Articles from Science for Environment Policy

Green infrastructure in street canyons could reduce air pollution
Planting vegetation in city streets could significantly reduce air pollution in urban street canyons, according to new research. Traffic pollutants are deposited on vegetation at a higher rate than on hard, built surfaces and could reduce the concentration of nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) and PM₁₀ in the air by as much as 40% and 60%, respectively, under certain conditions.
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Involving communities in contaminated land decisions: researchers recommend guidelines
A new approach giving practical guidance for engaging communities in assessing and managing risks associated with re-development of contaminated land could help to smooth local decision making processes. It recommends a set of principles that risk managers and policymakers can use to shape their community engagement activities.
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Stronger concrete is more environmentally-friendly
Using high-strength concrete in construction could help to reduce its impact on the environment, according to a study by French researchers. The researchers compared the environmental impacts of bridges built from ordinary and high-strength concrete and found that the high-strength solution had a lower impact on the environment overall.
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Links between obesity, physical activity, transport and CO₂ emissions
A new UK study suggests that there are associations between obesity, physical activity, and levels of CO₂ emissions from transport. These associations seem mostly to reflect the fact that obese people tend to travel longer distances by motorised forms of travel. They may also partly reflect less 'active travel' by bicycle or walking by obese people.
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Intensive agriculture is changing migratory route for birds
New research suggests that many Ruffs are changing their migratory route when flying north to their breeding grounds in northern Europe and to Asia from Africa. This is because their food supply has been reduced by the effects of intensive agriculture in the Netherlands, where they commonly stop off, causing them to shift eastwards to stopping-off points in Eastern Europe instead.
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Addressing the mismatches of scale in biodiversity conservation
Biodiversity experts working in governance and science have called for greater integration of policy sectors, geographical levels and academic disciplines, in a stakeholder workshop. This would help ensure policy decisions realistically reflect complex relationships between ecological and governance processes in order to meet future biodiversity targets.
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