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#anthropogenic — Public Fediverse posts

Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #anthropogenic, aggregated by home.social.

  1. From Fragmentation To Integration - A Review Of Data–Model Integration In Land Subsidence Research
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    doi.org/10.1016/j.ancene.2026. <-- shared paper
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    H/T @manonzero current drought conditions, increasing pressure on ecosystems, and ongoing climate adaptation challenges, land subsidence is receiving growing attention worldwide.
    For anyone wanting to learn more about land subsidence, or get a refresher, [the authors] provide an overview of the processes involved, the ways it can be measured or estimated, the models used to simulate it, and how observations and models can be combined, [their] new [#openaccess] review paper [link above] may be of interest!
    A central message of the paper is that understanding and managing land subsidence requires bringing these different sources of information together…”
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    “HIGHLIGHTS:
    • Presents a comprehensive synthesis that unifies all major elements of integral land-subsidence research.
    • Defines the methodological steps needed for full integration and positions them within the broader challenges posed by subsidence.
    • Brings together and distills the key components of data, modelling, and integration into a coherent framework.
    ABSTRACT: Land subsidence, the sinking of the Earth’s surface, is a multi-faceted hazard driven by both natural and anthropogenic factors, and poses significant risk to environments, ecosystems, and society. Despite decades of growing research output, substantial gaps persist between investigations on the diversity of causes, reflected in data and model insufficiency. These gaps hinder the understanding of the issue and impede the effectiveness of mitigation measures. Many studies have urged to include all identified subsidence processes acting in a single area in an integral framework, for which a complex analysis has not systematically been outlined before. Therefore, [they] focus here on bridging the gaps between various technical research disciplines involved. [They] stress the urgency for an integral approach that combines observations with subsurface information of all known subsidence processes in an area, and [they] appeal for utilizing them in physics-guided data integrations. Only then can all subsidence drivers be understood, and effective mitigation measures designed. [They] outline the elements for an integral approach in categorical tables and schematized figures, and [they] discuss the main opportunities and challenges in a stepwise workflow. Leveraging these opportunities naturally leads to more robust, scalable, and policy-relevant solutions and fosters a more sustainable future…”
    #Land #subsidence #processes #Verticallandmotion #SLR #sealevel #sealevelrise #relativesealevelrise #modeling #data #model #InSAR #elevation #holistic #GIS #spatial #mapping #climate #drought #extremeweather #climatechange #climateadaption #ecosystems #measurement #monitoring #research #review #framework #overview #risk #hazard #anthropogenic #mitigation #engineering #water #hydrology #policy #planning #design #remotesensing #spatialanalysis #spatiotemporal

  2. Earth Has Tilted 31.5 Inches. That Shouldn't Happen [groundwater pumping]
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    popularmechanics.com/science/e <-- shared technical article
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    doi.org/10.1029/2023GL103509 <-- shared paper
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    “ • When humans pump groundwater, it has a substantial impact on the tilt of Earth’s rotation.
    • Additionally, a study document [link above] just how much of an influence groundwater pumping has on climate change.
    • Understanding this relatively recent data may provide a better understanding of how to help stave off sea-level rise…"
    #hydrology #groundwater #depletion #pumping #extraction #sealevelrise #SLR #global #globe #earthtilt #humanimpacts #waterresources #anthropogenic #climatechange #model #modeling #monitoring #earth #rotation #water #redistribution #drift #pole #observation #spinaxis

  3. Scientists Are Warning of A Brand-New Kind of #AcidRain

    Story by Darren Orf

    Key points:
    - While acid rain caused by sulfur dioxide is an environmental threat of the past (at least, for now), a new kind of acid is proliferating in rain water—as well as groundwater, ice cores, and even human blood.
    - #TrifluoroaceticAcid (#TFA) is a subclass of “#ForeverChemical” that’s been steadily increasing in concentrations around the world.
    - With calls to consider this rise in TFA a planetary threat, some governments are starting ban chemicals linked to TFA—but the threat will require global cooperation.

