Emily Cox, Sean Low, Chad M Baum, Livia Fritz, Laurie Waller, Elspeth Spence, Nick Pidgeon, Rob Bellamy
{"title":"Carbon removal beyond the trees.","authors":"Emily Cox, Sean Low, Chad M Baum, Livia Fritz, Laurie Waller, Elspeth Spence, Nick Pidgeon, Rob Bellamy","doi":"10.1038/s43247-025-02226-z","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s43247-025-02226-z","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The idea of planting trees to sequester carbon is so popular that it seems to make people feel more negative towards other techniques, when presented with a range of options for carbon removal. Such a bias could hamper development of a broad and socially-robust portfolio of carbon removal options.</p>","PeriodicalId":10530,"journal":{"name":"Communications Earth & Environment","volume":"6 1","pages":"253"},"PeriodicalIF":8.1,"publicationDate":"2025-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11964908/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143794831","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
K A Crichton, K Anderson, R E Fewster, D J Charman, M Garneau, M Väliranta, M Mleczko, J N Handley, S Hodson, R E Parker, G T Swindles, M Blaauw, A V Gallego-Sala
{"title":"Satellite data indicates recent Arctic peatland expansion with warming.","authors":"K A Crichton, K Anderson, R E Fewster, D J Charman, M Garneau, M Väliranta, M Mleczko, J N Handley, S Hodson, R E Parker, G T Swindles, M Blaauw, A V Gallego-Sala","doi":"10.1038/s43247-025-02375-1","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s43247-025-02375-1","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Northern peatlands are an important carbon store in mid to high latitudes, but become increasingly discontinuous in the higher latitudes, associated with temperature and precipitation limits on plant growth. During the last four decades, mean annual temperatures in the Arctic have increased on average by ~3 °C. Warmer temperatures and longer growing seasons likely drive increases in plant productivity throughout northern latitudes, but it is not clear whether warming has resulted in lateral spread of Arctic peatlands. Using long time-series Landsat satellite data, coupled with information gathered from fieldwork in situ, we show that Arctic peatlands have likely undergone lateral expansion over the last 40 years. On 21 transects from the edges of 16 extant peatlands in the European and Canadian Arctic (both high and low Arctic locations from 62 to 79°N), over two thirds of the peatland edges we studied showed statistically significant peak-summer greening (as Normalised Difference Vegetation Index) in the last 15 to 20 years, compared to the period 1985-1995. Peak summer moisture (as normalised Difference Moisture Index) levels remained stable or increased at most study sites. The lateral expansion of Arctic peatlands suggests they are an increasingly important natural carbon sink, at least in the near term.</p>","PeriodicalId":10530,"journal":{"name":"Communications Earth & Environment","volume":"6 1","pages":"461"},"PeriodicalIF":8.1,"publicationDate":"2025-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12178905/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144368704","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Tersur T Akpensuen, Andrew D Cartmill, Simón Pérez-Márquez, Helen Sheridan, Michael R F Lee, M Jordana Rivero
{"title":"Make African grasslands climate-change resilient.","authors":"Tersur T Akpensuen, Andrew D Cartmill, Simón Pérez-Márquez, Helen Sheridan, Michael R F Lee, M Jordana Rivero","doi":"10.1038/s43247-025-02109-3","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s43247-025-02109-3","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Climate change has negatively impacted grassland productivity in Africa. Climate-smart technologies such as forage grass, legume, and herb mixtures could enhance grassland productivity and resilience, offering a sustainable solution for African pasture-based livestock systems.</p>","PeriodicalId":10530,"journal":{"name":"Communications Earth & Environment","volume":"6 1","pages":"111"},"PeriodicalIF":8.1,"publicationDate":"2025-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11828735/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143432443","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Martial A K Houessou, Zuhal Elnour, Qinqin Kong, Harald Grethe, Matthew Huber
{"title":"Heat stress causes economic and welfare disparities across agroecological zones in Burkina Faso.","authors":"Martial A K Houessou, Zuhal Elnour, Qinqin Kong, Harald Grethe, Matthew Huber","doi":"10.1038/s43247-025-02650-1","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s43247-025-02650-1","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Increased warming due to climate change can induce heat stress in humans and adversely affect labour productivity due to heat-related morbidity. Here, we use a simulation model to examine the effects of heat stress, through declined labour capacity under +1.5 °C and 3.5 °C warming scenarios on agriculture and welfare across the three agroecological zones (Sudanian, Sudano-Sahelian, and Sahelian) in Burkina Faso. In the two scenarios, domestic production declines, with outdoor labour-intensive sectors such as cropping and mining being the most affected, reducing gross domestic product by 9% and 20%, respectively. All households lose welfare in all scenarios except non-poor households in the +1.5 °C scenario. Across zones, crop production declines strongest in the crop-producing Sudanian and Sudano-Sahelian zones. In contrast, relative welfare losses are strongest for households in the Sahelian zone. The study highlights the most vulnerable sectors, household groups, and zones requiring urgent attention in heat stress adaptation and mitigation policies.</p>","PeriodicalId":10530,"journal":{"name":"Communications Earth & Environment","volume":"6 1","pages":"744"},"PeriodicalIF":8.9,"publicationDate":"2025-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12420375/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145039103","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Sara C Cuevas-Quiñones, James J Wray, Frances Rivera-Hernández, Jacob B Adler
