Environment

“You’re rolling the dice every year,” says professor Kerry Emanuel. “And we believe the odds of a flood like Harvey are changing.” Pictured is an aerial view of Houston during the Hurricane Harvey flooding.

Texas’ odds of Harvey-scale rainfall to increase by end of century

Study finds state’s annual risk of extreme rainfall will rise from 1 to 18 percent.

November 13, 2017

A team of researchers at MIT, the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, and the University of California at Berkeley hope to close the materials-science automation gap, with a new artificial-intelligence system that would pore through research papers to deduce “recipes” for producing particular materials.

Artificial intelligence aids materials fabrication

System could pore through millions of research papers to extract “recipes” for producing materials.

November 5, 2017

Researchers looked at 11 metro areas — including Atlanta, Georgia, pictured — to examine how much local emissions-reductions programs can help combat climate change. They found that there is likely to be greater impact in the area of residential energy rather than transportation, especially given local hurdles against more compact development.

How cities can fight climate change most effectively

Energy-efficient construction is key to lowering urban emissions, study finds.

October 26, 2017

“Our technology takes plastic out of the landfill, locks it up in concrete, and also uses less cement to make the concrete, which makes fewer carbon dioxide emissions,” says assistant professor Michael Short.

MIT students fortify concrete by adding recycled plastic

Adding bits of irradiated plastic water bottles could cut cement industry’s carbon emissions.

October 25, 2017

“I remain optimistic about the ability of international agreements to address environmental problems, primarily because that’s the only solution we have at this point,” associate professor Noelle Selin says.

Noelle Selin: Tracing toxins around the world

Atmospheric chemist takes on pollutants and the global treaties written to control them.

October 22, 2017

A new way to harness wasted methane

Approach developed at MIT could help curb needless “flaring” of potent greenhouse gas.

October 17, 2017

One of the newly launched research projects from the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, and funded by the CEE Seed Fund awards, seeks to examine the impact of resource allocation and community ecology on crop productivity and resilience in Hawaii.

Establishing interdisciplinary approaches to agriculture and fundamental biological processes

Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering awards cross-disciplinary seed funds.

October 11, 2017

David Des Marais recently joined the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering faculty, and will work in the department’s Ralph M. Parsons Laboratory for Environmental Science and Engineering.

Finding the root cause of plant resilience

The Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering welcomes plant ecologist Dave Des Marais to the MIT faculty.

October 10, 2017

MIT to host summit on climate leadership in northeast U.S., eastern Canada

Michael Bloomberg will deliver keynote address.

September 29, 2017

A new MIT study finds cement’s microscopic properties are key to stronger, more sustainable buildings and bridges.

A concrete solution

Insight into cement’s microscopic properties may lead to stronger, more sustainable concrete.

September 29, 2017

Johan Rockstrom speaks at the Environmental Solutions Initiative's first People and the Planet lecture of 2017.

Johan Rockström: Presenting a framework for preserving Earth’s resilience

Stockholm Resilience Center executive director and Stockholm University professor speaks at the Environmental Solutions Initiative’s People and the Planet lecture series.

September 26, 2017

Erica James, associate professor of medical anthropology and urban studies in the Department of Urban Studies and Planning, co-presents with Dennis McLaughlin, H.M. King Bhumibol Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (not pictured) on the results of their research project, Leverage Points: Opportunities for Increasing Food Production in Developing Countries, funded by ...

Projects make inroads on global food and water challenges

MIT researchers supported by J-WAFS present results of their work on food and water security.

September 21, 2017

“This is not saying that disaster occurs the next day,” says Professor Daniel Rothman about his new study. “It’s saying that, if left unchecked, the carbon cycle would move into a realm which would be no longer stable, and would behave in a way that would be difficult to predict. In the geologic past, this type of behavior is associated with mass extinction.”

Mathematics predicts a sixth mass extinction

By 2100, oceans may hold enough carbon to launch mass extermination of species in future millennia.

September 20, 2017

Harry Brekelmans, right, the projects and technology director for Royal Dutch Shell, speaks with MITEI co-founder and director Robert Armstrong.

Shell executive describes inevitable transition to carbon-free energy

Harry Brekelmans says Shell has significant commitment to renewable energy, carbon pricing.

September 7, 2017

A national study by MIT researchers provides one of the first in-depth looks at the characteristics of places that have adopted food recycling, revealing several new facts in the process.

Study: For food-waste recycling, policy is key

Successful programs aren’t limited to well-off towns with strong environmental movements.

August 17, 2017

MIT News | Massachusetts Institute of Technology

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