Clean Environment

Thilo Hofmann, environmental scientist and co-director of the Environment and Climate Research Hub at the University of Vienna, reflects on the EAT-Lancet Report. Drawing on his work on soils, water systems, and persistent contaminants like microplastics and PFAS, he highlights how pollutants can undermine nutrient cycles, ecosystem health, and the long-term sustainability of food production - and why interdisciplinary research is essential.

The burning of fossil fuels, megafires and land-use changes drive CO2 levels up. How will that affect the Amazon? Will the elevated carbon fertilise the forest, boosting leaves and roots so that they will store more CO2? Or will the nutrient-deficient soils nullify the fertilisation effect that works so well in glasshouses? A spectacular international project is about to find out - and ECH is on board.

A new study of a research team led by Thilo Hofmann - co-director of the Environment and Climate Research Hub at the University of Vienna - in cooperation with the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, published in the renowned journal Environmental International, shows that crops absorb tire abrasion compounds.

PFAS, the so-called ‘forever chemicals’, are non-degradable and widespread in everyday products – despite their known health risks. As regulatory action often lags behind, civil lawsuits are playing an increasingly important role in addressing environmental toxins. An interdisciplinary approach reveals: lasting solutions will require cooperation between science, law, and policy.

Who would say no to innovation? But every promising innovation leaves environmental traces – some we expect, others surprise us decades later. Whether it’s nuclear waste, microplastics, or the residues of our ever-expanding data industry. A shift in perspective could help us rethink how we deal with innovation.

Indoor climbing boosts fitness - but may come with an invisible risk. A new study reveals that air in bouldering gyms can contain high levels of rubber additives from climbing shoes - sometimes even higher than on busy roads. These chemicals, similar to those in car tires, can enter the lungs through abrasion. Researchers warn: it’s time to act before the full health impact becomes clear.

Current climate goals require the removal of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. However, how this should happen is up for debate. Researchers at the University of Vienna and the Potsdam Research Institute for Sustainability took a close look at the emission reduction plans of major EU industry sectors and found a substantial but underspecified reliance on uncertain carbon removal technologies. This enables them to project currently highly emission-intensive business models into the future.

While mostly hidden, groundwater is of central importance to surface ecosystems and human society. Christian Griebler, researcher at the University of Vienna and ECH-member, recently contributed to a new global model of groundwater temperature that predicts the effects of climate change on this subterranean ecosystem.

An international team of scientists, including Andreas Stohl, ECH member, meteorologist and Vice Dean at the Faculty of Earth Sciences, Geography and Astronomy at the University of Vienna, used information stored in ice cores to model lead air pollution in the Roman Empire – and its likely consequences for human cognitive function.

Science has provided more than enough evidence to develop a collective and global approach to tackle the proliferation of plastic pollution. This is the conclusion of an international research team including environmental psychologist Sabine Pahl from the University of Vienna. The current Science publication particularly emphasises the urgency of a global agreement to curb plastic pollution.