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Moving livestock is essential to the industry, but such mobility can spread disease. Considering three livestock diseases in the UK, this study finds that movement controls should be matched to the consequences of a disease and, crucially, that optimal movement bans are often far shorter than allowed under existing policy.
The diffusion of economic shocks from earthquakes is simulated at the firm level in Japan, using an agent-based model and the supply chains of nearly one million firms. Indirect losses to production are significantly larger and more persistent than direct ones.
The number of environmental activists and defenders killed per week around the world over the past 15 years has doubled. Countries with the most corruption and weakest rule of law have the highest correlation with deaths but environmental rights face threats even in industrialized countries.
Radiative cooling can reduce air-conditioning requirements. In this study, the authors demonstrated an inexpensive thermal emitter that provided continuous daytime cooling up to 9 °C outdoors on a clear, sunny New York day.
The Amazon exemplifies conflicts between extractive resource use and conservation goals. This study finds lead in livers of Amazonian game comparable to levels in industrialized nations and that lead ammunition and oil-related pollution are key sources.
Dietary changes to reduce environmental impacts depend on behavioural factors. By linking a behavioural diet shift model to an integrated assessment model, this study shows the role of social norms and self-efficacy as main drivers of widespread dietary changes.
The growing prevalence of drought conditions across the world means that mitigation and adaptation will require accounting for feedback loops between water availability and interventions. The Willamette River Valley in Oregon serves as a case study for how to use coupled human–natural systems to mitigate drought.
Climate change will affect Himalayan water resources. This study quantifies the importance of snow and glacier melt for agriculture on the Indo-Gangetic plain, finding that 129 million farmers depend on it, especially for rice and cotton, and that meltwater supports crops feeding 38 million people.
A comprehensive analysis of indigenous and local knowledge on plant uses in New Guinea shows important documentation gaps that limit biodiversity assessments. Also, many services are rare, so less likely to be documented.
Predators, including prawns, can suppress schistosomiasis by eating snail hosts. This modelling study finds that two prawn species in sub-Saharan Africa can reduce snail hosts and help control schistosomiasis at densities that maximize profits of associated aquaculture—a potential win–win.
Wild plants anchor ecosystems and local economies. The iconic resin frankincense comes from Boswellia trees. This study documents the population collapse of B. papyrifera, the main frankincense source, throughout its range, suggesting conservation and restoration is vital.
To understand transitions to more sustainable diets, an analysis of over 240,000 online recipes, their user ratings and interviews finds an increase in vegan and vegetarian recipes, and in users switching to and keeping these diets.
Mountain water resources are increasingly threatened. This study finds that a 1,400-year-old system for diverting headwater streams onto Andean slopes enhances the later water yield in downslope springs and estimates that upscaling this for Lima, Peru, could increase dry-season flows by 7.5%.
Agricultural expansion removes habitat vital for biodiversity. This modelling study finds that 4.6–11.2% of global ice-free land can be devoted to crops and 7.9–15.7% to pasture to support commonly suggested levels of local biodiversity—less than suggested in previous studies.
A large multinational survey of perceived energy affordability shows that it concerns individuals regardless of the countries’ level of income, although some patterns also related to regional, economic and cultural factors.
Thebaine, a naturally occurring opiate, is used to produce drugs that treat opiate addiction, but it must be processed using toxic reactants that produce harmful waste. In this study, the authors probed an opium-processing waste stream and identified a versatile enzyme that can be used instead.
Urgent action is needed to ensure food security and mitigate climate change. Through a multi-model comparison exercise, this study shows the potential negative trade-offs between food security and climate change mitigation if mitigation policies are carelessly designed.
The challenges of meeting food, water and energy needs are interconnected, requiring integrated assessments of land use, socioeconomic policies and climate change. This study assesses the required increases in water, trade and agricultural land needed to double food production by 2050.
Groundwater influences biophysical processes behind key ecosystem services. This study finds that many ecosystem service indicators respond nonlinearly when the water table is within a critical depth, with the potential for large effects in areas with shallow groundwater.
Although climate warming after the 1950s is clear in many studies, records suggest an earlier onset to industrial impacts. This study combines observational data with simulations and finds a weakening of temperature seasonality, attributable to human influence, over the Northern Hemisphere since the late nineteenth century.
