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Worldwide, edible fish are well studied for plastic occurrence. Microplastic (MP) occurrence in edible tissues raises concern for the organism’s health, but also on food safety. In the Arctic region, MP occurrence in other tissues than the digestive tract of fish has not been published yet. Plastic-related chemicals such as UV stabilisers (UVS) were also scarcely studied in Arctic biota. Our objectives were to (1) provide data on MP occurrence in Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) fillets, (2) quantify UVS in the same fillets, and (3) provide estimations of both MP and UVS intake by Norwegian and European consumers through cod consumption. Twenty individuals were collected in the Barents Sea, south-west of Svalbard. They were dissected onboard and a piece of fillet was used for the extraction of MPs in the lab. Particles’ identification was performed by µRaman spectroscopy. MPs were found in 45 % of the fillets, with an average of 0.25 MP/g ww. Only one UV stabiliser (UV-326) was detected, in four fillets. Based on consumption data of cod, an average Norwegian man and woman would ingest 20.8 and 33.5 MPs weekly, respectively. Considering a European diet, a weekly intake of 8 MPs and a yearly intake of 403 MPs through cod consumption was calculated. The impacts of MP exposure to humans are unknown. Through this study, rather than to raise potential risks of consuming fish, we aimed to trigger further research on microplastics occurrence in seafood, i.e. in the edible tissues of aquatic animals.
2025
Spatial and temporal assessment of soil degradation risk in Europe
Soil degradation threatens agricultural productivity and ecosystem resilience across Europe, yet spatially consistent assessments of its intensity and drivers remain limited. In this study, we used Soil Degradation Proxy (SDP), that integrates four key indicators of soil degradation, including erosion rate, soil pH, electrical conductivity, and organic carbon content, to quantify soil degradation risk. Using over 38,000 LUCAS topsoil observations and a machine learning model trained on climate, land cover, topographic, soil parent material properties, and spectral variables, we map annual SDP values between years 2000 to 2022 across Europe. Results show soil degradation risk is highest in southern Europe, especially in intensively managed and sparsely vegetated landscapes. Over the past two decades, approximately 7.1% of land area across the EU and the UK has experienced increasing degradation risk (most notably across Eastern Europe), with rainfed croplands emerging as the most affected land cover type. Land cover is the most influential driver, modulating effects of climatic variables such as precipitation and temperature on SDP. This data-driven framework provides a consistent and scalable approach for monitoring soil degradation risk and offers actionable insights to support targeted conservation and EU-wide policy implementation.
2025
This paper reviews results published by the International Co-operative Programme on Effects on Materials including Historic and Cultural Monuments (ICP Materials) with emphasis on those obtained after the turn of the century. Data from ICP Materials come from two main sources. The first is through exposures of materials and collection of environmental data in a network of atmospheric exposure test sites mainly distributed across Europe. Corrosion of carbon steel has continued to decrease during the period 2000–2020 but corrosion of zinc only up until 2014, and the trend in zinc corrosion is only visible when examining four-year data. Surface recession of limestone as well as soiling of modern glass show no decreasing trend during 2000–2020. The second is through case studies performed at heritage sites across Europe. Risk analysis of corrosion and soiling for twenty-six sites indicate that currently soiling is a more significant maintenance trigger than corrosion. Costs for maintaining heritage sites are substantial and costs attributable to air pollution is estimated from 40% to as much as 80% of the total cost. Future directions of the program are work on effects of particulate matter, improving the scientific basis for the work, and making the monitoring data publicly available.
2025
Construction of an enterprise-level global supply chain database
Data tracing global supply chains, commonly captured in input–output models, is a foundational resource across economic, regulatory, investment, defense, and environmental applications. Such models provide insight into interdependency and environmental burden-shifting, forming part of the empirical basis for policies such as Scope 3 embodied emissions targets, supply chain transparency, life cycle assessments, and product declarations. Current approaches, based on national statistics, remain constrained by sector-level resolution, limiting their precision and utility in certain applications. Here, we document the construction of an enterprise-level multi-regional input–output (EMRIO) table. This database merges official national input–output tables with publicly available firm-level production and transaction data, creating a globally consistent account of purchases and sales across 9,466 companies, 86,305 subsegments, and 121 countries. The finer resolution allows supply chain transactions to be represented in greater detail, providing an additional resource for analyses and policy tools requiring more disaggregated supply chain information.
2025
2025
Impact of leakage during HFC-125 production on the increase in HCFC-123 and HCFC-124 emissions
Hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) are ozone-depleting substances whose production and consumption have been phased out under the Montreal Protocol in non-Article 5 (mainly developed) countries and are currently being phased out in the rest of the world. Here, we focus on two HCFCs, HCFC-123 and HCFC-124, whose emissions are not decreasing globally in line with their phase-out. We present the first measurement-derived estimates of global HCFC-123 emissions (1993–2023) and updated HCFC-124 emissions for 1978–2023. Around 5 Gg yr−1 of HCFC-123 and 3 Gg yr−1 of HCFC-124 were emitted in 2023. Both HCFC-123 and HCFC-124 are intermediates in the production of HFC-125, a non-ozone-depleting hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) that has replaced ozone-depleting substances in many applications. We show that it is possible that the observed global increase in HCFC-124 emissions could be entirely due to leakage from the production of HFC-125, provided that its leakage rate is around 1 % by mass of HFC-125 production. Global emissions of HCFC-123 have not decreased despite its phase-out for production under the Montreal Protocol, and its use in HFC-125 production may be a contributing factor to this. Emissions of HCFC-124 from western Europe, the USA and East Asia have either fallen or not increased since 2015 and together cannot explain the entire increase in the derived global emissions of HCFC-124. These findings add to the growing evidence that emissions of some ozone-depleting substances are increasing due to leakage and improper destruction during fluorochemical production.
