, professor of geography and the environment at Syracuse University’s Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, shared his thoughts below. If you’d like to schedule an interview with him, please reach out to Vanessa Marquette, media relations specialist, at vrmarque@syr.edu.

Huber writes: “As long as well-meaning ‘green’ policies continue to foreground taking away modern comforts, they will generate angry backlash (and in this case the opposite effect of more emissions as countries inefficiently seek to keep their athletes cool in a uncoordinated fashion). This is not unrelated to the electoral losses Greens endured in the recent EU elections (and could hit France itself soon).”

Melissa Young

Young has been an integral part of the CSCS-EFC team since 2008, previously serving as director of resource conservation initiatives. Throughout her career, she has played a pivotal role in public engagement, outreach, education and technical assistance initiatives. Her programmatic effort was previously focused on sustainable materials management, encompassing such crucial aspects as waste reduction, reuse and recycling. In her new position, Young will expand her scope to include initiatives related to water and wastewater infrastructure, particularly for rural and underserved populations, which she had worked on when she was first hired at Syracuse.

The shift in leadership comes as CSCS-EFC celebrates its 30th anniversary in 2023. Since 1993, CSCS-EFC has used a unique community-based approach to assist hundreds of municipalities across EPA Region 2, which includes New York, New Jersey, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and eight Native Nations. CSCS-EFC provides essential training and brings together a variety of governmental and nonprofit actors to collaborate on sustainability issues, including water infrastructure management, water equity, climate resiliency, resource conservation and sustainable materials management.

Since 2015, CSCS-EFC has been awarded $15.75 million in federal, state and local grants to support communities by providing tools, technical assistance, outreach and education, research and more.

“This is an exciting time for the University’s CSCS-EFC as it continues to lead the way in developing solutions for communities across EPA Region 2,” says J. Cole Smith, dean of the College of Engineering and Computer Science. “Melissa’s background and track record of proven results and positive impact will be essential to taking CSCS-EFC to even greater heights.”

“I am honored and deeply committed to lead our organization’s efforts to catalyze positive change and foster environmental stewardship, while engaging deeply with communities across our region and beyond,” says Young. “Together with our dedicated team and partners, we will continue to innovate and expand our impact, working to create a more sustainable and resilient future for all.”

Please contact Ellen James Mbuqe at ��or Vanessa Marquette at to schedule an interview with either professor.

��is a professor of practice at Syracuse University’s Maxwell School and deputy director of the Institute for Security Policy and Law. He writes:��“The latest incident with the missing submersible near the Titanic datum reminds us of the significant hazards attendant to operating in dangerous environments.��In spite of advances in technology, extreme ocean depths, and for that matter outer space, are hazardous and unforgiving places.��We certainly hold out hope for a rescue of the personnel aboard the Titan submersible, and at the same time, need to acknowledge the dangers that are part of highly adventurous “recreational” missions.”

Professor Emeritus of Earth and Environmental Sciences��at Syracuse University, researches volcanoes and tectonics, and is the co-author of the book “.” He has conducted numerous trips to the ocean floor in submersibles.

Karson said there are multiple issues with the location and rescue of the submersible. “This is a needle in a haystack situation. Even if they know it is around the wreckage of the Titanic, the debris down there is spread out over a kilometer and with debris as big as the submarine. So to the sonar, the sub is another lump down there.”

He points out that the sound, believed to be from the submersible, is a good sign, but now it is a case of triangulating the sound and pinpointing where it is. But he cautions that there are a lot of sounds in the ocean, such as whale songs, large shipping vessels or even other submarines, and sound can travel very far.

Karson offers insight one how the sub can be rescued. He points out that submersibles dive to extreme depths with weights attached to them. When the vessel is ready to surface, the weights are discharged, and it naturally rises to the surface. “Rescuers can use a remotely operated, sophisticated robot on a fiber optic cable. The robot can assist with freeing the submersible,” he said.

He also cautions that the vessel is too deep for human divers to get to it. The conditions of deep ocean will be challenging. “I am sure it is horrible down there. The temperature is just above freezing. It is like being in a snow cave and hypothermia is a real danger.”

Air quality advisories are in effect for many areas, and officials are urging people to stay indoors and avoid strenuous activity.

Two Syracuse University experts are available for interview. They provide comments below that can be quoted directly.

Robert Wilson

is an associate professor in the Geography and the Environment Department at Syracuse University. Professor Wilson says:

“The burnt smell in the air and hazy skies we are experiencing this week shows us there’s no safe place from wildfire smoke. Massive blazes in the boreal forests of northern Quebec are sending smoke into New York. And Canada is having one of its worst wildfire seasons ever.

“But the effects of those fires and others this summer won’t remain north of the border. The smoke from these climate-change worsened wildfires will continue to travel south and cause watery eyes and scratchy throats. Those with asthma and other respiratory problems will fare far worse.”

********************

Eric Schiff

is a physics professor at Syracuse University and indoor air quality expert. Professor Schiff offers advice below about best practices to protect your indoor air quality. He is available for interview.

Q: Can wildfires impact indoor air quality?��

A: “Yes, absolutely. Wildfires can make a neighborhood uninhabitable due to poor air quality.”

Q: Can closing your window help when air quality outside is poor?��

A: “Closing windows is the first step in regulating indoor air quality when outdoor air is polluted. When local authorities warn about poor air quality, windows should be closed. Note that some outdoor air always seeps in, and in fact it’s needed to limit the buildup of carbon dioxide and unhealthful gases that originate indoors.”

Q: Can air purifiers help improve indoor air quality?

A: “Yes, standard room or building air filtration and purification devices are useful in reducing the buildup of small particles and unhealthful gases. These devices can be small appliances or can be integrated into central heating and air conditioning systems. They don’t help with carbon dioxide, however.”

Q: Are there other measures people should take when the outdoor air quality is poor?

A: “Outdoor exercise or activity should be limited if the air quality is bad.”

Q: Do any extra precautions need to be taken for children or pets?

A: “I’m not an authority, but generally the advice is to maintain a higher standard of air quality for kids than for adults. While I personally wouldn’t take extra measures for healthy dogs and cats, some other pets are more sensitive to air pollution than people. Canary birds are more sensitive than people and were actually used in mines to warn miners about dangerous underground air quality.”

To request interviews or get more information:

Daryl Lovell
Associate Director of Media Relations
Division of Communications

M��315.380.0206
dalovell@syr.edu |

The Nancy Cantor Warehouse, 350 W. Fayette St., 4^th Fl., Syracuse, NY 13202
news.syr.edu |

Syracuse University

A student completes work outside on campus.

The student survey was created with a Sustainability Management student intern, while the faculty and staff survey was created by staff in Sustainability Management. On both versions, questions seek to assess respondents’ general understanding of sustainability and environmental problems. Some questions are opinion-based while others gauge interest in becoming more involved in sustainable initiatives or programs.

Responses will help inform Sustainability Management where to focus efforts and evaluate the campus community’s sustainability related concerns. These surveys will ultimately help the University gain points toward the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment and Rating System (STARS). STARS is a self-reporting assessment to measure higher education institutions’ sustainability performance. Colleges and universities can earn points toward different level ratings: Bronze, Silver, Gold or Platinum. Syracuse University is currently rated Silver with goals to reach Gold and eventually, Platinum.

There are plans to re-survey the same respondents in the future to measure if there have been any changes in responses. The more data received over time, the more helpful it will be. Surveys are sent randomly to selected students, faculty and staff via their syr.edu email address. Each survey should only take a few minutes and upon completion, respondents can submit their name for an Amazon gift card.

Keep an eye on your inbox and take the time to include your valuable feedback so the University can continue to improve and enhance its sustainability initiatives. With a heightened awareness of climate change and environmental issues, there is greater demand for action from students as well as faculty and staff.

This survey will provide vital information and help Sustainability Management prioritize certain areas. If you have any questions, email sustain@syr.edu. To stay up-to-date with Sustainability Management, follow them on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram @SustainableSU.

