Tag: waste
Is there plastic in our drinking water? Probably – and U of T researchers are studying how concerned we should be
Is there plastic in your drinking water? The University of Toronto’s Bob Andrews and Chelsea Rochman say there is – but, unfortunately, they don’t have much more information to share.
“If someone asks me how microplastics in drinking water influence human health, I have to say that we have no idea,” says Rochman, an assistant professor in the department of ecology and evolutionary biology in U of T’s Faculty of Arts & Science.
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Out of thin air: U of T researchers shorten path to capturing and recycling CO2 with new process
A research team from the University of Toronto has developed a new electrochemical path to transform CO2 into valuable products such as jet fuel or plastics. The technology could significantly improve the economics of capturing and recycling carbon directly from the air.
“Today, it is technically possible to capture CO2 from air and, through a number of steps, convert it to commercial products,” says University Professor Ted Sargent, in the Edward S. Rogers department of electrical and computer engineering, who led the research team.
The last straw: U of T ecology expert, students create inventory of plastic litter that collects in the Don River
On a hot and muggy July day, Chelsea Rochman, an assistant professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at the University of Toronto, and a group of students made their way to the mouth of the Don River, armed with gardening gloves, garbage bags and a first aid kit.
Plastic not just a problem in our oceans, also affecting the Great Lakes: U of T research
Chelsea Rochman, assistant professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at the University of Toronto, says we should be paying close attention to what’s taking place closer to home in the Great Lakes.
“The contamination in the Great Lakes and other bodies of freshwater from plastics and microplastics is ubiquitous,” says Rochman, who looks at plastic debris and its associated chemical contaminants.