Loved joining @worthingtonbry.bsky.social on the Cleaning Up Podcast (@cleaninguppod.bsky.social) this week, to talk about how microbes shape our climate, generate green energy, and help to minimize agriculture’s environmental impact. Tune in: www.cleaningup.live/socials/
Where to Find Cleaning Up
Cleaning Up's official channels: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@CleaningUpPod Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0msi0HzVNM05S6rMO5bbpn?si=fcb95bc475e241…
cleaningup.live
I’m pleased to announce the publication of a new edition of Processes in Microbial Ecology, a textbook covering all microbes in soils, lakes and the oceans. It has many new things, including a coauthor, Ashley Shade. Available online at academic.oup.com/book/63173
Processes in Microbial Ecology
Abstract. Processes in Microbial Ecology discusses the major processes carried out by viruses, bacteria, archaea, fungi, protozoa, and other protists—the m
academic.oup.com
"By being the largest carbon emitter in history, the US has caused greater harm to worldwide economic growth than any other country, ahead of China, now the world’s largest emitter that is responsible for $9tn in GDP damage since 1990." www.theguardian.com/environment/...
US has caused $10tn worth of climate damage since 1990, research finds
US, top carbon emitter in history, has ‘a lot of responsibility’ for causing ‘substantial’ harm globally, scientist says
theguardian.com
Because of AI power demands "batteries will account for some 28% of new U.S. power plant capacity built this year. For the first time, the country will be able to produce enough grid batteries to meet that surging demand on its own," www.canarymedia.com/articles/cle...
Suddenly, the US manufactures a ton of grid batteries
Energy storage is surging on the U.S. grid — and now the country has more than enough battery-making factories to meet that booming demand.
canarymedia.com
"the top 25 list..is dominated by facilities in Turkmenistan...Super-polluting plumes were also seen in the US, the largest detected in 2025 occurring in Texas.. Venezuela (five) and Iran (three) also had multiple mega-leaks. www.theguardian.com/environment/...
Revealed: the world’s worst mega-leaks of methane driving global heating
Exclusive: Fixing a leak can be simple and equivalent to closing a coal power station, making lack of action maddening, say analysts
theguardian.com
This blog post is about how to use large language models (i.e. AI) in analyzing ecological data. The bottom line: "LLMs can help you do better statistics, but only if you ask well. And “asking well” is a learnable skill." www.r-bloggers.com/2026/03/prom...
Prompting large language models for quality ecological statistics | R-bloggers
Like it or not, everyone is using large languageden models to help do their statistics. There’s a lot of claims made about whether LLMs can or can’t do useful ecological statistics. In our new paper “...
r-bloggers.com
"a conventional wastewater treatment plant... captures over 95% of methane, compared to roughly 50% at landfills, saving the atmosphere from additional greenhouse gases. theconversation.com/how-sewage-t...
How sewage treatment plants could handle food waste, sparing landfills and the climate
Rather than generating climate-warming emissions and wasting nutrients and energy, food waste can become a resource if processed in sewage treatment plants.
theconversation.com
Owusu et al. say that either top-down control (e.g. grazing) or nutrient limitation (e.g. N) shape bacterial communities which in turn set DOC levels in the oceans. The EOS piece by @saimamay.bsky.social is a good summary. eos.org/research-spo... @saimamay.bsky.social
Bacteria Decide the Ocean’s Dissolved Organic Carbon Abundance - Eos
Dissolved organic carbon prevalence follows from how many bacteria are around to eat it, modeling suggests.
eos.org
"..this study provides strong evidence that microbial sources, such as those from wetlands, agriculture, and waste, are primarily responsible for the post-2006 methane rise.." but the microbes are being stimulated by global warming. www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
PNAS
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), a peer reviewed journal of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) - an authoritative source of high-impact, original research that broadly spans...
pnas.org
"Air-Borne reads like a real-world thriller, filled with human ingenuity, persistence, hubris, and arrogance; with pandemics and biological weapons; and, so it seems, with every bad decision under the sun." @carlzimmer.com inquisitivebiologist.com/2025/07/23/b...
Book review – Air-Borne: The Hidden History of the Life We Breathe
A real-world thriller of hubris, pandemics, and biological weapons, Air-Borne brilliantly tells the complex and multifaceted history of aerobiology.
inquisitivebiologist.com
This review by the Inquisitive Biologist almost convinced me to get Macfarlene's latest (loved his last book, Underland). inquisitivebiologist.com/2025/07/04/b...
Book review – Is a River Alive?
Is a River Alive? is a hydrological odyssey into three river systems that sees Macfarlane wrestle with this question and examine its relevance to the nascent Rights of Nature movement.
inquisitivebiologist.com
Bans on plastic bags like in Delaware work. This WaPo article is based on a report just published in Science by Delaware's Kimberly Oremus. @kimberlyoremus.bsky.social @washingtonpost.com, @allysonchiu.bsky.social www.washingtonpost.com/climate-solu...
Plastic bag fees and bans help protect beaches and riverbanks, study finds
But even places with bag policies are seeing a greater prevalence of plastic bags on beaches and riverbanks.
washingtonpost.com
Another useful review by the Inquisitive Biologist about an interesting book. inquisitivebiologist.com/2025/06/18/b...
Book review – Super Natural: How Life Thrives in Impossible Places
An entertaining romp through life’s outliers, Super Natural explores the extreme conditions under which some organisms not only survive, but often thrive.
inquisitivebiologist.com
"Ebb plans to use a method called electrochemical ocean alkalinity enhancement (OAE) to mimic the natural process of ocean alkalisation – in other words, it wants to add huge amounts of alkaline materials to ocean waters..." @climatenews.bsky.social www.theguardian.com/environment/...
A drop in the ocean: does experimental technology hold the key to saving the world’s seas?