Professor Vincent writes:

Professor Aviva Vincent

“As these toxic chemicals have seeped into the soil, air, and water, it will take years to fully understand the long-term impact. As an inter-species issue, industries of agriculture (farming, livestock, equine industry), leisure & sport (use of green spaces, such as dog parks), and merely living in the affected area. The implication of this event has a direct impact environmental and inter-species impact in Ohio and Pennsylvania, as East Palestine is a mere mile from the state boarder and 20 miles to the Ohio River. The toxins have already reached the Ohio River which flows through six states and serves as a source of drinking water. Over 3,500 fish have died, livestock that graze the lands have died or been moved out of state. The human toll will include the environmental, economic, social, and personal impact. Evacuated residents were given ‘permission’ to return home days after the event though it is still not safe to do so.

A resident shared that she has two young children and a dog: she can use the shelter system though she would have to relinquish her dog, remove her children from school, and accept a financial burden that she may not recover from; or she can stay in her home where her family would be together, but not safe. As a homeowner, the likelihood of selling her home is currently not feasible. A local owner of polo horses was able to safely relocate her herd out of state, though she does not know when or if they will be safe to return as the horses are reliant on grazing and drinking local water.

The interspecies implications are devastating – even those with the resources to flee and burdened by leaving their home without any concrete knowledge about return. When disasters happen, emergency planning must account for animals, livestock and domesticated animals. Human livelihood is reliant on the economic industry of livestock, and livestock are reliant on the land. Furthermore, majority of Americans own pets – predominately cats and dogs. The pet economy reached $123.6 billon in 2021 with approximately 70% of homes (90.5 million homes) having a domesticated pet (14%, 23 million, were newly acquired during the pandemic). From this instance, we learn that we are not prepared for interspecies disaster.��Readiness should include emergency shelters being pet/livestock ready, readily available transportation for livestock, water reserves when natural sources are contaminated, funding allocation, and other considerations. Environmental justice is an interspecies issue.

NASW is advocating for DeWine to declare a state of emergency, increase ‘rainy day fund’ support, there is also advocacy to President Biden for federal assistance.

• Evacuated residents can request assistance by visiting the Norfolk Southern Family Assistance Center: 46469 State Route 46 New Waterford Ohio, 1-800-230-7049.
• Air and water testing can be requested by calling residential reentry: 330-849-3919
• Mental health support: dsmith.nasw.oh@socialworkers.org
• Support can be donated to:

Contacts referenced able are willing to provide additional information.”

Grant applications from companies who are new or existing members of the are being accepted through 5 p.m. ET on Thursday, Oct. 20. Awards of up to $10,000 each for up to five projects may be presented.

M3 Innovations’ Chris Nolan, left, and Joe Casper with their Mako Solution System. The company received Innovation Fund grants in 2020 and 2022. (Photo by Kerrie Marshall)

Companies at all —industry, affiliate and start-up—are invited to apply for the grants. Project proposals must address a challenge in the SyracuseCoE’s core focus areas of indoor environmental quality, clean and renewable energy and water resources.

Led by Syracuse University, SyracuseCoE is one of�� designed to foster collaboration between the academic research community and the business sector to develop and commercialize new products and technologies and promote private sector investment in emerging high-technology fields in New York state.

SyracuseCoE Executive Director , who is also a professor of in the University’s , notes that many SyracuseCoE partners have leveraged their Innovation Fund awards��to commercialize their technologies and strengthen their companies.

Jianshun “Jensen” Zhang, executive director, SyracuseCoE.

“These awards accelerate research and development and help transform innovative discoveries into commercially viable products and services, making the companies more competitive. The entrepreneurial culture that is inherent in university-industry collaboration contributes to a strong economy for New York state, while addressing important, multifaceted societal challenges,” Zhang says.

Zhang cites the success of three prior grantees as a measure of the potential the awards can mean. used its 2016 grant to build financial and physical models of their system to advance critical conversations with utilities. The company is now working with National Grid to build New York state’s . 2014 award allowed it to test new, innovative LED sports lighting technology that they used the following year to light the Super Bowl. ’s 2016 grant helped it test the heat management system for its portable electric vehicle chargers. The startup built its first prototype at SyracuseCoE headquarters and has won millions in other grants. Founder Josh Aviv ’15 G’17 has received multiple “best entrepreneur” honors. Recently, he introduced President Joseph R. Biden Jr. L’68 at the White House signing of the CHIPS and Science Act.

Those who are interested in joining the partner program now to be eligible for grant consideration for this October’s awards can contact Tamara Rosanio at tlrosani@syr.edu.��More details about the program and application process can be found on the .

Charles Driscoll

, University Professor of Environmental Systems and Distinguished Professor in the College of Engineering and Computer Science, is one of the leading researchers behind the work.

Details of the research, highlighted in the paper’s abstract, are pasted below:

Scientists used long-term research to gain insights into ecosystem response to climate change. At 28 LTER sites, from the Arctic to Antarctica, changes in air temperature and moisture variability and their effects on disturbance frequency and severity, novel disturbances, altered primary production, enhanced cycling of organic and inorganic matter, and changes in populations and communities are examined.

The findings explore the impact of climate change in four main types of ecosystems:

• In forest and freshwaters, climate change is affecting species composition and ecosystem function. This is occurring through complex interactions, cascading effects and feedbacks to the climate system resulting from altered streamflow and changes in ecosystem processes such as primary production, carbon storage, water and nutrient cycling, and community dynamics.
• At drylands, warming combined with multi-decadal drought cycles have enhanced floods and wildfires, altered resource availability, plant community structure, and primary production, while severe regional droughts, wildfire and dust events exacerbated air pollution.
• In coastal regions, sea levels rise, and extreme heat and storm events are associated with trends and abrupt changes in primary production, organic matter cycling, and plant and animal communities. Coastal ecosystems display dynamic adjustments and illustrate various forms of resilience to climate change.
• At marine sites, climate modes influence and interact with atmospheric and ocean currents and anthropogenic climate change to affect primary production, organic and inorganic matter cycling, and populations and community structure.

Although some responses to climate change are shared among diverse ecosystems, most are unique, involving region-specific drivers of change, interactions among multiple climate change drivers, and interactions with other human activities.

About Syracuse University

Syracuse University is a private, international research university with distinctive academics, diversely unique offerings and an undeniable spirit. Located in the geographic heart of New York State, with a global footprint and nearly 150 years of history, Syracuse University offers a quintessential college experience, as well as innovative online learning environments. The scope of Syracuse University is a testament to its strengths. At Syracuse University, we offer a choice of more than 200 majors and 100 minors offered through 13 schools and colleges and 18 online degree programs. We have more than 15,000 undergraduates and 7,500 graduate students, more than a quarter of a million alumni in 160 countries and a student population from all 50 U.S. states and 123 countries. For more information, please visit .

Mike Goode

That belief—and specific ideas for how to make those enriching practical and intellectual connections happen—propelled College of Arts and Sciences Professor of English Mike Goode to submit a proposal for the college’s Tolley Professorship. He recently was awarded the prestigious two-year rotating appointment, which was established in 1995 to honor Chancellor Emeritus William P. Tolley. The role is designed to support enhancement of the pedagogical experience and to boost effectiveness in the classroom. It is underwritten by private donors and the National Endowment for the Humanities.

So, what does it mean to teach climate change in a humanities course or to make humanities instruction more ecologically minded?

“Climate change and other kinds of environmental issues impact certain groups of people, such as those living in disadvantaged conditions, disproportionately. Humanists think about climate not just as a scientific issue, but also as a human issue having social justice components. That’s something humanists can bring into the conversation,” Goode says.

Humanities courses also help students analyze how different people and cultures think about, represent and emotionally process environmental changes and their impacts on habitats, including human habitats. Aside from providing a platform for examining those histories, humanities courses provide a place for students to consider new possibilities and opportunities for ecological thought and imagination. As Goode puts it, “To change behaviors often depends on changing the metaphors, stories and images through which we think.”

Ecological Interests

Goode is excited about being named to the Tolley Professorship. He was inspired to submit a proposal based on his recent experiences developing and teaching a new English course that asks students to consider the powerful—and at times problematic —legacy that early 19th-century British representations of the “natural” world have in contemporary environmental media and ecological thought, including in nature documentaries and even zombie films.

He also drew ideas for the pedagogical work and faculty development focus from his involvement in a 2018-20 CUSE grant-supported Landscape Studies Interdisciplinary Faculty Research Seminar. Another factor that contributed to his interest was his research on the history of landscape gardening in Britain, both as a practice and as something that influenced artists and philosophers contemplating what “reality” is (and how to change it) for his book, “Romantic Capabilities: Blake, Scott, Austen, and the New Messages of Old Media.”

