The Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010 is one of the most studied spills in history, yet scientists haven’t agreed on the role of microbes in eating up the oil. Now EESA researchers have identified all of the principal oil-degrading bacteria as well as their mechanisms for chewing up the many different components that make up the released crude oil.
Read More
Researchers in Berkeley Lab’s Environmental & Earth Sciences Area (EESA) have led the development of a new approach for monitoring terrestrial ecosystems, and have used the system to discover new insights about how processes in different compartments of an Arctic Tundra ecosystem interact over space and time.
Read More
As an ecologist working with the Environmental & Earth Science Area’s Watershed Scientific Focus Area (SFA), Heidi Steltzer and her research assistant, Chelsea Wilmer, spend a lot of time conducting fieldwork in the picturesque Colorado mountains. Now, as she’s studying snowmelt and its effects on plant growth in Crested Butte, Colorado, Steltzer is bringing the SFA’s science to a much wider audience.
Read More
Over 100 scholars from more than 50 different universities and institutions recently gathered at UC Berkeley for the fourth annual Chinese Environmental Scholars Forum.
Read More
Berkeley Lab and UC Berkeley researchers spoke about solutions for sustainability, the environment, and climate at a forum on the Cal campus.
Read More
Mary Firestone Mary Firestone, a professor of soil microbiology at UC Berkeley’s Department of Environmental Science, Policy and Management, has been elected to The National Academy of Sciences. Election to the National Academy is considered to be a high honor, as nominations are reserved for scientists who demonstrate distinguished and continuing achievements in their fields. As a…
Read More
Berkeley Lab has chosen Peter Fiske, who holds a doctorate in Geological and Environmental Sciences from Stanford University, to lead the Water-Energy Resilience Institute as its first director. The Institute is a Lab-wide initiative aimed at increasing resilience in a future world that will face both water and energy constraints, and is linked to the…
Read More
As a middle school student in eastern Massachusetts, Earth and Environmental Sciences Area (EESA) research scientist Christina Patricola became fascinated with the snowstorms that frequently blanketed her hometown—and quickly recognized her passion for atmospheric science. But despite her early interest, Patricola says she doesn’t know if she would have continued on a scientific career path…
Read More
Berkeley Lab’s Earth & Environmental Sciences Area has just released its strategic plan, EESA Strategic Vision 2025 —well-timed to the 47th Anniversary of Earth Month this April! This strategic plan describes the collective vision of EESA’s scientists for the next decade, and outlines five ambitious Grand Challenges, and future goals for three Cross-Cutting Technologies & Platforms.…
Read More
Robinson Negrón-Juárez and his co-authors have now published the first study on windthrow variability, focusing on Central Amazonia. Windthrows destroy large swaths of trees, play a significant role in forest structures and dynamics, and affect carbon storage. In this study the co-authors present the seasonal and interannual variability of windthrows, and discuss the potential meteorological factors…
Read More