Environmental Sciences and Engineering Research
Improved training, learning opportunities would help to meet UN’s ambitious water, sanitation, hygiene goals
January 14, 2019
New research from doctoral student Karen Setty and Dr. Jamie Bartram could benefit the WaSH community by engaging multiple parties to develop a set of common global research priorities. Photo by Shawn/Creative Commons.
Outreach on private well and septic-system maintenance crucial to water quality in ‘underbounded’ communities
December 21, 2018
Many private well owners in areas that have been excluded from municipal water and sewer services are not informed appropriately about the guidelines or importance of routine water testing, according to recent research from faculty members and students at the Gillings School.
When it comes to respiratory effects of wood smoke, sex matters
November 14, 2018
Exposure to wood smoke can have different effects on the respiratory immune systems of men and women — effects that may be obscured when data from men and women are lumped together. "The upshot," said senior author Dr. Ilona Jaspers, "is that we really need to consider sex-specific effects when studying wood smoke and other environmental pollutants that threaten public health."
Emissions from cannabis growth in commercial warehouses could have impact on air quality
November 13, 2018
A new study led by Dr. Will Vizuete examines the gases released by four species of cannabis to determine the impact of a thriving marijuana industry on air pollution and human health.
US air pollution deaths nearly halved between 1990 and 2010
October 19, 2018
Air pollution in the U.S. has decreased since about 1990, and a new UNC-Chapel Hill study now shows that this air quality improvement has brought substantial public health benefits.
New course at UNC, taught by Glenn Walters, combines design thinking and experiential making
June 13, 2018 Dr. Glenn Walters, director of the Environmental Sciences and Engineering Design Center at the Gillings School, is teaching 'Introduction to Design and Making,' a course that introduces students to state-of-the-art technology while proving that hard work and perseverance through failure can be rewarding.
Bartram, Brocklehurst invited, in new Nature journal, to critique UN’s global goals for water and sanitation
May 9, 2018 Dr. Jamie Bartram and Clarissa Brocklehurst are co-first authors of a paper that reviews implementation targets and indicators for the United Nations' sustainable development goal for water and sanitation. Their observations were published April 26 in the new open access journal, NPJ Clean Water.
Frances Reuland: A research assistantship paves the way to a career in public health
April 22, 2018 Through her work with Dr. Jamie Bartram at the Water Institute at UNC, senior Fran Reuland discovered her affinity for public health.
Researchers conduct first quantitative analysis of water, sewer access disparities in 75 NC counties
April 16, 2018 A new study that examined access to water and sewer services in peri-urban areas suggests that two primary groups in North Carolina remain underserved: lower-income African-American populations and higher-income non-African-American populations.
MacDonald Gibson wins grant to support research on GenX, other environmental contaminants in NC
April 16, 2018 Dr. Jackie MacDonald Gibson has received funding from the North Carolina Policy Collaboratory to study emerging contaminants in North Carolina, including GenX, a potentially toxic industrial compound that has been detected in the Cape Fear River.