“I believe the College of Arts and Sciences has an opportunity to become a leader in environmental humanities education,” Goode says. “Highlighting institutional resources and offering concrete and intellectually provocative models for how to teach ecology and climate in humanities courses would be an effective way to accelerate the college’s ongoing development in this area.”

College of Arts and Sciences Interim Dean Lois Agnew says Professor Goode is a perfect match for the Tolley honor.

“He is an innovative professor and mentor who has frequently worked across disciplines and divergent interests that span literature, media, ecology, gender, critical theory and art, intellectual and science history,” Agnew says. “Climate change and sustainability are key areas of strength for the college and University, and we look forward to seeing how Professor Goode combines the scientific and human aspects of this topic to help students and faculty respond to it in the classroom and beyond.”

Pedagogy Innovation

As a component of the professorship related to pedagogy—the method, practices and approach taken in teaching—Goode plans to focus on creating an archive of interdisciplinary lesson plans and materials. These would include short videotaped presentations showcasing different humanities courses, units and assignments related to ecology or climate that have recently been taught at the University.

Understanding that professors don’t often get to observe how others teach in their classrooms, Goode says those examples would provide tested approaches for other faculty members who might wish to incorporate environmental and climate change topics into their classes. These sample lessons could help them improve their own pedagogy by providing opportunities to view many different types of lesson innovations and teaching styles.

Inviting Collaboration

Goode also wants to invite collaboration and conversations into classroom discussions from faculty and staff members from diverse perspectives, such as those working in sustainability efforts and those teaching law, Native American/Indigenous studies, geography, biology, and film and media arts. These will include everything from staging a discussion between philosophy and environmental law professors about what it means to grant nonhuman entities like trees or rocks “rights,” to creating teaching resources focused on how the materials from which art objects themselves are made are part of histories of resource use and extraction.

“We have the admirers of Michelangelo to blame in part for the popularity of Carrera marble in countertops and office building lobbies,” Goode says.

For this latter project, he will be collaborating with the University’s Art Museum, including creating programming with them tied to an artwork on loan to the museum in 2022-23 by the renowned landscape artist Robert Stimson.

In addition, he wants to showcase ways that humanities faculty can use campus and adjacent landscape sites, such as the Rock Cut Quarry behind South Campus and Oakwood Cemetery, to teach environmental history and ecological thought through immersive learning.

Minnowbrook Conference Center

Tolley professors are required to hold a short conference at the end of their tenure at the University’s property at Minnowbrook, and Goode sees the ecological orientation and character of as itself offering an appropriate platform for addressing environmental issues. This traditional conference center, situated on millenia-old granite in a protected Adirondack location that was home to ancestral indigenous populations, provides an apt focal point for bringing different disciplinary perspectives to bear on environmental conversations, Goode says.

Professor Goode joined Syracuse University in 2003 after working for two years as a visiting assistant professor at Reed College. He served as an assistant professor of English until 2010 and as an associate professor of English until his recent naming as a full professor in spring 2022. He received a bachelor of arts degree from Princeton University in economics in 1993, and both a master’s degree (1995) and Ph.D. (2001) in English from the University of Chicago.

Prior to Goode’s naming, Ken Frieden, professor of Religion, English, and Languages, Literatures and Linguistics, held the Tolley professorship appointment for the 2018-2020 term. Gwendolyn Pough, dean’s professor of the Humanities and professor of Women’s and Gender Studies, was appointed to the two-year post beginning in 2020.

appointment to the renewable three-year term was announced by Ramesh Raina, interim vice president in the University’s Zhang will lead research activity and operations at the downtown SyracuseCoE building and serve as principal investigator for the contract that provides the center’s annual operating funds.

The SyracuseCoE engages with more than 200 private companies, organizations and academic institutions to create new products and services in indoor environmental quality, clean and renewable energy and water resource management. Its research areas include systems that monitor and control comfortable air temperature, air quality, lighting, sound and water quality in built and urban environments, and innovative energy systems, including clean technologies and renewable fuel sources.

“Now is an especially critical time for innovation in climate change, energy and fuel sources, and air quality and temperature control research, and the University is thrilled that Professor Zhang has accepted this important role,” says Raina. “His unique multidisciplinary background, notable international reputation, extensive applied research strengths, recognized industry knowledge and high degree of dedication to the University, fellow faculty and student communities will be instrumental in leading the SyracuseCoE forward.”

Zhang, who has more than 30 years of research experience in built environmental systems, also retains his position as a professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering and his role as one of three co-leaders of the University’s and is its Heathy and Intelligent Built Environments subcluster lead. He will report to the University’s vice president of research.

Aiding Zhang in his transition to the SyracuseCoE position will be , who had been chair of the Department of Physics in the College of Arts and Sciences and who has served as SyracuseCoE interim executive director since May 2020. A professor of physics at Syracuse University since 1981, Schiff has led interdisciplinary research groups and collaborations with laboratories from other universities and private organizations the world over.

“We extend much gratitude to Professor Schiff for maintaining the integrity of SyracuseCoE operations and its research momentum these past two challenging years. The University is extremely appreciative of the steady hand and thoughtful guidance he provided during a time when focus on both the importance of indoor air quality and the impacts of climate change experienced heightened world attention and concern,” says Raina.

Excited for the Future

As someone who has been involved with the development of the SyracuseCoE since its inception, and who has maintained a keen interest in its research activities through the years, Zhang says he is particularly honored to have been asked to lead its operations.

“I’m quite excited at the opportunity to lead a center like this. It’s a unique platform where you can integrate research and product development along with the commercialization and licensing aspects of bringing applied research to industry. I’m also excited because there is a huge demand and a need for technology that can improve human health and combat climate change by reducing carbon emissions,” he says. “There’s much more opportunity for research and product development in that arena now, as evidenced by an increase in requests for proposals we’ve seen from the National Science Foundation, Department of Energy and the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, as well as the increasing interest and significant funding supports from the relevant industries.”

Zhang’s goals for the organization include furthering the center’s engagement with faculty at Syracuse University; initiating and continuing partnerships with other universities; and expanding the center’s intersection with industry innovators and business partners.

He’d also like to raise the SyracuseCoE’s national and international profile and foster further collaboration with international researchers and companies. He is also interested in working more closely with startups to bring new ideas in active research applications to the marketplace.

Syracuse Center of Excellence

Assessment Center, Testbed

Another vision of Zhang’s is developing a building assessment center to educate students on how to assess building’s energy and environmental performance, make recommendations on what improvements can be made and how to make them and then quantify the energy savings and health impacts those changes would create. Due to Schiff’s initiating the proposal for piloting such a center and the strong support from ECS, SyracuseCoE will be well positioned to compete for future funding opportunities in this area, Zhang says.

Working in concert with SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry and other universities, Zhang also wants to guide the development of a testbed in Syracuse that would examine air quality in buildings and in urban microenvironments around buildings. Its focus would be on improving people’s health by reducing their exposures to both the indoor atmosphere of the buildings they frequent as well as the outdoor environment they experience on the street, he says.

Zhang earned a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering and a master’s degree in systems engineering from Beijing Agricultural Engineering University, and a Ph.D. in agricultural engineering with a specialty in structures and environment from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Before he joined Syracuse University in 1999, he had been a researcher at the National Research Council of Canada for eight years.

His areas of expertise include combined heat, air, moisture and pollutant simulations in buildings; material emissions; air filtration/purification; ventilation; indoor air quality and intelligent control of building environmental systems. He has developed advanced experimental methods and apparatus, computer simulation models and environmental control technologies. He has authored or co-authored more than 200 technical papers and three standard methods for testing organic emissions from building materials and furnishings.

Zhang is a fellow of American Society for Heating, Refrigerating, and Airconditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) and a member of the International Academy of Indoor Air Science (ISIAQ fellow). He also is currently vice president of IAQVEC (Indoor Air Quality, Ventilation and Energy Conservation) Association. He also served as president and chairman of the board of the International Association of Building Physics from 2018 to 2021.

“I’ve always been concerned about the environment and pollution. I realized that water—being one of the most essential resources—would be the most important one to take care of,” Todorova says.

Professor Todorova’s class is collecting water samples at Green Lakes State Park.

Taking care of water systems and finding ways to fight mercury contamination has become the life work of Todorova. As a professor of practice in the civil and environmental engineering department in the College of Engineering and Computer Science, she is most proud of her theoretical and experimental work mitigating mercury contamination in lake sediment.

