditions for aquatic life and increasing the chances of large-scale die-offs. The study adds that human activities, such as dams and agriculture, play a secondary role in shaping how and where rivers are most vulnerable to these impacts.

The study was published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION

https://h2oradio.org/this-week-in-water/your-dogs-carbon-paw-print

Alaska’s Salmon River Once Ran Pure and Clear. Now, It’s Orange Because of Climate Change.

In 1977, author John McPhee wrote his nonfiction classic “Coming into the Country.” It describes how he and a group of men canoed the Salmon River in the Brooks Range of Alaska to assess its potential for Wild and Scenic status—a designation that would provide long-term federal protection. On their trip, they found abundant Arctic grayling (Thymallus arcticus), chum salmon (Oncorhynchus keta)—and as McPhee writes, “the clearest, purest water I have ever seen flowing over rocks,” which allowed them to “see down 15 feet in pools.”

In Alaska’s Brooks Range, rivers once clear enough to drink from now run orange and hazy with toxic metals.  |  Credit: Taylor Roades

Not anymore. These days, the Salmon River runs orange—contaminated with toxic metals. Not because of acid mine drainage—although the water has the same ocher color—but because of climate change. According to new research from the University of California, Riverside, permafrost—the frozen Arctic soil that has locked away minerals for thousands of years—is beginning to thaw with a warming planet. As it thaws, water and oxygen creep into the exposed soil, triggering the breakdown of sulfide-rich rocks and creating sulfuric acid that leaches naturally occurring metals like iron, cadmium, and aluminum from rocks into the river, which poisons fish and damages ecosystems. 

According to a press release, the team’s analysis confirmed that thawing permafrost was unleashing geochemical reactions that oxidize sulfide-rich rocks like pyrite, generating acidity and mobilizing a wide suite of metals, including cadmium, which accumulates in fish organs and could affect animals like bears and birds that eat fish. The authors say that levels for several of the metals exceed EPA toxicity thresholds for aquatic life. Additionally, the cloudy water reduces the amount of light reaching the bottom of the river and smothers insect larvae that salmon and other fish eat.

According to the study, the Salmon River is not alone. A recent inventory in the same mountain range identified 75 streams that have recently turned orange and turbid. The authors say it’s likely happening across the Arctic. Wherever there’s the right kind of rock and thawing permafrost, the process can start. Unfortunately, co-author, Tim Lyons, said once it starts, it can’t be stopped, calling it “another irreversible shift driven by a warming planet.”

The study was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION

https://h2oradio.org/this-week-in-water/a-high-five-for-the-high-seas

The Red Sea that vanished and the catastrophic flood that brought it back

KAUST researchers find the Red Sea experienced a massive disruption 6.2 million years ago completely changing its marine life.

Source:King Abdullah University of Science & Technology (KAUST)

Summary:Researchers at KAUST have confirmed that the Red Sea once vanished entirely, turning into a barren salt desert before being suddenly flooded by waters from the Indian Ocean. The flood carved deep channels and restored marine life in less than 100,000 years. This finding redefines the Red Sea’s role as a key site for studying how oceans form and evolve through extreme geological events.Share:

    

FULL STORY

When the Red Sea Became a Desert
Around 6.2 million years ago, the Red Sea completely dried up before a monumental flood from the Indian Ocean refilled it in less than 100,000 years. Credit: Shutterstock

Scientists at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) have provided conclusive evidence that the Red Sea completely dried out about 6.2 million years ago, before being suddenly refilled by a catastrophic flood from the Indian Ocean. The findings put a definitive time on a dramatic event that changed the Red Sea.

Using seismic imaging, microfossil evidence, and geochemical dating techniques, the KAUST researchers showed that a massive change happened in about 100,000 years – a blink of an eye for a major geological event. The Red Sea went from connecting with the Mediterranean Sea to an empty, salt-filled basin. Then, a massive flood burst through volcanic barriers to open the Bab el-Mandab strait and reconnect the Red Sea with the world’s oceans.

“Our findings show that the Red Sea basin records one of the most extreme environmental events on Earth, when it dried out completely and was then suddenly reflooded about 6.2 million years ago,” said lead author Dr. Tihana Pensa of KAUST. “The flood transformed the basin, restored marine conditions, and established the Red Sea’s lasting connection to the Indian Ocean.”