Investment is pouring into companies promising to geoengineer a rapid change in the pH of our waters – but critics are concerned at the speed at which unproven methods are being adopted
theguardian.com
Ocean acidification’s “planetary boundary” was crossed about five years ago. @climatenews.bsky.social www.theguardian.com/environment/...
‘Ticking timebomb’: sea acidity has reached critical levels, threatening entire ecosystems – study
Ocean acidification has already crossed a crucial threshold for planetary health, scientists say in unexpected finding
theguardian.com
Carbon Brief also reports that EV sales in emerging markets in Asia and Latin America in 2024 rose by 60% @carbonbrief.org www.carbonbrief.org/analysis-cle...
Analysis: Clean energy just put China’s CO2 emissions into reverse for first time - Carbon Brief
For the first time, the growth in China’s clean power generation has caused the nation’s carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions to fall despite rapid power demand growth.
carbonbrief.org
"Previous research from Sweden has found men’s spending on goods causes 16% more climate-heating emissions than women’s." @us.theguardian.com www.theguardian.com/environment/...
Car use and meat consumption drive emissions gender gap, research suggests
The French study of 15,000 people shows men emit 26% more pollution due to eating red meat and driving more
theguardian.com
"Sunnier, windier days helped propel clean sources past gas and coal in March. " Probably won't last but enjoy the good news for a bit. www.canarymedia.com/articles/cle...
Chart: In a first, clean power beat fossil fuels on US grid last month
Sunnier, windier days helped propel clean sources past gas and coal in March. It’s a milestone for the U.S. energy transition.
canarymedia.com
"For managed honeybees, a lack of nutrition, poor handling practices and rampant infestation by varroa mites, a type of parasite, and diseases have also taken their toll." www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
US honeybee deaths hit record high as scientists scramble to find main cause
US Department of Agriculture calls in university to help study decline as Trump administration staff cuts sting
theguardian.com
"Two conditions are required for cooperation to evolve. First, the benefits to the individuals involved have to outweigh the costs.... Second, there has to be a way for cheaters to be detected and excluded.." @oxfordunipress.bsky.social inquisitivebiologist.com/2025/03/23/b...
Book review – Selfish Genes to Social Beings: A Cooperative History of Life
Selfish Genes to Social Beings relies on a potent combination of human-interest stories, wit, and ingenious metaphors to convince you that cooperation is an important component driving evolution.
inquisitivebiologist.com
Not all good news, but "..renewables generate 47% of the EU’s electricity in 2024. Coupled with the continent’s nuclear plants... carbon-free generators made 71% of Europe’s electricity last year, while fossil fuels produced 29%." @canarymedia.com www.canarymedia.com/articles/cle...
Three years into the Ukraine war, is Europe’s energy system cleaner?
In response to the invasion, Europe mostly ditched Russian fossil fuels and built a cleaner grid. But wholesale decarbonization has proven elusive.
canarymedia.com
This absorbing essay combines history, geology, politics and current environmental science to explore the nutrient pollution carried by the Red River from several US states to Lake Winnipeg and eventually the Arctic. @theswinerepublic.bsky.social Seeing Red open.substack.com/pub/riverrac...
Seeing Red
And...what do Abe Lincoln and walleye fishing have in common?
open.substack.com
"An unprecedented streak of ocean heat since 2023 led some scientists to think that this part of Earth’s system has fundamentally changed in a way that it cannot be reversed on a human timescale." @washingtonpost.com @kashapatel.bsky.social www.washingtonpost.com/climate-envi...
Global sea level rose higher than expected last year. Here’s why.
The rate of global sea level rise follows a trend of rapidly increasing rates over the past 30 years.
washingtonpost.com
Recent PNAS study concluded that microplastics are causing "a reduction in photosynthesis of 7 to 12 percent worldwide in plants and algae." As if there weren't enough reasons to reduce especially single-use plastic. @shannonosaka.bsky.social www.washingtonpost.com/climate-envi...
How microplastics could be affecting our food supply
It’s a new sign of how the tiny plastic particles are affecting the natural world.
washingtonpost.com
First on the list for avoiding microplastics: drink tap water, not bottled water. "Researchers have found that an average liter of bottled water contains about 240,000 plastic particles.." #plastic @washingtonpost.com www.washingtonpost.com/climate-solu...
How to eat and drink fewer microplastics
Scientists are finding microplastics throughout the human body. Here are some simple strategies to reduce your exposure.
washingtonpost.com
"The new data revealed a striking spike in marine lead pollution about 2,150 years ago. That’s around the time when... what is now Greece [was] being incorporated into the Roman Republic.." #lead #pollution @eos.org @elisecutts.bsky.social eos.org/articles/anc...
Ancient Greeks and Romans Laced the Aegean with Lead - Eos
Lead pollution in and around the Aegean Sea dates back to the Bronze Age and shows a strong spike associated with Roman expansion.
eos.org
"GMOs are likely fine for adults to consume, especially if you minimize ultra-processed foods... For pregnant women and young children, it would be very reasonable to minimize consuming GMOs and ultra-processed foods whenever possible." @washingtonpost.com www.washingtonpost.com/wellness/202...
Column | Are GMOs bad for your health? Here’s what the science says.
There’s nothing inherently unsafe about genetically modified foods. It’s the potential herbicide exposure that should give you pause.
washingtonpost.com
If not for plants, atmospheric carbon dioxide would be about 30% higher, so any reduction in their carbon consumption is really bad news for the climate. We'll see if this finding is confirmed by others. @theguardian.com www.theguardian.com/science/2025...
Plants losing appetite for carbon dioxide amid effects of warming climate
Earth’s plants and soils reached peak carbon dioxide sequestration in 2008 but proportion absorbed has been declining since, study finds
theguardian.com