“Mercury is everywhere. It’s in the Earth’s crust, and that’s why it’s found in air, it’s found in water, it’s found in soil. However, when it exceeds certain levels, or there are conditions that are conducive to the transfer of mercury to its organic form, that’s when we have a concern about mercury contamination,” Todorova says.

Mercury is very easy to ingest, but harder to get out of the body. Especially methyl mercury, which is a very poisonous form of the element. Being at the top of the food chain, humans are usually exposed to mercury through fish and meat consumption.

Through her research, she discovered aquatic mercury contamination can be mitigated by utilizing nitrate environments, which decreases aquatic life’s exposure to mercury. She even played a key role in the development of the Minamata Convention on Mercury, an international agreement that addresses human activity that leads to widespread mercury contamination.

“The big issue is the transfer of mercury from soil or its aquatic ecosystems into the food web,” Todorova says. “This is how it’s exposed to humans and wildlife.”

Calling her work a drop in the big ocean, Professor Todorova hopes her research contributes to the overall global mission to protect and improve aquatic systems.

“I don’t think I’m doing anything great, but I’m contributing to the whole knowledge that we all need to be able to take care of the Earth,” Todorova says.

Sultana discusses the need to fight the climate crisis while highlighting the historical circumstances that led to this current crisis and who is most responsible. She stated, “You cannot keep having your luxury emissions, and then point fingers at the person who’s having emissions just to survive. That’s just absolutely unfair and unjust.”

Ethan Coffel, Assistant Professor

, assistant professor of geography and the environment in the Maxwell School, explores this power and climate struggle in the research paper, “.” The work published this month in the scientific journal Environmental Research Letters. Professor Coffel answered five questions about the new findings and how warming temperatures will impact every part of our power infrastructure.

Q: Can you describe your research?

A: We show that the thermal power plants that currently generate most of our electricity are already having to reduce their electricity output on hot days due to cooling limitations. On the hottest days, power plant capacity can be reduced by more than 10 percent because the air and water that are used to cool the plants is too warm. This lost generation capacity is a problem because these hot days are when electricity is most needed to run air conditioners.

As global warming makes heat waves more frequent, intense and long, the negative effects of heat on power plants will become more pronounced. With 2 degrees Celsius of global warming–the upper target agreed to in the 2015 Paris Accord–power plant outages on hot days could nearly double from today’s level.

Q: In conducting your research, in what ways or specific examples did you find climate change impacting human systems?

A: Our work demonstrates a harmful interaction between human adaptation and infrastructure vulnerability in a warming world. As hot days become more frequent, more people will want air conditioners to protect themselves from unpleasant and dangerous heat. But, these air conditioners need electricity, which further increases the greenhouse gas emissions that drive global warming! And further, more A/C will increase electricity demand at the same time as heat is reducing the output of power plants, potentially straining the electricity grid in some places.

Q: What does your research reveal or uncover about future global electricity production?

A: We find that thermal power generation will be disadvantaged in a warmer world.��By the middle of the century, we find that 100-200 additional average-sized global power plants could be required to make up for the electricity generation capacity lost due to heat. Transitioning the electricity sector to renewables–especially wind and solar–will not only reduce the greenhouse gas emissions that cause climate change, but will also reduce the negative impacts of global warming on our power infrastructure.

Q: So much attention is put on governments, companies, cities, etc. and their contributions to global warming. Are there smaller things individuals and families can and should focus on?

A: While individual steps are no substitute for strong national policy action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, there are many things individuals can do, both large��and small. Some big steps people can take are installing solar panels on their homes, replacing gas or oil furnaces with electric heat pumps, replacing an old vehicle with an electric car, or replacing a gas stove with an electric model. These infrastructure investments can significantly reduce someone’s individual emissions (and keep those emissions low for years to come).

Smaller steps include flying just a bit less, driving a bit less or eating a bit less meat. These individual actions are important because they encourage others around you to take climate-friendly steps to reduce their emissions too.

Q: What should policymakers be doing now to prepare for warming threats and its impact to our electricity supply? What options would you suggest?

A: To meet the Paris Accord target of 1.5-2 degrees Celsius of global warming, global greenhouse gas emissions need to reach net zero by mid-century. Achieving this goal would require extremely large investments in renewable energy, electric vehicles and changes to land management. These changes are starting to happen, but not nearly fast enough.

We are very fortunate that major progress has been made to reduce the cost of wind and solar power–these zero–carbon electricity sources are now often cheaper than fossil fuels. So making the transition away from coal, oil and gas not only makes climate sense, but also economic sense. However, we are already feeling the impacts of global warming. Governments should be preparing for the large increases in electricity demand that will come with increased temperatures and A/C use, and ensuring that electricity supplies are sufficient to meet this rising power demand, even after accounting for the reduced power output of thermal power plants on hot days.

Charles Driscoll, University Professor and an air pollution and climate change expert at Syracuse University’s College of Engineering and Computer Science, says programs to promote energy efficiency in New York state are always needed.

Driscoll says:

“There are a host of environmental issues.�� The restoration of wetlands and funds for more natural land management would help deal with two of the most pressing problems in Upstate NY – harmful algal blooms and high-water levels in the Great Lakes.

“Programs to promote energy efficiency, use of renewables, a revitalization of our energy systems and public transportation would all be positive initiatives.”

To request interviews or get more information:

Daryl Lovell
Media Relations Manager
Division of Marketing and Communications

T��315.443.1184 ����M��315.380.0206
dalovell@syr.edu |

The Nancy Cantor Warehouse, 350 W. Fayette St., 2^nd Fl., Syracuse, NY 13202
news.syr.edu |

Syracuse University

, assistant professor of earth sciences and civil engineering at Syracuse University, says the agency’s move is a huge step in the right direction. She also provided these comments when the city of Newark faced a water crisis involving lead contamination earlier this summer.

Kelleher says:

“This proposal from the EPA makes a strong commitment to increasing information access for homeowners, with the goals to rapidly notify residents of high lead levels and to document the prevalence and location of lead service lines.��By lowering the level of lead in water that triggers an investigation from utilities, there is great potential to identify emerging problems in water treatment or infrastructure. This will enable utilities, state officials, and even homeowners to act before these problems grow to the scale of whole communities.

“The proposed strengthening of this federal regulation is a huge step in the right direction for protecting public health across the nation.”

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The move by the Trump administration is part of a series of environmental rollbacks pursued on behalf of coal interests, decisions scientists say are detrimental to public health. Professor Driscoll says the Trump administration is trying to “prolong the operation, the longevity of coal-fired power plants.”

Professor Driscoll was also quoted in –

Energy Reporters:

Clean Technica:

Bloomberg BNA:

served as a deputy to President Obama’s science advisor in the Senate-confirmed position of Associate Director of Environment and Energy (head of the division of environment and energy) in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy during President Obama’s first term.

She is currently University Professor and program director for the Environmental, Sustainability and Policy integrated learning major at Syracuse University’s Maxwell School.

Abbott says:

“The most alarming thing about the latest NOAA report on Arctic warming is that, because of politics, it is unlikely to sound the alarm.��Future generations, geopolitics, environmental justice for native peoples, species and ecosystems are all at risk in the warming Arctic.��And the solutions to reducing the risks are obvious to everyone except the U.S. President and most of his administration.

“Instead of aggressive efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the burning of fossil fuels to protect the planet and people, they are asking the residents and ecosystems of the Arctic to adapt or suffer, while they willfully push for more drilling and more burning.

“This means communities and species will have to move inland (if they can) as the warming endures and ships will sail ice-free waters that are still hazardous.”

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Syracuse University

In the piece, Driscoll writes “So what are the implications of these policy changes? We have long benefited from improvements in air quality with decreases in health consequences (premature deaths, hospitalizations, heart attacks, childhood asthma), natural resource effects (crops, trees, aquatic) and exposure to mercury. Rolling back these air quality rules will halt this progress.”

Charles Driscoll, whose research focus includes the health impacts of climate change, is University Professor of Environmental Systems at Syracuse University’s College of Engineering and Computer Science. With the U.S. already out of the Paris Climate Agreement, he says individual states, American citizens and market forces will have to take the effort to curb climate change into their own hands.