How the Indian Ocean Flooded the Red Sea

The Red Sea was initially connected from the north to the Mediterranean through a shallow sill. This connection was severed, drying the Red Sea into a barren salt desert. In the south of the Red Sea, near the Hanish Islands, a volcanic ridge separated the sea from the Indian Ocean. But around 6.2 million years ago, seawater from the Indian Ocean surged across this barrier in a catastrophic flood. The torrent carved a 320-kilometer-long submarine canyon that is still visible today on the seafloor. The flood rapidly refilled the basin, drowning the salt flats and restoring normal marine conditions in less than 100,000 years. This event happened nearly a million years before the Mediterranean was refilled by the famous Zanclean flood, giving the Red Sea a unique story of rebirth.

Why the Red Sea Matters Geologically

The Red Sea formed by separation of the Arabian Plate from the African Plate beginning 30 million years ago. Initially, the sea was a narrow rift valley filled with lakes, then became a wider gulf when it was flooded from the Mediterranean 23 million years ago. Marine life thrived initially, as seen by the fossil reefs along the northern coast near Duba and Umlujj. However, evaporation and poor seawater circulation increased salinity, causing the extinction of marine life between 15 and 6 million years ago. Additionally, the basin was filled with layers of salt and gypsum. This culminated in complete desiccation of the Red Sea. The catastrophic flood from the Indian Ocean restored marine life in the Red, which persists in the coral reefs to the present.

All in all, the Red Sea is a natural laboratory for understanding how oceans are born, how salt giants accumulate, and how climate and tectonics interact over millions of years. The discovery highlights how closely the Red Sea’s history is linked with global ocean change. It also shows that the region has experienced environmental extremes before, only to return as a thriving marine ecosystem.

“This paper adds to our knowledge about the processes that form and expand oceans on Earth. It also maintains KAUST’s leading position in Red Sea research,” said co-author KAUST Professor Abdulkader Al Afifi.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/10/251007081831.htm

They’re smaller than dust, but crucial for Earth’s climate

Microscopic plankton that regulate Earth’s climate and sustain ocean ecosystems take center stage in a new awareness campaign.

Source:Ruđer Bošković Institute

Summary:Coccolithophores, tiny planktonic architects of Earth’s climate, capture carbon, produce oxygen, and leave behind geological records that chronicle our planet’s history. European scientists are uniting to honor them with International Coccolithophore Day on October 10. Their global collaboration highlights groundbreaking research into how these microscopic organisms link ocean chemistry, climate regulation, and carbon storage. The initiative aims to raise awareness that even the smallest ocean dwellers have planetary impact.Share:

    

FULL STORY

Tiny Ocean Creatures Key to Climate Stability
Microscopic view of a coccolithophore (Syracosphaera pulchra), a single-celled ocean alga whose intricate calcium plates (coccoliths) play a role in the global carbon cycle. Credit: Dr. Jelena Godrijan, Ruđer Bošković Institute

Smaller than a grain of dust and shaped like minute discs, coccolithophores are microscopic ocean dwellers with an outsized influence on the planet’s climate. These tiny algae remove carbon from seawater, release oxygen, and create delicate calcite plates that eventually sink to the ocean floor. Over time, these plates form chalk and limestone layers that record Earth’s climate history. Today, five European research institutions announced a new effort to establish October 10 as International Coccolithophore Day, drawing attention to the organisms’ vital contributions to carbon regulation, oxygen production, and the health of marine ecosystems that sustain life on Earth.

The initiative is being led by the Ruđer Bošković Institute (Zagreb, Croatia), the Lyell Centre at Heriot-Watt University (Edinburgh, UK), NORCE Norwegian Research Centre (Bergen, Norway), Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre (MARE) at the University of Lisbon (Portugal), and the International Nannoplankton Association (INA).

A Delicate Balance Under Threat

Few people are aware of coccolithophores, yet without them, the planet’s oceans and climate would look drastically different. These single-celled algae, which contain chlorophyll, float in the sunlit layers of the sea and are coated with calcium carbonate plates known as coccoliths.

