Our lab works broadly on biogeochemistry and ecosystem science, applied to a wide variety of both theoretical and practical questions. We enjoy trying to understand some of nature's complexity, and we believe strongly in applying objective science to sustaining the biosphere and human society. Our research encompasses a wide range of spatial scales, from microbial to ecosystem, regional, and global. Our research includes a broad range of inter-connected topical areas, illustrated below. Note that much of our research and many of our papers fall into two or more of these categories. Click on a topic to further explore research in the Howarth-Marino lab.
Recent News
2020
Radio interview online
Bob was interviewed 6/25/2020 for Albany, NY radio station WOOC105.3FM, regarding the second meeting of New York's Climate Action Council, which was held on June 24th. Click here to listen.
2020
NYT Article on climate impacts of oil and gas
The New York Times, February 19, 2020,
"Oil and Gas May be a Far Bigger Climate Threat than we Knew"
reports on a study published in Nature
(2-19-2020) by Hmiel et al., using 14C in ice cores to determine that preindustrial anthropogenic fossil fuel emissions of methane have been underestimated
by 25 to 40% (link to Nature article).
This study is consistent with our research findings that emissions from fossil sources are corresponding larger than many have been estimating:
R.W. Howarth 2019. Ideas and Perspectives: is shale gas a major driver of recent increase in
global atmospheric methane? Biogoesciences 16: 3033-3046.
2019
Talk on Methane and Shale Gas
Bob gave a talk on December 14th, hosted by the Finger Lakes Sierra Club and Fossil Free Tompkins & Sustainable Tompkins, titled "Is Shale Gas a Major Driver of Recent Increases in Global Atmospheric Methane?" The talk was recorded and is available on YouTube.
2019
Audrey wins Sigma Xi poster award
Audrey Vinton presented a poster on her work this past summer and fall titled "GIS Analysis of Blade Area and Wasting Disease Lesions of Eelgrass (Zostera marina) in West Falmouth Harbor, Cape Cod, MA" in the 44th Annual Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Student Symposium, where she won the Sigma Xi Poster Presentation Award for best undergraduate poster presentation. Congratulations Audrey!
2019
Greenhouse Gas Figure used in New Yorker Article
In a commentary in The New Yorker by Bill McKibbon, titled "The Literal Gaslighting That Helps America Avoid Acting on the Climate Crisis", McKibbon uses a figure created by Dr. Howarth on trends in US Greenhouse Gas Emissions. View full information on the figure at this link, and click here to read the article in The New Yorker.
2019
New paper: Is shale gas a major driver of recent increase in global atmospheric methane?
In a new paper in Biogeosciences, we use data on stable carbon isotopes to calculate the importance of methane from shale gas production in global fossil fuel emissions. Click here for the press release from the European Geophysical Union, and click here to download the article.
Recent Publications
Wong et al. 2019. Biological nitrogen fixation does not replace nitrogen losses after forest fires in the Southeastern Amazon. Ecosystems
Howarth, 2019. Ideas and perspectives: is shale gas a major driver of recent increase in global atmospheric methane? Biogeosciences
Howarth, 2019. Ideas and perspectives: is shale gas a major driver of recent increase in global atmospheric methane? Biogeosciences Discuss.
Swaney & Howarth, 2019. Phosphorus use efficiency and crop production: Patterns of regional variation in the United States, 1987–2012. Science of The Total Environment
McCrackin et al. 2018. Opportunities to reduce nutrient inputs to the Baltic Sea by improving manure use efficiency in agriculture. Regional Environmental Change
McCrackin et al. 2018. A Century of Legacy Phosphorus Dynamics in a Large Drainage Basin. Global Biogeochemical Cycles
Harada et al. 2018. Nitrogen Biogeochemistry of an Urban Rooftop Farm. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution
Swaney et al. 2018. Nitrogen use efficiency and crop production: Patterns of regional variation in the United States, 1987–2012. Science of The Total Environment