Wednesday, 8 February, 2012

With three nuclear reactors and three pools of spent fuel teetering on the edge of meltdown, Japanese technicians struggled to throttle the nuclear demons after the gigantic tsunami. Is Fukushima closer to Chernobyl or Three Mile Island? How will the disaster affect plans for a renaissance of nuclear power?

The BP spill released about 160,000 tons of methane into the Gulf of Mexico, but a new study shows that it was eaten by friendly bacteria. The seabed contains an astonishing amount of methane, a strong greenhouse gas. So can bacteria reduce the global warming hazard of massive methane releases?

Ethanol in gasoline now comes mainly from corn, a food crop. Cellulose, found in crop wastes, wood and switchgrass, could be a great source of ethanol, if only the yeast that makes ethanol could digest cellulose. A new genetic alteration forced yeast to break down cellulose, and then convert it into ethanol.

We need more electricity. More alternative energy. Less greenhouse warming, and better ways to manage our power supply. Can the electric grid meet multiple challenges and help us survive prosperity? What good are smart meters? And what is this going to cost?

What kind of ecological damage can we expect from a sustained blowout in the Gulf of Mexico? What are the lessons of Exxon Valdez, and how well do they apply to the current outbreak of oil? Is prevention really the only strategy?

Canada’s oil-drenched sands are the second-largest oil reserves. Using the “tar sands” pollutes air and water, destroys forests and boosts global warming. A good idea?

Decay is part of life, and death. When garbage decays in a landfill, or manure decays in a tank, the result is methane. Is this natural gas a problem — or an opportunity?

Coal ash is a giant garbage problem. Should we recycle more ash into concrete? A new process might save cement, rock, and landfill space.

As New Orleans sinks and the seas rise, hurricanes are getting worse. Does it make sense to start restoring marshes and barrier islands that dampen the hurricanes? Could wetlands moderate the next Katrina?

How should we deal with mercury air pollution in air, fish and water? Why do the studies of mercury consumption not agree? What to do when the studies conflict…