Though incredibly small, coccolithophores are among Earth’s most effective natural carbon regulators. Every year, they generate more than 1.5 billion tonnes of calcium carbonate, capturing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and storing it in deep-sea sediments. In addition to removing carbon, they produce oxygen, nourish marine food webs, and influence the planet’s greenhouse balance.

Coccolithophores often dominate vast stretches of the ocean, but climate change is altering the temperature, chemistry, and nutrient makeup of seawater. These shifts pose serious risks to their survival—and to the stability of the ecosystems that depend on them.

Why Coccolithophores?

What makes coccolithophores stand out from other plankton is both their role in the global carbon cycle and the unique record they leave behind. “Unlike other groups, they build intricate calcium carbonate plates that not only help draw down carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, but also transport it into deep ocean sediments, where it can be locked away for millennia. This biomineralization leaves behind an exceptional geological record, allowing us to study how they’ve responded to past climate shifts and better predict their future role. In short, their dual role as carbon pumps and climate archives makes them irreplaceable in understanding and tackling climate change,” says Professor Alex Poulton of the Lyell Centre.

“They are the ocean’s invisible architects, crafting the tiny plates that become vast archives of Earth’s climate,” says Dr. Jelena Godrijan, a leading coccolithophore researcher at the Ruđer Bošković Institute. “By studying their past and current responses to changes in the ocean, we can better understand how marine ecosystems function and explore how natural processes might help us tackle climate change.”

Cutting-Edge Science: From Plankton to Planetary Processes

The launch of International Coccolithophore Day spotlights the tiny ocean plankton that quietly help regulate atmospheric carbon dioxide.

At the Lyell Centre in Scotland, the OceanCANDY team, led by Prof. Alex Poulton, studies how these plankton pull CO2 from the air and store it in the sea, and tests how warmer, more acidic oceans could alter this process. Computer forecasts compare which species do this job best, today and tomorrow.

In Norway, scientists at NORCE Research, led by Dr. Kyle Mayers and his team, track coccolithophore life stories, how they grow, who eats them, and the viruses that infect and ultimately kill them, to show how carbon moves through the ocean. Ancient DNA in seafloor mud adds a long view of past climate shifts. “Coccolithophore interactions with viruses and grazers matter,” says Dr. Kyle Mayers of NORCE. “These links shape food webs and how the ocean stores carbon.”

In Croatia, the Cocco team at the Ruđer Bošković Institute study how they shape the ocean’s carbon cycle, from the decay of organic matter to bacterial interactions that influence seawater chemistry and CO2 uptake. “In understanding coccolithophores, we’re really uncovering the living engine of the ocean’s carbon balance,” says Dr. Jelena Godrijan “Their interactions with bacteria determine how carbon moves and transforms — processes that connect the microscopic scale of plankton to the stability of our planet’s climate.”

At MARE, University of Lisbon, Dr. Catarina V. Guerreiro leads studies to trace how aerosol-driven fertilization shapes the distribution of coccolithophores across the Atlantic into the Southern Ocean, and what that means for the ocean’s carbon pumps today and in recent times. Her approach consists of combining aerosol and seawater samples with sediment records, satellite data and lab microcosms to pin down cause and effect. “We’re connecting tiny chalky organisms to planetary carbon flows,” says Dr. Guerreiro.

At INA, scientists connect living coccolithophores to their fossil record, using their microscopic plates to date rocks and trace Earth’s climate history. By refining global biostratigraphic frameworks and calibrating species’ evolutionary timelines, INA researchers transform fossils of coccolithophores into precise tools for reconstructing ancient oceans, linking modern plankton ecology with the geological record of climate change.

Why Coccolithophore Day Matters?

Designating a day for Coccolithophores may seem like a small gesture, but its advocates argue it could have a big impact. “This could contribute to changing the way we see the ocean. “We most often talk about whales, coral reefs, and ice caps, but coccolithophores are a vital part of the planet’s climate system. They remind us that the smallest organisms can have the biggest impact, and that microscopic life plays a crucial role in shaping our planet’s future, ” says Dr. Sarah Cryer from the CHALKY project and OceanCANDY team.