2025
Machine learning for mapping glacier surface facies in Svalbard
Glaciers are dynamic and highly sensitive indicators of climate change, necessitating frequent and precise monitoring. As Earth observation technology evolves with advanced sensors and mapping methods, the need for accurate and efficient approaches to monitor glacier changes becomes increasingly important. Glacier Surface Facies (GSF), formed through snow accumulation and ablation, serve as valuable indicators of glacial health. Mapping GSF provides insights into a glacier's annual adaptations. However, satellite-based GSF mapping presents significant challenges in terms of data preprocessing and algorithm selection for accurate feature extraction. This study presents an experiment using very high-resolution (VHR) WorldView-3 satellite data to map GSF on the Midtre Lovénbreen glacier in Svalbard. We applied three machine learning (ML) algorithms—Random Forest (RF), Artificial Neural Network (ANN), and Support Vector Machine (SVM)—to explore the impact of different image preprocessing techniques, including atmospheric corrections, pan sharpening methods, and spectral band combinations. Our results demonstrate that RF outperformed both ANN and SVM, achieving an overall accuracy of 85.02 %. However, nuanced variations were found for specific processing conditions and can be explored for specific applications. This study represents the first clear delineation of ML algorithm performance for GSF mapping under varying preprocessing conditions. The data and findings from this experiment will inform future ML-based studies aimed at understanding glaciological adaptations in a rapidly changing cryosphere, with potential applications in long-term spatiotemporal monitoring of glacier health.
2025
Temporal changes in per and polyfluoroalkyl substances and their associations with type 2 diabetes
We assessed temporal changes of PFAS and associations with T2DM over a period of 30 years in a nested case–control study with repeated measurements. Logistic regression was used to assess associations between 11 PFAS and T2DM at five time-points in 116 cases and 139 controls (3 pre- and 2 post-diagnostic time-points in cases). Mixed linear models were applied to assess if changes in PFAS were related to T2DM status. In the pre-diagnostic time-point T3 (2001), future cases had higher concentrations of PFHpA, PFNA, PFHxS and PFHpS compared to controls. In the post-diagnostic time point T5 (2015/16), PFNA and PFOS were higher in prevalent cases. PFHxS and PFHpS were positively associated with future T2DM at the pre-diagnostic time-point T3, whereas PFTrDA were inversely associated with future T2DM at T1 (1986/87) and prevalent T2DM at T4 (2007/8). Temporal changes in PFAS across the study period showed that cases experienced a greater increase in pre-diagnostic concentrations of PFHpA, PFTrDA, PFHxS and PFOSA, as well as a larger post-diagnostic decrease in PFOSA, compared to controls. This study is the first to show that temporal changes in PFAS are associated with T2DM status for certain PFAS, and associations between PFAS and T2DM vary according to sample year.
2025
Killer whales (Orcinus orca) accumulate high levels of persistent organic pollutants (POPs), which have been linked to immunomodulation. Over the past decades, large-scale mortality events associated with cetacean morbillivirus (CeMV) have affected cetacean populations, and concerns have been raised about the role of contaminants in exacerbating these outbreaks. However, establishing cause-effect relationships in free-roaming cetaceans remains a significant challenge. In vitro approaches present unique potential for furthering our understanding of the effects of multiple environmental stressors in marine mammal health. In this study, we used primary fibroblasts cultured from wild Norwegian killer whale skin biopsies (n = 6) to assess how exposure to POP mixtures affects cell viability and CeMV replication. Our findings demonstrate that CeMV successfully replicates in killer whale fibroblasts, with the viral replication significantly increasing over the duration of the experiment. POP exposure led to a concentration-dependent decrease in cell viability and a significant increase in viral replication. These results validate killer whale primary fibroblasts as a valuable in vitro tool for the study of co-exposure of POPs and morbillivirus on toothed cetaceans. Moreover, these findings support the need for further research to confirm the role of contaminants in intensifying the severity of CeMV infections in the wild.
2025
Rethinking Global Soil Degradation: Drivers, Impacts, and Solutions
The increasing threat of soil degradation presents significant challenges to soil health, especially within agroecosystems that are vital for food security, climate regulation, and economic stability. This growing concern arises from intricate interactions between land use practices and climatic conditions, which, if not addressed, could jeopardize sustainable development and environmental resilience. This review offers a comprehensive examination of soil degradation, including its definitions, global prevalence, underlying mechanisms, and methods of measurement. It underscores the connections between soil degradation and land use, with a focus on socio‐economic consequences. Current assessment methods frequently depend on insufficient data, concentrate on singular factors, and utilize arbitrary thresholds, potentially resulting in misclassification and misguided decisions. We analyze these shortcomings and investigate emerging methodologies that provide scalable and objective evaluations, offering a more accurate representation of soil vulnerability. Additionally, the review assesses both physical and biological indicators, as well as the potential of technologies such as remote sensing, artificial intelligence, and big data analytics for enhanced monitoring and forecasting. Key factors driving soil degradation, including unsustainable agricultural practices, deforestation, industrial activities, and extreme climate events, are thoroughly examined. The review emphasizes the importance of healthy soils in achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, particularly concerning food and water security, ecosystem health, poverty alleviation, and climate action. It suggests future research directions that prioritize standardized metrics, interdisciplinary collaboration, and predictive modeling to facilitate more integrated and effective management of soil degradation in the context of global environmental changes.
2025