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It is well-known that trees help the climate by taking carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere. But it is now clear that trees have another important role to play.

The reason is that greenhouse gas emissions that arise naturally are also affected by increased temperatures. This has been confirmed in a new study from LiU that measures natural methane emissions.

David Bastviken, professor at Environmental Change, part of LiU’s Department of Thematic Studies, has received EUR 2 million through an ERC Consolidator Grant, a funding type that supports excellent research.

Climate-sensitive regions in the north are home to most of the world’s lakes. New research shows that these freshwaters are critical emitters of methane, a more effective greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide.

In deciding where nuclear waste is to be stored, knowledge is needed of how chlorine behaves in nature. Researchers can show that chlorine is bound and sticks much more easily in organic material than previously believed.

A mystery has finally been solved. Researchers from LiU and Helmholtz Munich have discovered that a certain type of chemical reaction can explain why organic matter found in rivers and lakes is so resistant to degradation.

Methane fluxes from lakes are higher during the day than the night, according to a study conducted by LiU researchers. Consequently, the contribution of northern lakes to global methane emissions is 15 per cent lower than previously estimated.

Methane emissions via trees growing in the Amazon basin equal the emissions from all of the world’s oceans or the Arctic tundra wetlands, according to a new study by scientists from, among others, Linköping University in Sweden.

When we drink a glass of water, we ingest an unknown amount of by-products that are formed in the treatment process. Researchers have been able to detect new compounds – where every water treatment plant has a unique combination.

Lakes emit globally approximately 42 million tonnes of the greenhouse gas methane each year, according to a new study from NASA and LiU. This is less than previously believed, but even so, lakes are one of the largest natural sources of methane.