The campaign to establish October 10 as International Coccolithophore Day is a call to action. By highlighting the profound, yet often overlooked, role of coccolithophores, scientists want to inspire a new wave of ocean literacy, policy focus, and public engagement.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/10/251010091548.htm

Investigators

Portable tests could detect “forever chemicals” in your home’s drinking water

By Tara Molina

We know how important clean water is, but tricky chemicals that get into our water can be hard to detect, posing dangers to our water systems and our health ­– until now.

Researchers with the University of Chicago have teamed up with Argonne National Labs in Lemont to detect the smallest chemicals in our water in an effort to make it safer and healthier for all.

PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are better known as “forever chemicals.” They’re man-made compounds that are found in places like fast food packaging, firefighters’ foams and other places. They’re long-lasting chemicals and do not naturally degrade, instead accumulating in the environment and our bodies over time, which is why the Environmental Protection Agency issued regulations on them last year.

Until recently, they were somewhat difficult to detect in drinking water, but labs like Argonne are making gains.

“It affects essentially all of us, and it is, in fact, dangerous,” Argonne’s Seth Darling said. “They’re really toxic to humans. They’ve been linked to cancer, they’ve been linked to reproductive issues, thyroid problems, all kinds of health issues.”

Darling is working alongside Junhong Chen, with UChicago’s Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering. They’re building a first-of-its-kind sensor that can detect PFAS in water.

“The work we are doing here is really important, because now we have a way to be able to measure this PFAS,” Chen said. “Almost the only way to measure for PFAS is to take the water sample and send it to a high-end analytical laboratory for the analysis.”

Darling says that, because the chemicals are dangerous even at low concentrations, you need a technique that can test for extremely low levels. The sensor they’re behind can detect down to what would equate to one grain of sand in an Olympic-sized swimming pool, or 250 parts per quadrillion.

Typically, this level of inspection would require intensive and expensive lab testing. Their goal is to make these tests accessible for anyone to make sure their water is safe, directly from their home.

“What’s important here is developing new ways,” Darling said, “low-cost, fast ways to determine: Is there PFAS in your water and, if so, how much?”

Other universities in the Chicago area have also delved in to research PFAS. Back in the spring, Northwestern University professor of chemistry SonBinh Nguyen and professor of engineering Tim Wei developed a graphene oxide solution that is water- and oil-resistant and could be a replacement for PFAS in items such as takeout coffee cups.

Adam Harrington contributed to this report.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION

https://www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news/chicago-researchers-portable-tests-forever-chemicals-drinking-water/?intcid=CNM-00-10abd1h

States With the Most Lead Drinking Water Pipes

Nearly a tenth of the nation’s drinking water service lines contain lead, new data shows.

By Chris Gilligan

U.S. News & World Report

States With the Most Lead Pipes

More

A piece of old lead pipe is seen in 2016 in Chicago. (Abel Uribe/Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

TNS

A piece of old lead pipe is seen in 2016 in Chicago.

https://cdn.instaread.co/player?article=states-with-the-most-lead-drinking-water-pipes&publication=usnews.com&article_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.usnews.com%2Fnews%2Fbest-states%2Farticles%2Fstates-with-the-most-lead-pipes&version=1759878000000

In a first-of-its-kind report, the Environmental Protection Agency has released a comprehensive assessment on lead pipe infrastructure across the United States, revealing that an estimated total of 9.2 million lead pipes serviced American homes in 2021.

According to the report, lead service lines are estimated to make up over 9% of the entire national service line infrastructure, exposing much of America’s drinking water to lead contamination.

The EPA says there are no safe levels of lead in children’s blood, as lead exposure has been tied to an array of adverse health effects in children, including behavioral problems, lower IQ and slowed growth. In adults, lead exposure is linked with decreased cardiovascular health and kidney function, and lead exposure in pregnant women is linked to premature births.

The bulk of the nation’s lead pipe infrastructure is concentrated in a handful of states, including many of the Rust Belt states in the Great Lakes region. Florida has the most lead service lines in the country, with its 1.16 million lines accounting for 12.6% of the country’s total. Over 50% of the national service lines are concentrated in six states: Florida, Illinois (11.4%), Ohio (8.1%), Pennsylvania (7.5%), Texas (7.1%) and New York (5.4%).

Lead service lines are far less common west of the Mississippi River, with Texas as the lone exception. Notably, California’s service line infrastructure, which serves the largest state population over the third-largest area, has less than 13,500 lead service lines, or about 0.15% of the national total.

