62 news posts related to Freshwater

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Precision mapping with satellite, drone photos could help predict infections of a widespread tropical disease

researchers processing begetation in Senegal.

Satellite images, drone photos and even Google Earth could help identify communities most at risk for getting one of the world’s worst tropical diseases. A team led by the University of Washington and Stanford University has discovered clues in the environment that help identify transmission hotspots for schistosomiasis, a parasitic disease that is second only to malaria in its global health impact. 

Read more at UW News »

New fellowship supports global water research

Students in lab

With water-related challenges on the rise around the world, there is a splash of good news. A newly established Ivanhoe Foundation Endowed Fellowship will support UW graduate students who are gearing up to tackle some of the most pressing water-related challenges in developing countries. Addressing complex water-related challenges around the globe requires creative problem-solving and the ability to translate cutting-edge research into real-world solutions, according to the Ivanhoe Foundation. 

Read more at UW Civil & Environmental Engineering »

Only one-third of the world’s longest rivers remain free-flowing, new analysis finds

Grand Coulee Dam on the Columbia River in Washington.WSDOT

Just over one-third of the world’s 246 longest rivers remain free-flowing, according to a new study published May 8 in Nature. Dams and reservoirs are drastically reducing the diverse benefits that healthy rivers provide to people and nature across the globe. A team of 34 international researchers from McGill University, World Wildlife Fund, the University of Washington and other institutions assessed the connectivity status of 12 million kilometers of rivers worldwide, providing the first-ever global assessment of the location and extent of the planet’s remaining free-flowing rivers. 

Read more at UW News »

Assessing riverside corridors — the ‘escape routes’ for animals under climate change — in the Northwest

A black bear walks along the South Fork Flathead River in Montana.

Under climate change, plants and animals will shift their habitats to track the conditions they are adapted for. As they do, the lands surrounding rivers and streams offer natural migration routes that will take on a new importance as temperatures rise. An open-access study led by the University of Washington pinpoints which riverside routes in Washington, Oregon, Idaho and western Montana will be the most important for animals trying to navigate a changing climate. 

Read more at UW News »