Driscoll says:

“The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report on the challenges in combating climate change is an important message that was released at an appropriate time.��The pledges made by countries during the Paris Climate Accord in 2016 were a first attempt by the global community to reduce carbon dioxide emissions with the goal to limit the increase in global air temperature by 2^oC. Unfortunately, our current rate of carbon dioxide emissions and projections for future emissions suggest that unless we markedly change our path this goal will be difficult to achieve. The Trump Administration backed out of the U.S. commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions made in the Paris Agreement.

“This past August, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency backed off on Obama Administration plan for more aggressive fuel efficiency standards to decrease automobile emissions. Moreover, they propose to replace the Clean Power Plan, the Obama plan to limit carbon dioxide emissions from power plants, with the Affordable Clean Energy plan that will do little to limit carbon releases from the electric utility sector.

“Given the lack of leadership by the U.S. government – states, citizens and market forces will need to act to control carbon dioxide emissions and limit global climate change and its associated effects.”

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Syracuse University

The theme of the conference is “Healthy, Intelligent, and Resilient Buildings and Urban Environments.” The conference program includes six keynote presentations, more than 250 podium and poster presentations, workshops, networking and more.

The conference takes place every three years as part of the official international conference series of the International Association of Building Physics (IABP). The IBPC2018 is the first time the conference is being held in the United States; previously, the conference was held in Eindhoven, The Netherlands (2000); Leuven, Belgium (2003); Montreal, Canada (2006); Istanbul, Turkey (2009); Kyoto, Japan (2012); and Torino, Italy (2015).

Syracuse was selected as the host city for the IBPC2018 based on Syracuse University’s exceptional research and teaching strengths in multiple areas, including energy and environmental systems, healthy and equitable communities, and innovation and entrepreneurship. The conference is jointly organized by the (SyracuseCoE), (ECS) and the .

“IBPC2018 will be the first time this international conference is being held in the United States. It provides an opportunity for more North American delegates to participate in this important international event” says IBPC2018 Chairman , professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering in ECS. “Syracuse University is honored to lead the program committee as the first American host for this transformative event in building physics. A multi-disciplinary team of 15 faculty members from four Syracuse University colleges and schools serve on the Technical Program Committee to lead the organization of the various topic areas ranging from nano-scale materials to building and city-scale energy and environmental systems. ”

“Syracuse is the ideal location for IBPC’s inaugural U.S. location because Central New York’s
industry cluster in environmental and energy systems has become an international leader with research strengths in high-performance building systems,” says Edward Bogucz, executive director of SyracuseCoE. “SyracuseCoE looks forward to welcoming colleagues from around the world who will share the latest advances in research and innovations for healthy and resilient buildings and urban environments.”

“Syracuse University’s College of Engineering and Computer Science is home to international leaders in research, development and demonstration of technologies that contribute to healthy, intelligent and resilient buildings,” says ECS Dean Teresa A. Dahlberg. “IBPC2018 will bring together outstanding and accomplished thought leaders in indoor environmental quality and high-performance buildings, providing promising opportunities for future collaboration, innovation and entrepreneurship.”

“Architecture is a practice in transition, and Syracuse Architecture is evolving with it.,” says Michael Speaks, dean of Syracuse Architecture. “IBPC2018 will address crucial issues in architectural practice. Our new faculty have a strong focus on the research and design of high performance buildings, and there is tremendous opportunity for impactful international collaborations at this event.”

The conference runs from Sunday, Sept. 23, through Wednesday, Sept. 26, at the Marriott Syracuse Downtown (formerly the Hotel Syracuse). It covers a wide range of research topics cutting across multiple scales of built environmental systems ranging from nano-material applications to microenvironments around occupants, to rooms and whole buildings, and neighborhood and urban scales.

The goal of the conference is to advance the collective understanding of the nature and behavior of the cyber-physical systems in these different scales, how they interact, and what can be done to optimize their design and operation for healthy, intelligent and resilient buildings and urban environments.

IBPC2018 session topics include:

• Building Materials, Assemblies, And Enclosure Systems
• Interactions Between Buildings and the Urban Environment
• Intelligent Monitoring and Management Systems
• Human Factors: Occupant Perception, Behavior, and Impact on Building Performance
• Indoor Environmental Quality (Air, Thermal, Daylighting, Artificial Lighting, Acoustical,
Visual)
• Environmental Control Equipment and Systems
• Modeling, Simulation and Design Processes
• Innovative Energy and Power Generation and Management
• Policy and Economics
• Mission Critical Environmental Systems

More information on the conference, including an overview program, is available at .

About SyracuseCoE
SyracuseCoE is New York State’s Center of Excellence in Environmental and Energy Systems.
Led by Syracuse University, SyracuseCoE engages faculty, students and collaborators to
catalyze innovations that improve energy efficiency, environmental quality and resilience in
healthy buildings and cleaner, greener communities. Visit for more
information.

About Syracuse University

Syracuse University is a private, international research university with distinctive academics, diversely unique offerings and an undeniable spirit. Located in the geographic heart of New York State, with a global footprint, and nearly 150 years of history, Syracuse University offers a quintessential college experience. The scope of Syracuse University is a testament to its strengths: a pioneering history dating back to 1870; a choice of more than 200 majors and 100 minors offered through 13 schools and colleges; nearly 15,000 undergraduates and 5,000 graduate students; more than a quarter of a million alumni in 160 countries; and a student population from all 50 U.S. states and 123 countries. For more information, please visit��.

served as a deputy to President Obama’s science advisor in the Senate-confirmed position of Associate Director of Environment and Energy (head of the division of environment and energy) in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy during President Obama’s first term.

She is currently University Professor and program director for the Environmental, Sustainability and Policy integrated learning major at Syracuse University’s Maxwell School.

Abbott says:

“Kroger’s initiative to phase out the distribution of plastic bags is another example of the private sector stepping up to help solve environmental problems and promote sustainability.

“Plastic bags were invented for food safety and convenience.��Although typically used just once for less than 15 minutes, those bags can linger for hundreds of years in landfills or travel to the oceans where they can end up floating in the Pacific Garbage Patch, an area between Hawaii and California more than twice the size of Texas, or interacting with marine wildlife.��They’ve even been found 36,000 feet down in the deepest and most remote point in the Pacific Ocean—the Mariana Trench.

“Tragically, some estimates suggest as many as 100,000 marine animals are killed by plastic bags annually.�� The last study of how much plastic enters the ocean, published online in Science in 2015, concluded that about 4-12 million metric tons of plastic washed into the oceans in 2010, probably enough to cover all the coasts around the planet.

“But that’s only about one percent of the world’s plastic production.��Where does the other 99 percent end up?��Untangling this and other examinations of the full life cycle, greenhouse gas, and health and safety implications of using plastic bags, paper bags, disposable bags, or recycled bags are needed.��That same study estimates a doubling of plastic in the oceans by 2025, the same year Kroger proposes to end the distribution of plastic bags from their stores.

“In the meantime, Kroger could advance sustainability by encouraging reuse and recycling of plastic bags already in the marketplace, as well as ramp up its phase-out nationally.”

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, professor of earth sciences at Syracuse University’s College of Arts & Sciences, researches marine paleoecology and paleoclimate. Ivany says funding to research and restore the Great Barrier Reef is critically important – but doesn’t get to the heart of the crisis.

Ivany says:

“I applaud the significant investment being made by the Australian government in an effort to combat the many challenges faced by the Great Barrier Reef ecosystem. But while funding for research and restoration is always critically important, the real issue at the heart of Great Barrier Reef troubles is climate change.

“The warmer it gets, the more severe will be the impact of natural variations like El Nino.��Heat waves are getting warmer, longer, and more frequent, causing ever-more reef coral to bleach and die. Nearly a third of the Great Barrier Reef ecosystem suffered catastrophic losses in the most recent El Nino. This problem won’t get better unless we can get warming in check.”

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is an assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering at Syracuse University’s College of Engineering and Computer Science. Zeng, who researches public health implications of water reuse, answers three questions about the ways in California and Cape Town – a city facing a massive drought that has led to threats of water running out by this summer – can provide long-term solutions for the large population areas.

��

The planned replenishment of groundwater basins with recycled water has been practiced in California for more than 50 years. How has it changed, or how does it need to be updated with the present drought concerns?

Zeng says:

“California is already ahead of the game, but gaining public acceptance of reuse projects is still key.