Federal law prohibits installing new lead plumbing because of its dangers to health. In 2021, the Biden Administration announced an aggressive plan to replace all lead service lines in the next decade as part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and earlier this year the EPA announced that $1.2 billion had already been distributed to 23 states to address that goal. But the costs associated with such an effort are significant. Over the next two decades, the EPA report estimates that $625 billion is needed to address the challenges with drinking water infrastructure.

[ EXPLORE: More on Public Water System Violations ]

Lead exposure does not impact all American demographics evenly. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention published a study in 2021 indicating that non-Hispanic Black or African American children were at particular risk, as well as children living in areas with higher poverty rates.

Although the Safe Drinking Water Act, which was enacted 1974 and amended most recently in 1996, aims to ensure the public’s access to contaminant-free water, large-scale issues with drinking water distribution systems are still prevalent. Spikes in the rates of lead in children’s blood in 2015 sparked the start of a years-long water crisis in Flint, Michigan. The city of Jackson, Mississippi, which endured days with a full water outage last August and September, has ongoing projects to reduce elevated levels of lead in its water supply, and lead contamination has led to crises in Newark, New Jersey, Chicago and Washington, D.C., among other communities.

These are the states with the most lead pipes, according to the EPA:

  1. Florida
  2. Illinois
  3. Ohio
  4. Pennsylvania
  5. Texas
  6. New York
  7. Tennessee
  8. North Carolina
  9. New Jersey
  10. Wisconsin

CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION

https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/articles/states-with-the-most-lead-pipes

Questions Over Water Rights Could Halt Construction at Thacker Pass Lithium Mine

A dispute over water could jeopardize ongoing construction of what will eventually be the world’s largest lithium mine

By Associated Press

U.S. News & World Report

Questions Over Water Rights Could Halt Construction at Thacker Pass Lithium Mine

More

https://cdn.instaread.co/player?article=questions-over-water-rights-could-halt-construction-at-thacker-pass-lithium-mine&publication=usnews.com&article_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.usnews.com%2Fnews%2Fbest-states%2Fnevada%2Farticles%2F2025-07-01%2Fquestions-over-water-rights-could-halt-construction-at-thacker-pass-lithium-mine&version=1759878000000

A dispute over water could jeopardize ongoing construction of what will eventually be the world’s largest lithium mine.

Lithium Americas Corporation filed an emergency motion Monday seeking clarification about whether it needs to stop pumping water to its Thacker Pass lithium mining project in Northern Nevada.

Local rancher Edward Bartell has sued over the project, claiming the company’s water pumping will harm his cattle operation. Nevada’s state engineer had previously found that the company could move forward with its plans to pump water, but a judge partially reversed that finding. Then, last week, the state engineer issued a cease and desist letter to the Canada-based mining company.

In lieu of a legal clarification of the previous decision, Lithium Americas is asking for a limited stay — or temporary suspension — that would allow it to proceed with construction.

“The ruling never mentions … that pumping needs to be halted,” said Tim Crowley, vice president of government and external affairs at Lithium Americas. “We don’t think the judge intended that result.”

Thacker Pass is the largest known lithium resource and reserve in the world. The company needs about 200 acre-feet of water per year during construction, which will continue through 2027. An acre-foot of water is enough to cover roughly a football field with water 1 foot deep or to supply roughly two urban households with indoor and outdoor water needs for a year.

about:blank

Once in production, the company will require about 2,600 acre-feet of water per year.

If the emergency motion is denied, the company said in its filing that it will be “irreparably harmed,” as will the people who are, and plan to be, employed by the company. During construction, the company expects to employ close to 2,000 people.

“We need water to move forward with construction,” Crowley said, noting that construction has been at “full bore” on the $3 billion project since receiving its final investment decision in April, with plans to “go vertical with steel” as soon as August. Construction costs total more than $1 million per day.

Read: Passengers Flee Smoking Jet on Emergency Slide After Apparent Landing Gear Problem at Denver Airport

The company is asking for the court to issue its decision by July 7, as that’s when the state engineer expects compliance with the cease and desist letter. The company is also working on ways to secure water temporarily, Crowley said, although he declined to provide details.

