State of the Planet

News from the Columbia Climate School

water matters24

  • Flood Impacts: Don’t Forget Other Factors

    Flood Impacts: Don’t Forget Other Factors

    As scientists continue to try to sort out climate change effects, it’s important to remember also that when it comes to the impact of floods, there are many factors outside of global climate change that affect outcomes for people. Here are a few.

  • Seawater Greenhouses Produce Tomatoes in the Desert

    Seawater Greenhouses Produce Tomatoes in the Desert

    With the global population increasing by 80 million each year, a third of the planet will likely face water shortages by 2025. This looming water crisis is inextricably linked to food production…

  • Record-Breaking Amounts of Snow Raise Problems for Cities

    Record-Breaking Amounts of Snow Raise Problems for Cities

    These record breaking amounts of snow have caused numerous concerns both economical and environmental and as snowfalls pile up cities run out of room to put the snow. One suggested solution was to dump the snow into waterways even though it became a mixture of many pollutants including, but not limited to, motor oil and…

  • Floods in Eastern Sri Lanka and North-Eastern Australia: Contrasts in Disaster Risk Management

    Due to the ongoing floods in Sri Lanka, more than a million people are affected, 185,000 were displaced and 16 had died by February 5, 2011. The impact has been most severe on Eastern Sri Lanka a “Disaster Hazard and Vulnerability Hotspot”. The purpose of this post is to publicize information resources to help target…

  • Wild Oysters Deemed ‘Functionally Extinct’

    Wild Oysters Deemed ‘Functionally Extinct’

    A recent Valentine’s Day-inspired article in the Grist pointed out that oysters are the only delicacy that enhances The Mood and water quality. Don’t get too excited, though: a new study published this week in BioScience revealed that oysters are “functionally extinct” in many parts of the world where they were once abundant, and nothing…

  • Recruiting Tiny Organisms to Detect Water Pollution

    Recruiting Tiny Organisms to Detect Water Pollution

    Climate change has huge implications for water pollution, so with increasing climate change effects and the concern that many regions on the planet are approaching peak water, timely water pollution detection is critical.

  • A New Look at Global Water Scarcity from Columbia Water Center

    A New Look at Global Water Scarcity from Columbia Water Center

    Columbia Water Center is committed to sharing and disseminating the knowledge from research and development projects we have completed and are currently working on. We aim to create a collaborative environment in which progress towards understanding and addressing the increasing demands and scarcity of freshwater can be made in the 21st century. To help visualize…

  • Finding Answers to the Worsening Water Crisis in Gujarat, India

    Finding Answers to the Worsening Water Crisis in Gujarat, India

    As explained in a recent blog post, falling groundwater levels in the Northern regions of the state of Gujarat, India, are reaching dramatically dangerous proportions.  Columbia Water Center (CWC), however, believes that there are numerous technologies and practices that could save significant amounts of water and energy.  Farmers have shown interest in applying them, but…

  • In the Arctic More Than Elsewhere, Things Are Heating Up

    In the Arctic More Than Elsewhere, Things Are Heating Up

    According to a new international study, water flowing into the Arctic Ocean from the North Atlantic is the warmest it has been in the past 2,000 years.

Banner: Climate Week NYC 2025, September 21-28, 2025
  • Flood Impacts: Don’t Forget Other Factors

    Flood Impacts: Don’t Forget Other Factors

    As scientists continue to try to sort out climate change effects, it’s important to remember also that when it comes to the impact of floods, there are many factors outside of global climate change that affect outcomes for people. Here are a few.

  • Seawater Greenhouses Produce Tomatoes in the Desert

    Seawater Greenhouses Produce Tomatoes in the Desert

    With the global population increasing by 80 million each year, a third of the planet will likely face water shortages by 2025. This looming water crisis is inextricably linked to food production…

  • Record-Breaking Amounts of Snow Raise Problems for Cities

    Record-Breaking Amounts of Snow Raise Problems for Cities

    These record breaking amounts of snow have caused numerous concerns both economical and environmental and as snowfalls pile up cities run out of room to put the snow. One suggested solution was to dump the snow into waterways even though it became a mixture of many pollutants including, but not limited to, motor oil and…

  • Floods in Eastern Sri Lanka and North-Eastern Australia: Contrasts in Disaster Risk Management

    Due to the ongoing floods in Sri Lanka, more than a million people are affected, 185,000 were displaced and 16 had died by February 5, 2011. The impact has been most severe on Eastern Sri Lanka a “Disaster Hazard and Vulnerability Hotspot”. The purpose of this post is to publicize information resources to help target…

  • Wild Oysters Deemed ‘Functionally Extinct’

    Wild Oysters Deemed ‘Functionally Extinct’

    A recent Valentine’s Day-inspired article in the Grist pointed out that oysters are the only delicacy that enhances The Mood and water quality. Don’t get too excited, though: a new study published this week in BioScience revealed that oysters are “functionally extinct” in many parts of the world where they were once abundant, and nothing…

  • Recruiting Tiny Organisms to Detect Water Pollution

    Recruiting Tiny Organisms to Detect Water Pollution

    Climate change has huge implications for water pollution, so with increasing climate change effects and the concern that many regions on the planet are approaching peak water, timely water pollution detection is critical.

  • A New Look at Global Water Scarcity from Columbia Water Center

    A New Look at Global Water Scarcity from Columbia Water Center

    Columbia Water Center is committed to sharing and disseminating the knowledge from research and development projects we have completed and are currently working on. We aim to create a collaborative environment in which progress towards understanding and addressing the increasing demands and scarcity of freshwater can be made in the 21st century. To help visualize…

  • Finding Answers to the Worsening Water Crisis in Gujarat, India

    Finding Answers to the Worsening Water Crisis in Gujarat, India

    As explained in a recent blog post, falling groundwater levels in the Northern regions of the state of Gujarat, India, are reaching dramatically dangerous proportions.  Columbia Water Center (CWC), however, believes that there are numerous technologies and practices that could save significant amounts of water and energy.  Farmers have shown interest in applying them, but…

  • In the Arctic More Than Elsewhere, Things Are Heating Up

    In the Arctic More Than Elsewhere, Things Are Heating Up

    According to a new international study, water flowing into the Arctic Ocean from the North Atlantic is the warmest it has been in the past 2,000 years.