“The first project in the U.S. that employed direct injection of recycled water into a potable aquifer started in Orange County in 1976. In 2008, the Orange County Water District re-developed their Groundwater Replenishment System to expand the utility’s potable reuse capacity up to 70 million gallons per day. To address the increased water need, the CA State Water Board has set a mandate of increasing the use of recycled water by 200,000 acre-feet per year (AFY) by 2020 and an additional 300,000 AFY by 2030. In fact, groundwater replenishment for potable reuse has expanded to 8 approved projects, mostly in Southern California, with more than a dozen projects planned throughout the State.

“Furthermore, the California State Water Board has recently completed a comprehensive study to evaluate the feasibility of developing uniform water recycling criteria for direct potable reuse projects. That being said.”

==============

What role could wastewater recycling play in addressing the ongoing water crisis in Cape Town, South Africa?

Zeng says:

“A deliberate and phased approach is needed to ensure public health protection and continued consumer confidence in the public water supply. A few U.S. communities have turned to direct potable reuse (DPR) as an emergency drinking water source during a drought but discontinued DPR when the emergency ended.

“Cape Town may consider piloting such DPR projects for emergency water supplies but only after a careful evaluation of technical challenges and potential public health risks.

“A recent example is with Wichita Falls, TX during the 2010-2015 drought. For about 12 months between 2014 and 2015, wastewater effluents in Wichita Falls were further treated with microfiltration and reverse osmosis and diverted to the city’s drinking water treatment plant for treatment to meet the standards.

“The very first wastewater recycling treatment plant was actually commissioned in the City of Windhoek, Namibia in 1968, and the treatment capacity has been upgraded through the years to its current capacity of 5.5 million gallons per day. There was some initial public opposition to the Windhoek project, but over time, the opposition has faded, and no public opposition to the project has emerged in recent years. Cape Town would likely benefit from the experience of the Windhoek project if they decide to undertake large-scale potable reuse projects in future.”

================

Explain the process of treating wastewater. What has to happen to make it drinkable again?

Zeng says:

“The most commonly implemented treatment process for wastewater recycling is MF-RO-UV/AOP or the so-called Full Advanced Treatment (FAT). To ensure adequate removal of chemical and microbiological pollutants, the effluents from municipal wastewater (sewage) treatment plants are purified by the multi-barrier advanced treatment trains.

“Existing advanced treatment trains for potable reuse typically consist of microfiltration (MF) and reverse osmosis (RO) as broad-screen physical removal processes, followed by a UV/hydrogen peroxide advanced oxidation process (AOP), a broad-screen chemical oxidation process to further destroy contaminants. Recycled water (or product water) from advanced treatment is typically routed to augment groundwater basins or surface water reservoirs that are used as drinking water supplies (called the “indirect” potable reuse; IPR).

“In recent years, there has been increasing interest in blending recycled water directly with the influents of drinking water treatment plants, or even into the distribution systems.”

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Kristina Gutchess

The interplay between surface-water salinity and climate change in Central New York is the subject of a recent paper by researchers in the College of Arts and Sciences.

, a Ph.D. candidate in Earth Sciences, is the lead author of an article in the prestigious journal (ACS Publications). Her co-authors at Syracuse include Laura Lautz, the Jesse Page Heroy Professor and chair of Earth sciences, and Christa Kelleher, assistant professor of Earth sciences.

Another co-author is Gutchess’ Ph.D. supervisor, Associate Professor Zunli Lu.

Rounding out the group are Li Jin G’08, associate professor of geology at SUNY Cortland; José L. J. Ledesma, a postdoctoral researcher of aquatic sciences and assessment at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences; and Jill Crossman, assistant professor of Earth and environmental sciences at the University of Windsor (Ontario).

The paper draws on the group’s study of the impact of de-icing salt from Interstate 81 and other surrounding roads and highways on the Tioughnioga River watershed. Gutchess says their findings make her “cautiously optimistic” about the watershed’s future surface-water chloride concentrations.

“The long-term application of road salts has led to a rise in the river’s salinity level,” says Gutchess, who studies processes affecting the quality of surface water and groundwater. “While various models have been used to assess potential future impacts of continued de-icing practices, they have not incorporated different climate scenarios, which are projected to impact hydrogeology in the 21st century.”

Gutchess’ team combined various computational approaches with rigorous fieldwork and laboratory analysis to simulate surface-water chloride concentrations in the Tioughnioga—a large, deep, 34-mile tributary of the Chenango River, flowing through Cortland and Broome counties.

Central to their experiment was INCA (short for “INtegrated CAtchment”), a semi-distributed catchment-modeling platform that assesses environmental-change issues. Gutchess calibrated the model for a historical, or baseline, period (1961-90), and used the results to make projections for three 30-year intervals: 2010-39, 2040-69 and 2070-99.

Based on the model’s projections, the salinity of the Tioughnioga’s east and west branches will start decreasing in 20-30 years. “A gradual warming trend between 2040 and 2099 will lead to reductions in snowfall and associated salt applications, causing [the river’s] salinity to drop. By 2100, surface-water chloride concentrations should be below 1960s values,” Gutchess says.

This is potentially big news for a part of the country that has experienced rising surface-water chloride concentrations since the 1950s, when road salting began.

Salt, or sodium chloride, is the most commonly used de-icing chemical in the country, spread at a rate of more than 10 million tons a year.

In New York State, a typical wintertime event requires 90-450 pounds of salt per lane-mile. Vehicle traffic picks up about 10 percent of the residue; the rest enters adjacent water catchments in the form of runoff, jeopardizing terrestrial ecosystems and drinking water resources.

Gutchess’ hydrogeological study is one of only a few combining long-term climate variability and salinity management. The INCA model framework enabled her team to assess stream response under 16 different future scenarios, taking into account climate, land use and snow management.

“INCA originally was developed to assess sources of nitrogen in catchments in a single-stem main river,” Jin says. “Here, we modified the model to incorporate a new multi-branched structure, enabling us to simulate daily estimates of in-stream concentrations of chloride. We also allowed for differences in salting practices between rural and urban areas.”

According to INCA, road salt accounts for more than 87 percent of Tioughnioga’s salinity. Current de-icing practices, combined with increased urbanization, will likely add to its salinity, but only for a while, thanks in part to the changing climate.

According to Lu, the study suggests that climatic impacts are not always negative in a specific region: “It is important to understand the nuances of climate change at various time and geographic scales. Ultimately, this project will help us manage our resources more effectively, as we adapt to future changes.”

With a wink and a nod, he adds, “At the same time, we should not make blanket statements about climate change. No one is exempt from its effects, pro or con.”

Gutchess is a member of EMPOWER, a water-energy graduate-training program at Syracuse that is sponsored by the National Science Foundation and directed by Lautz. Additional support for Gutchess’ research comes from the University’s new Campus as a Laboratory for Sustainability program. Upon graduation in May, she will begin postdoctoral research at Yale.

About Syracuse University

Founded��in 1870, Syracuse University is a private international research university��dedicated to advancing knowledge and fostering student success through teaching��excellence,��rigorous scholarship and interdisciplinary research. Comprising 11��academic schools and colleges, the University has a long legacy of excellence��in the liberal arts, sciences and��professional disciplines that prepares��students for the complex challenges and emerging opportunities of a rapidly��changing world. Students enjoy the resources of a 270-acre main��campus and��extended campus venues in major national metropolitan hubs and across three��continents. Syracuse’s student body is among the most diverse for an��institution of its��kind across multiple dimensions, and students typically represent��all 50 states and more than 100 countries. Syracuse also has a long legacy of��supporting veterans and is home to��the nationally recognized Institute for��Veterans and Military Families, the first university-based institute in the��U.S. focused on addressing the unique needs of veterans and their��families.

“The bottom line is that the ‘inside the fence line’ approach would do more harm than good,” he said. “Not only would it cause thousands of extra deaths and cost billions every year compared to the Clean Power Plan, it would inflict more harm than doing nothing at all.”

Entrance to Standing Rock’s Oceti Sakowin camp (Shutterstock Inc.)

When Norway’s largest private investor recently pulled out of the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL), the news barely made a blip on the world’s radar. For , director of the in Syracuse, the message was loud and clear: “People who know about investing are finally realizing there is no future in fossil fuels and in their spinoff industries, such as pipelines. Standing Rock has brought home the need to distance ourselves from life-killing technologies as quickly as possible.”