READ: The 10 Oldest U.S. Presidents

“We are confident we are not going to have to stop construction,” he said.

Bartell, the rancher who filed the suit that led to the order for the company to stop pumping, told The Nevada Independent in a brief call that “obviously we’re going to challenge (the company’s emergency motion).”

Timeline

Thacker Pass is in a mountainous area northwest of Winnemucca; extraction companies have eyed Thacker Pass since the 1970s, when lithium was found at the site. In 2007, the company that is now Lithium Americas renewed exploration at the site, and in 2020, the company submitted its environmental impact statement to the Bureau of Land Management (BLM).

That same year, Lithium Americas filed an application seeking to move permitted water rights it had previously obtained in the Quinn River Valley closer to the mine site, which sits to the west of the valley.

Bartell protested, claiming the change application would conflict with his existing water rights.

The BLM approved permits for Thacker Pass in 2021 during the final days of President Donald Trump’s first administration, allowing the mining project to move forward, and ultimately, the state engineer granted Lithium America’s request to relocate its water rights, as long as it kept them within the Quinn River Valley.

Lithium Americas adapted to that limitation by constructing an 8-mile-long pipeline to move the water uphill from the valley to the mine site.

In March 2023, Bartell filed a petition for judicial review; the matter didn’t receive an oral hearing until February of this year.

On April 10, the Sixth Judicial District Court of Nevada issued an order reversing the state engineer’s decision on two of the five water rights claims brought forth in the matter, returning them to application status. In the ruling, the court pointed out that the state engineer’s determination that the company’s effects to Bartell’s water rights and cattle operation “is not rooted in scientific fact” because it had “assumed” — rather than scientifically determining — there was enough water in two of the five contested claims.

On April 28, the state engineer issued a letter to Lithium Americas alerting the company that permits for two wells had been returned to application status following the ruling. The state engineer asked the company for additional information that would help “develop a more thorough understanding of the water sources” related to the claims, including data such as flow measurements or pumping test data.

On June 4, staff from the Nevada Division of Water Resources (DWR) found during an investigation of Lithium America’s property that the company was still pumping water.

On June 17, DWR received a letter from Bartell containing photographs showing the company continued to pump water following the June 4 investigation. Meter readings on file with the division confirm that water was pumped from the well since the April ruling.

On June 20, DWR issued a letter to the company stating that “the State Engineer hereby directs LNC to immediately CEASE AND DESIST any further pumping from the Quinn #1 well. The State Engineer likewise hereby notifies LNC that it is prohibited from pumping water from any other well that is proposed as a point of diversion under the above-mentioned applications, including but not limited to the Quinn #2 well.”

Crowley confirmed to The Nevada Independent that the company continues to pump water from the wells while it comes up with an alternative.

“Our interpretation of the cease and desist order is we have 14 days to comply, and no one from the state has suggested that we’re wrong,” Crowley said.

Ongoing legal challenges

The cease and desist order is the latest in a line of legal challenges that has plagued the lithium project.

In 2021, a slew of environmental groups filed a joint lawsuit alleging the BLM violated various federal acts by approving the mine’s environmental impact statement and another suit filed by the Reno-Sparks Indian Colony and other Indigenous people alleged the BLM violated the National Historic Preservation Act.

Bartell also sued, alleging the BLM violated the Endangered Species Act by failing to consider the mine’s effects on Lahontan cutthroat trout and other various environmental concerns.

The suit stood in apparent opposition to a suit he’d filed just two years earlier — not related to the mine — against a project aimed at preserving the trout. In that suit, he objected to the agency’s 2017 decision to allow the Nevada Department of Wildlife to apply rotenone, a type of fish poison, to eradicate non-native brook trout in a portion of Falls Canyon Creek in an effort to restore threatened Lahontan cutthroat trout.

The three suits were dismissed. In 2023, the Reno-Sparks Indian Colony and two other tribes filed a new suit alleging the BLM didn’t consult with them before the project and withheld historical information. That suit also was dismissed.

___

This story was originally published by The Nevada Independent and distributed through a partnership with The Associated Press.

Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION

https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/nevada/articles/2025-07-01/questions-over-water-rights-could-halt-construction-at-thacker-pass-lithium-mine