{"title":"Evidence for a composite volcano on the rim of Jezero crater on Mars.","authors":"Sara C Cuevas-Quiñones, James J Wray, Frances Rivera-Hernández, Jacob B Adler","doi":"10.1038/s43247-025-02329-7","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-025-02329-7","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The Perseverance rover is currently exploring Jezero crater to collect, characterize and cache the first planned samples of Mars for future return to Earth. Orbital and rover observations suggest a volcanic origin for crater floor materials, sources of which have thus far been unknown. Here we describe a mountain on the crater's southeastern rim with morphological, thermophysical, and mineralogical properties consistent with explosive volcanoes previously identified on Mars and Earth. The mountain's low thermal inertia and scarcity of superposed impact craters are consistent with a fine-grained, weakly consolidated material such as volcanic ash. Possible flow margins from its northwestern flank extending onto Jezero crater's floor indicate that it could have plausibly supplied volcanic materials to the crater. If so, then radioisotope dating of igneous rock samples cached by Perseverance could eventually make this the first volcano of precisely known age on another terrestrial planet.</p>","PeriodicalId":10530,"journal":{"name":"Communications Earth & Environment","volume":"6 1","pages":"340"},"PeriodicalIF":8.1,"publicationDate":"2025-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12049271/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143966963","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Oceanic drivers of UK summer droughts.","authors":"Amulya Chevuturi, Marilena Oltmanns, Maliko Tanguy, Ben Harvey, Cecilia Svensson, Jamie Hannaford","doi":"10.1038/s43247-025-02367-1","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s43247-025-02367-1","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>UK droughts are projected to become more frequent under climate change, reinforcing the need to understand their underlying causes. Our study examines oceanic drivers of UK summer droughts and the associated teleconnection pathways. Specifically, we evaluate statistical links between standardized precipitation and streamflow indices for the UK and two North Atlantic Sea surface temperature (SST) patterns which have previously been linked to the influx of freshwater into the subpolar region. Our findings reveal that the North Atlantic SST influences UK hydrology up to 1.5 years in advance by altering the position of the North Atlantic Current, which is coupled to the location of the North Atlantic summer jet stream. The long lead time of this teleconnection pathway can inform UK drought forecasting across seasonal to interannual timescales and ultimately contribute to the advancement of sustainable water resource management in the face of increasing drought risks in the UK.</p>","PeriodicalId":10530,"journal":{"name":"Communications Earth & Environment","volume":"6 1","pages":"437"},"PeriodicalIF":8.1,"publicationDate":"2025-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12141045/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144246818","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Adrian Muwonge, Tadeo Kakooza, Paul C D Johnson, Lawrence Kisuule, Michael Kimaanga, Clovice Kankya, Barend Mark de Clare Bronsvoort, Tiziana Lembo
{"title":"Drivers of antimicrobial resistance in pig production systems of Uganda.","authors":"Adrian Muwonge, Tadeo Kakooza, Paul C D Johnson, Lawrence Kisuule, Michael Kimaanga, Clovice Kankya, Barend Mark de Clare Bronsvoort, Tiziana Lembo","doi":"10.1038/s43247-025-02506-8","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s43247-025-02506-8","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Increasing protein demand in low- and middle-income countries may accelerate livestock intensification, antibiotic overuse and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) risk. Here, we examined Uganda's growing pig sector, tracking 70 farmers and their pigs in semi-intensive and free-range systems for a year. We investigated AMR and AMR gene abundance of 668 <i>Escherichia coli</i>, <i>Klebsiella</i> and DNA isolated from 877 faecal samples using diffusion disc-method and qPCR, respectively. Pigs in semi-intensive systems were 2.2 times more likely to exhibit AMR and had higher <i>ermB</i> levels. AMR in free-range farmers was twice that of pigs but still 1.4 times less likely than in semi-intensive systems. AMR prevalence increased by 0.76% per month. Potential transmission events were more likely on semi-intensive farms (OR = 3.16, 95% CI: 2.1-4.3, <i>P</i> < 0.001), especially when farmers had higher <i>tetQ</i> levels than pigs; the reverse was true for <i>ermB</i>. Intensified urban pig production may elevate AMR risks, underscoring the need for targeted interventions.</p>","PeriodicalId":10530,"journal":{"name":"Communications Earth & Environment","volume":"6 1","pages":"517"},"PeriodicalIF":8.1,"publicationDate":"2025-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12221980/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144574966","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Yuwan Wang, Angela Gallego-Sala, Michael I Bird, Patrick Moss, Hamish A McGowan, Juan C Benavides, Eurídice N Honorio Coronado, Ted R Feldpausch