As professor and chair of religion in the , Arnold also heads up an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) grant project that combines scientific and Native American knowledge to promote environmental stewardship. Nowhere is there a greater need for such synergy, he believes, than in North Dakota, where the Standing Rock and Cheyenne River Sioux tribes continue to battle the routing of a $3.8 billion, 1,172-mile-long pipeline past the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation.

“Drilling is complete, but companies are starting to see DAPL as a poor, long-term investment, economically and environmentally,” he says. “There’s too much uncertainty in the project.”

Phil Arnold

The Norwegian investor in question, Storebrand, is a 250-year-old juggernaut specializing in sustainable, socially conscious projects. On March 1, the Oslo-based company announced it had sold off nearly $35 million worth of shares in Phillips 66, Marathon Petroleum Corp. and Enbridge—North American co-owners of DAPL.

Storebrand’s decision to divest is the latest blow to the hotly contested pipeline, whose completion in southern North Dakota could imperil local drinking water and sacred burial grounds. Since Feb. 7, when the Army Corps of Engineers granted an easement to finish DAPL (allowing the pipeline to go under the Missouri River at Lake Oahe, near the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation), a growing number of entities have withdrawn funds from Wells Fargo and other banks financing the project. They range from individual account holders to the city councils of Seattle, Washington, and Davis, California. As of this writing, activist Jackie Fielder is persuading San Francisco to divest, and New York City has put DAPL banks on notice.

Brian Patterson

Brian Patterson, a Bear Clan representative to the Oneida Indian Nation’s governing body, is not surprised by the turn of events. “We have awakened a sleeping dog to full alert and to positive action around the globe,” says Patterson, past president of United South and Eastern Tribes, representing 26 indigenous nations east of the Mississippi River. “That sleeping dog is not only our allies, but also the corporations that realize oil is a diminishing resource. We must creatively diversify to foster a more economically viable and sustainable future.”

Patterson admits that, despite recent progress at Standing Rock, the conflict is symptomatic of a larger problem rooted in racism and indigenous oppression. He points to a series of religious documents known as the Doctrine of Discovery that, for more than 500 years, has justified the colonization of the Americas and the oppression of its Native peoples.

“More needs to happen [at Standing Rock] that requires actions and alliances,” Patterson says. “This is not a time to be timid. We are qualified for this moment, and we must take action for the well-being of our planet.”

Joe Heath ’68, general counsel for the Onondaga Nation and a Syracuse-based New York

Joe Heath ’68

state attorney, says divestiture is one way to block the “pipeline boom.” He praises his alma mater for dropping fossil fuel stocks from its endowment, but implores the University to do one better. “Syracuse needs to dump the 17 banks affiliated with DAPL,” says Heath, who credits his career path to a constitutional law course taught by the late Maxwell professor Michael Sawyer. “It would really shift public opinion and influence lawmakers.”

Heath considers Standing Rock the latest in a string of broken promises between the United States and indigenous nations, stemming from the Doctrine of Discovery. He reserves his harshest criticism for President Trump and his “robber barons.” “Everything that has happened since Dec. 4, with the halting of the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline, to Trump’s swift granting of the easement to drill under Lake Oahe, is part of the government’s phony trust doctrine,” says Heath, who also condemns Trump’s attempts to dismantle Obama-era EPA regulations. “The privatization going on now with Indian land is just allotment all over again. [Allotment was a national policy between 1887-1934 in which the U.S. government divided Indian tribal land into allotments for individual Indians and families. Most of the land—approximately 90 million acres’ worth—was appropriated by white settlers and business interests.] Such privatization leads to massive oil, gas, coal and uranium exploitation—an aging industry that, like the rest of us, is living on borrowed time.”

Melissa Etheridge

Melissa Etheridge knows a thing or two about borrowed time. A breast cancer survivor, she is one of the Sioux’s most beloved, high-profile supporters. In February, Etheridge brought her band to Turning Stone Resort Casino, about 30 miles east of Syracuse, to raise legal defense funds for people detained or harassed during the Standing Rock conflict.

The concert was presented by the Oneida Indian Nation, with support from the Standing Rock Sioux, and came on the heels of Trump’s executive order to advance construction of DAPL under “terms and conditions to be negotiated.”

“These are very, very dark days,” says the Grammy Award-winning singer, speaking by phone from her home in Southern California. “Once again, we find ourselves under a president who values money above everything else. It is a very 20th-century state of mind. We elected oil and gas, even though they are finite resources, and we have spent the past 20 to 30 years developing alternatives. This is the last hurrah for the fossil fuel industry, and Standing Rock is the epicenter of that.”

Environmental issues always have been important to Etheridge, but it was not until after her 2005 battle with cancer that they took on added significance. “Breast cancer made me realize that I needed to take care of my inner body, while being a steward of my outer world. Both are closely related,” says Etheridge, who is part of a growing list of musicians, including Neil Young, Jackson Browne and Dave Matthews, involved in the fight at Standing Rock. “It’s my job as a human being to protect the things that come from the Earth, such as clean water and healthy food. I believe we can reverse all this and get back on the track of sanity, moving toward alternative energies and a cleaner, better life. That’s what Standing Rock will be remembered for.”

Etheridge echoes what is on the minds of many “water protectors” (as Standing Rock supporters are called)—that, for all of Trump’s perceived business acumen, his decision to focus on gas and oil and to revive the ailing coal industry is outmoded.

Joe Heath, who spoke at Etheridge’s concert, thinks Trump is on the wrong side of history. “It’s not just him, but it seems like his whole cabinet is out of touch and ill-informed,” he says, citing the president’s intentions to cut EPA R&D spending by more than 40 percent. “Report after report shows that renewable energy employment exceeds that of fossil fuel-based industries. For instance, solar electricity generation now employs more people than the electricity generation of coal, oil and natural gas combined. Jobs in fossil fuel extraction and services have declined by more than 4 percent annually since 2012. Wind and solar jobs exist in every state—something that could benefit Central New York and the Rust Belt, in general.”

Regardless, construction of DAPL remains on schedule, with oil expected to flow in mid-March. (When completed, the pipeline will pump 470,000 barrels of crude a day from North Dakota to Illinois.) Trump also is resurrecting the Keystone XL pipeline, a 1,200-mile project that Obama rejected in 2015. Should Keystone ever get off the ground, it will shift more than 800,000 barrels daily from the Canadian oil sands to refineries in the Gulf Coast.

Indeed, DAPL and Keystone are ambitious projects, but, compared to the 2.5 million miles of U.S. pipelines already in existence, they are a “drop in the bucket,” writes David Zeiler in The Wall Street Examiner. One study reveals that, from 2013 to 2015, the United States added more than 12,000 miles of crude oil pipelines—presumably while nobody was looking.

“Most people don’t even know that pipelines get created all the time,” Heath says. “But there’s a lot we can do, using popular support to turn the tide and affect change. We did it with fracking [which New York State prohibited in 2015], and we can do it again with the Dakota Access Pipeline. If investor confidence continues to erode, the project could become financially disadvantageous, and more lending institutions would pull out.”

Leave it to Etheridge, also a well-known medical marijuana advocate, to end on a, uh, high note. “I’m not one to meet crazy with crazy, but, if I had a chance to sit down with Trump, I’d tell him that Standing Rock is about spirit, about reality,” she chortles. “I would say, ‘Donald, try choosing the opposite of fear. Let’s have a smoke, and talk about it.’”

Standing Rock is proof that Christianity is in crisis. At least, that is what Phil Arnold thinks. “Every piece of property bought or sold in the United States, including the territories of our original nations, is based on the Doctrine of Discovery,” he says. “Only Indians cannot own land. They are unable to build equity. That is why Native American reservations are among the poorest communities in the country. As long as they are denied the right to control their resources, they will be locked into poverty and federal dependence.”

Arnold is part of a growing cadre of scholars to denounce Christian jurisdiction over indigenous lands and peoples. It is something, he says, that began in 1493, when Pope Alexander VI unveiled the Doctrine of Discovery to condone the enslavement or killing of people who would not convert to Christianity. Divine Law also gave Christian explorers—and, later, U.S. land speculators—permission to discover, claim and exploit indigenous territories.