    "Acid rain may have a sequel, and like most sequels, it’s arguably worse.

    "While the world’s first bout of acid rain (at least, in modern times) came from increased concentrations of sulfuric acid produced largely from coal plants, this new #anthropogenic source is possibly more pervasive, more persistent, and more sinister. Its name is Trifluoroacetic acid (TFA), a kind of 'forever chemical' that, for decades, has been steadily increasing in #RainWater—but not just rain water.

    "Countries around the world have found increasing concentrations in #groundwater, #ArcticIceCores, #wine, and even #HumanBlood. In fact, TFA is likely the most pervasive form of per- and poly-fluoroalkyl (#PFAS)—technically, a subclass known as ultrashort-chain perfluoroalkyl acid (#PFAA)—on Earth due in part to the fact that longer-chain PFAS degrade into TFA via #incinerators or #SewageTreatment plants. They’re also used in #refrigerants instead of #chlorofluorocarbons and #hydrochlorofluorocarbons, which were famously known to deplete the Earth’s #OzoneLayer.

    "In October of 2024, a team of European environmental scientists raised the TFA alarm, stating that a rise in concentration could be considered a threat to '#PlanetaryBoundaries' — a system designed to make sure the planet remains #habitable for human life (which we are doing a real bang-up job at following).

    " 'Since the 1990s, it has been suggested that hazard-related concerns of TFA and other short-chain PFAAs are much lower than those of PFAAs with longer perfluoroalkyl chains, which are more #bioaccumulative and generally more #toxic,' the authors wrote back in October. 'However, these early reports did not consider TFA’s ubiquitous accumulation in the environment, in particular its observed accumulation in water resources and #bioaccumulation in various plants, including crops.'

    "One of the most dangerous things about PFAAs is what we don’t know about them. Unlike other PFAS (of which there are, sadly, thousands of different kinds), TFA is so small (a.k.a. ultrashort) that it’s water-soluble, meaning it likely passes through the human body pretty quickly. A new Nature article reports that some scientists find this evidence compelling enough to not even consider TFA a kind of PFAS, but a growing chorus of voices are raising concerns that increased concentrations of TFA in water and food sources could render TFA’s fast-moving nature a moot point.

    "In fact, TFA’s water-solubility could be a long-term headache. If scientists and governments eventually decide that TFA does need to be removed from drinking water and other sources, current filtration technologies are not up to the task. In other words, ridding the world of TFA will not only be immensely difficult, it’ll also be incredibly expensive. Current regulations to eliminate certain forms of PFAS are already proving to be fiscally onerous.

    "Thankfully, some governments are taking action. #Denmark, for example, banned 23 substances earlier this month known to contain PFAS that contribute to rising TFA concentrations. Meanwhile, the #US is lagging behind—the Environmental Protection Agency [#EPA] doesn’t even define TFA as a 'forever chemical,' much to the dismay of #environmentalist groups and to the merriment of many #industry leaders.

    "Rising concentrations of TFA is the acid rain sequel no one wanted. But just like every terrible sequel ever made, it seems like we’re getting it anyway."

    msn.com/en-us/travel/news/scie

    #WaterIsLife #Dupont #DowChemical #3M #ForeverChemicals #EPACuts #Deregulation #TrumpSucks #USPol #WorldPol #Environment #EnvironmentalDamage #GenXChemicals #3MLied

  4. Levels of microplastics in human brains may be rapidly rising, study suggests

    "The exponential rise in microplastic pollution over the past 50 years may be reflected in increasing contamination in human brains, according to a new study."

    "The human body is widely contaminated by microplastics. They have also been found in blood, semen, breast milk, placentas and bone marrow. The impact on human health is largely unknown, but they have been linked to strokes and heart attacks".
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    theguardian.com/environment/20
    #plastics #anthropogenic #microplastics #nanoplastic #contamination #MNP #polyethylene #PolymerBasedParticulates #body #OneHealth #pollution