{"title":"Wildfire legacies on pyrogenic carbon stocks in Amazonian peatlands.","authors":"Yuwan Wang, Angela Gallego-Sala, Michael I Bird, Patrick Moss, Hamish A McGowan, Juan C Benavides, Eurídice N Honorio Coronado, Ted R Feldpausch","doi":"10.1038/s43247-025-02674-7","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-025-02674-7","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Amazonian peatlands are carbon-rich ecosystems that act as long-term carbon sinks but have faced increasing fire risks in recent decades. As a legacy of past fires, the contribution of pyrogenic carbon (PyC) to carbon cycling in these peatlands remains poorly understood. Here, we assess PyC accumulation variability using six cores spanning peatlands in northwestern Amazonia using hydrogen pyrolysis. We also estimate the PyC stock for the entire Amazonian peatlands by combining our field dataset with published sources. The PyC to total organic carbon ratio averaged 1.2% across our sites and increased with peat age. We estimate a total peatland PyC stock of 0.73 ± 0.61 Pg for the Amazon Basin, representing 1.6% of their TOC stock. Due to the slower turnover of PyC in peatland ecosystems, our findings indicate the importance of PyC generated by past fires and highlight the potential long-term carbon sequestration role of PyC in the future carbon cycle.</p>","PeriodicalId":10530,"journal":{"name":"Communications Earth & Environment","volume":"6 1","pages":"678"},"PeriodicalIF":8.9,"publicationDate":"2025-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12360956/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144945718","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Minimal vertical transport of microplastics in soil over two years with little impact of plastics on soil macropore networks.","authors":"Roman B Schefer, John Koestel, Denise M Mitrano","doi":"10.1038/s43247-025-02237-w","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-025-02237-w","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Plastics used in agriculture improve productivity and resource efficiency. As they fragment over time, microplastics are unintentionally released into soil, raising concerns regarding long-term implications for soil structure and fertility. Here we investigated microplastics transport and their impact on soil structure through a two-year field experiment. 45 re-packed soil columns were installed with three treatments: indium-doped polyethylene terephthalate fragments or fibers in the top 2 cm and a control with no microplastics. Soil pore structure was monitored with X-ray tomography, and microplastics vertical transport was assessed via the indium tracer. With time macropore volume, biopore fraction and critical pore diameter increased independent of microplastic addition. Microplastic transport was minimal, with only ~1% reaching below 8 cm soil depth in two years. This experimental design, simulating natural soil conditions, suggests that microplastics have a negligible influence on soil macropore architecture and its transport rate is limited in the short term.</p>","PeriodicalId":10530,"journal":{"name":"Communications Earth & Environment","volume":"6 1","pages":"278"},"PeriodicalIF":8.1,"publicationDate":"2025-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11981934/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143976266","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
David A Edwards, Aurélie Edwards, Dan Li, Linying Wang, Kian Fan Chung, Deen Bhatta, Andreas Bilstein, Justin Hanes, Indika Endirisinghe, Britt Burton Freeman, Mark Gutay, Alessandra Livraghi-Butrico, Brian Button
{"title":"Global warming risks dehydrating and inflaming human airways.","authors":"David A Edwards, Aurélie Edwards, Dan Li, Linying Wang, Kian Fan Chung, Deen Bhatta, Andreas Bilstein, Justin Hanes, Indika Endirisinghe, Britt Burton Freeman, Mark Gutay, Alessandra Livraghi-Butrico, Brian Button","doi":"10.1038/s43247-025-02161-z","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s43247-025-02161-z","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Global warming increases water evaporation rates from planetary ecosystems. Here, we show that evaporation rates encountered during human breathing in dehydrating atmospheres promotes airway inflammation and potentially exacerbates lung diseases. Continuum mathematical analysis predicts that water evaporation thins airway mucus layers and compresses epithelial cells during tidal breathing. Experiments using human tracheal-bronchial cells confirm that exposure to air with progressive degrees of dryness (relative humidities of 95%, 60% and 30% at 37°C) causes the mucus layer to progressively thin (by 5%, 35%, and 58%). Associated compression of epithelial cells elevates secretion of inflammatory cytokines ( <math><mrow><mtext>TNF-α</mtext></mrow> </math> , IL-33, and IL-6). Exposing mice with a muco-inflammatory phenotype to intermittent dry air for 7 days results in histopathological changes and alteration of inflammatory infiltrates. Together with climate model simulations, these findings suggest that most of the United States will be at elevated risk of airway inflammation by the latter half of this century.</p>","PeriodicalId":10530,"journal":{"name":"Communications Earth & Environment","volume":"6 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.1,"publicationDate":"2025-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12269886/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144658552","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}