“Pope Alexander’s so-called ‘Christian Empire’ morphed into the American Empire, and became the framework for the kind of domination that persists to this day, with President Trump and the Army Corps of Engineers,” Arnold says. “It’s this intertwining of Christianity and American imperialism—using acquired jurisdiction to take over the lands of heathens and infidels, as the Justice Department once put it—that defines Standing Rock.”

David Archambault II, chair of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe, echoed these sentiments during a

David Archambault II (Standing Rock Sioux Tribe)

recent visit to Cornell University. Since Texas-based Energy Transfer Partners (ETP) first announced plans to build DAPL in 2014, Archambault has crisscrossed the globe, garnering opposition to the project. Much of his case rests on two treaties, recognizing Sioux national sovereignty, which the United States has violated repeatedly for more than 150 years.

“We knew our chances were not good,” Archambault told a packed room when he brought up his request for an injunction to halt DAPL’s construction last fall. “Throughout history, federal courts have never sided with tribes. The deck was stacked against us.”

Archambault recalls how Trump ordered an expedited review of DAPL on his fourth day in office. The fait accompli came two weeks later, when Robert Speer, acting secretary of the Army, gave ETP the “green light” to finish the project. Archambault was on his way to a meeting with William Kirkland, deputy director of intergovernmental affairs at the White House, when he got the devastating news.

“I felt slighted because I had been promised a meeting with William Kirkland, before the Army Corps of Engineers said they would make a decision,” he recalls. With the stroke of a pen, Speer canceled a much-anticipated environmental impact study of DAPL and granted an easement for ETP to drill under Lake Oahe. He also suspended the customary 14-day waiting period following his order, enabling ETP to resume work immediately. “I felt like I had been set up,” Archambault adds.

Today, the scene at Standing Rock is vastly different from the one two months ago. Gone are the students, activists and tribal allies, whose ranks swelled to more than 10,000, dotting the landscape with tents, teepees and campers. In their wake is a small, quiet band of supporters—200, at last count—making the best of dwindling resources and pools of snowmelt.

Reports have surfaced of agents from the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force trying to interrogate water protectors. “The agents visited people’s homes without a warrant or a subpoena,” says Heath, who is involved with one of the investigations. “Of course, the protesters didn’t cooperate—it’s a violation of their free speech. If we really are worried about a terrorist attack on U.S. soil, why are we pulling off agents and resources of the border to target innocent water protectors? This is the kind of Orwellian doublespeak that needs to be exposed.”

Doubtless such concerns will be on minds of thousands of Native Americans and their supporters as they converge on the nation’s capital for “Rise with Standing Rock” in March. The four-day event is a “march in prayer and action.”

Such solidarity, Arnold says, proves that Standing Rock is bigger than any single issue or tribe. “It is a powerful global phenomenon that highlights the importance of respecting indigenous nations and their right to protect their land and resources,” he says. “There also is a sense of urgency—that we cannot spend the next four years pretending climate change will go away or renewable energy will create more jobs. We have to stay focused on the matter at hand.”

Brian Patterson agrees: “It feels like Watergate all over again, with the chaos that’s coming out of Washington. Only this time, much of the damage, particularly to the environment, is irreversible. The time to act is now.”

The competition starts February 5 and runs through April 1. The results will be announced in April. Winning schools will receive an award made out of recyclable materials and will host a special traveling trophy for this year.

During the competition, each university reports the amount of recycling and trash collected every week and will be ranked based on their actual weight. Universities will also be ranked according to a recycling rate of total waste and the least amount of combined recycling and trash, according to RecycleMania’s website.

Syracuse University follows the Onondaga County Source Separation Law in disposal of on-campus recycling items of mandatory recyclables, such as paper, cardboard, bottles and cans. The University has different policies for specialized recyclables, which includes batteries, electronics, polystyrene cold shipping boxes, fluorescent light bulbs, scrap metal, compostable yard waste and construction debris. Universities dining centers also compost pre- and post-consumer waste, according to Syracuse University Food Services.

“Each year we improve our ranking or recycling rate,” says Melissa Cadwell, sustainability coordinator of Sustainability Management. “RecycleMania is a promotional effort to reduce our waste through competition, and each year it is great to see the University reduce waste and increase recycling.”

“This competition gives colleges and universities a fun competition edge on a great way to help the environment,” says Meg Lowe, sustainability assistant in Sustainability Management.

Last year, 4.8 million students and staff at 350 colleges and universities participated in this competition, and a total of 79.3 million pounds of recyclable and food organics were collected. According to RecycleMania 2016 result report, the competition “prevented the release of 122,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent into the atmosphere.”

Syracuse University came in 15th out of 276 in the Gorilla Prize, which is ranked according to the gross tonnage of combined paper, cardboard, bottles and cans, with a total of 934,280 pounds of recyclables collected last year. The University came in 27th out of 269 in the Per Capita Classic, which measures the weight of recyclables divided by the campus population and for the Grand Champion, a category that ranks schools’ overall recycling rates, the University came in 48th out of 207, with a recycling rate of 46.9 percent.

To learn more about RecycleMania, visit .

For more information on sustainability and recycling efforts, visit , follow @SustainableSU on Twitter or check out the Syracuse University Sustainability Facebook page.

Story by Jiangyifan Ke, public relations intern with Sustainability Management

Charles Driscoll

Syracuse University Professor , a faculty member in the College of Engineering and Computer Science, said that the announced by President Obama and the EPA will positively impact communities throughout the US.

“ published in Nature Climate Change shows that thousands of premature deaths can be avoided in the US due to reductions in emissions in pollutants such as sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides and particulate matter from electric utilities, depending on how stringent the carbon standard are and how the reductions are achieved. The more the standard promotes the use of cleaner fuels and promotes energy efficiency the greater the health benefits and benefits to ecosystems,” said Professor Driscoll.

“The projected health co-benefits of the announced Clean Power Plan are substantial and are potentially important to communities across the US, particularly those who are have been historically challenged by poor air quality. It appears that in the final Clean Power Plan the co-benefits for air quality and health are lower than those projected in the draft plan and the best performing scenario analyzed in our recent paper. We are starting a new analysis of the health and ecosystem benefits associated with different implementation approaches to the final rule which will take several months to complete,” he said.

A member of the National Academy of Engineers, Professor Driscoll is a world-renowned researcher in the area of air pollution, acid rain, climate change and air quality. Professor Driscoll is available to speak to media. All inquiries can be made through Ariel DuChene, Assistant Dean for External Relations at Syracuse University College of Engineering and Computer Science, at (315) 443-2546 or adduchen@syr.edu

Acid rain has changed the face of the Adirondack Mountains, created political tensions between the Northeast and the Midwest, and has served as a sign of global climate change and a “fire drill” for public- and private-sector responses to environmental crises.

Syracuse University professor Charles T. Driscoll; Jerry Jenkins, a researcher for the Wildlife Conservation Society; Karen Roy, a research scientist for the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation; and Christopher Burekett, formerly of the Adirondack Lakes Survey Corp., have co-authored a new book, “Acid Rain in the Adirondacks: An Environmental History” (Cornell University Press), that looks at acid rain’s impact on the environment and public policy since the 1970s.

“This book is a synthesis and translation of 30 years of study of the impacts of acid rain on the forests and lakes of the Adirondack region of New York,” says Driscoll, University Professor of Environmental Systems Engineering and director of the Center for Environmental Systems Engineering at SU. “It should be of interest to people who are concerned with the northern forest and effects of air pollution on ecosystems.”

The history of acid rain research addresses this large-scale and long-term environmental problem in part through scientifically motivated changes in public policy. In the 1970s, acid rain was viewed as a simple problem that was limited in scope and characterized by “dead,” fishless lakes. Scientists now have broader insights into the processes by which acid rain sets off a range of negative effects in ecosystems as it moves through air, soil, vegetation and surface waters.

The book was written and designed to appeal to both scientists and lay readers. “One of the strengths of the book is the beautiful graphics that illustrate concepts and patterns,” Driscoll says. “This book is an example of scientific communication that provides a comprehensive scientific history of acid rain, from its discovery to the full understanding of the scope of its effects.”

A world-renowned researcher in the areas of acid rain and mercury pollution, and a member of the National Academy of Engineers, Driscoll is also editor of published works such as “Experimental Watershed Liming Study” (Springer, 1996) and co-author of “Acidic Deposition and Forest Soils: Context and Case Studies of the Southeastern U.S.” (Springer, 1989).

For more information on the new book, visit .

For more on Driscoll, visit .