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Analysis indicates ingested microplastics migrate into whales’ fat and organs

Greg Merrill, a PhD student in the University Program in Ecology, recently shared insights into his research focus, the Nowacek Lab, the impacts of his research and what he has learned working in the lab.

Brianna Elliott, a PhD student in the Marine Science and Conservation program, recently shared insights into her research focus, the Read Lab, the impacts of her research and the most rewarding part of her research experience.

Researchers at 51����’s Nicholas School of the Environment and Pratt School of Engineering are co-leading a new National Science Foundation-funded project that aims to boost economic development and climate resilience in coastal North Carolina through nature-based scientific and technological innovations.

China’s annual carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions exceeded 10 gigatons in 2018 for the first time in history and are expected to continue to grow. The nation’s leaders have pledged to peak CO2 emissions by 2030 and to reach carbon neutrality by 2060.

The 51���� Plastic Pollution Working Group is working to find solutions, through innovative technologies, practices and policies that can help curb plastic waste, reduce its harmful impacts, and make Earth a greener, healthier home for us all.

51���� leaders rise to face the challenges of climate change.

The Illuminating Hidden Harvests Report culminates a collaborative research effort led by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 51���� and WorldFish examining the multifaceted contributions of small-scale fisheries to sustainable development.

51���� scholars and students were among more than 800 experts who contributed to global study calling for policymakers to consider contributions of small fisheries

Climate change and rapid economic development have placed increased pressures on many coastal communities in recent years. Now, a new international study shows there is also a third force—the unintended consequences of conservation measures enacted with little or no consideration of local rights and needs—that can compound the harm. The study’s authors call the combined effects of these three forces a “triple exposure.”

New GIS-enabled analysis by a 51���� researcher maps what the far-reaching impacts to international trade and shipping could be if any of the world’s 11 busiest marine chokepoints, or shipping straits, are closed due to politics, piracy, vessel accidents, or other causes. Knowing in advance what to expect will help businesses and governments better navigate unexpected closures and reduce disruptions to international trade and global supply chains.

Sand mining happens on every inhabited continent and at nearly every conceivable scale. Some of it is legal; much of it is not. A new book from 51���� Press, “Vanishing Sands: Losing Beaches to Mining,” casts light on the shadowy world of sand mining through case studies that illuminate its disastrous impacts and a concluding chapter that proposes common-sense solutions.

Mixing toxic coal ash into acid mine drainage may sound like an odd recipe for an environmental solution, but a new 51����-led study finds that it can neutralize the drainage’s dangerously low pH and help reduce harmful impacts on downstream ecosystems—if you use the right type of ash. Using the wrong type of ash can create new contamination and not tame the drainage’s extreme acidity.

A 51����-led research team has used acoustic tags to eavesdrop on pilot whales as they forage in waters off Cape Hatteras, N.C. Vocalizations and echoes recorded by the tags reveals the whales alter their hunting behaviors based on the local environment, a trait that may contribute to the species’ success in adapting to shifting prey distributions and other changes now occurring in the world’s oceans.

Most North Atlantic right whales that are severely injured in fishing gear entanglements die within three years, a study by the New England Aquarium and 51���� finds. Severely injured whales were up to eight times more likely to die than those with minor injuries, and only 44% of males and 33% of females with severe injuries survived longer than 36 months. Females that did survive had low birth rates and longer intervals between calving.