Stories by David Biello

If test plants succeed, waste methane could fuel vehicles—but the conversion may not offer much environmental benefit

The U.S. government has given industry permission to use of lethally loud seismic devices up and down the east coast. David Biello reports

The energy secretary talks about buffering infrastructure against the next Hurricane Sandy

A new study attempts to quantify CO₂ emissions if economic growth continues. David Biello reports

As more people move to cities, careful planning could mean a happy home for both humans and a substantial amount of wildlife. David Biello reports

A new study suggests that more methane is leaking than the U.S. government estimates—but natural gas remains less polluting than coal

New research suggests that planting gardens atop roofs or painting them white could offset both the local urban heat island effect and global warming, although one roof type does not cover all situations

A new experiment releases more energy than is pumped into fuel—a major milestone—but a long journey still remains for sustainable energy from fusion

What is the largest type of trash produced in the U.S.? It’s not whatever you’re thinking, most likely. It’s coal ash. Burning coal produces more than 100 million metric tons of coal ash per yearthe gray or black sooty aftermath of our fossil fuel habit.

The EPA plans to reevaluate standards for tritium in water

Lunar New Year means tens of millions of travelers in China, mostly by bus but increasingly by car, which is bad news for air quality. David Biello reports

 

How much can one oil pipeline affect global climate change? That’s one of the fundamental questions probed by a new, final environmental impact assessment released January 31 by the U.S.

Climate change is real, it’s here and it will be affecting the planet for a long, long time. That’s the lesson of the latest iteration of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change‘s state of climate science report, released in its entirety on January 30.

China is drilling ahead for shale gas, but the country faces economic, environmental and geologic challenges in tapping the resource

A host of factors determine the role of electric and hybrid cars in reducing greenhouse gas pollution, such as whether coal is their ultimate fuel source. David Biello reports

 

A new analysis calculates each of the world's countries total amount of CO2 pollution, along with responsibility for the ensuing global warming

 

Can China find a fuel alternative for its swelling number of transportation vehicles?

Do not drink the water, but it's also not time to panic

Fresh meltdowns at the devastated nuclear facility are unlikely but years of slow, dangerous labor to repair the existing damage are guaranteed

Volcanoes on the East Coast of North America are more recent than you think—and they may be why the region still suffers relatively large earthquakes

A list of the 10 most polluted places on Earth ranges from nuclear sites to e-waste dumps

The material in disposable batteries may hold the secret to making an inexpensive storage system that can feed the electrical grid

Can technology save the world's dirtiest fuel?

From clean coal to infrastructure resilience, the new Secretary of Energy has plans for combating climate change