Potential Crisis in Environmental Health Research
A potential crisis looms with the loss of environmental health research due to the federal government canceling and scaling back funding.
Scientists at Johns Hopkins University, America's First Research University, worry about the health and economic consequences for society. Benjamin Zaitchik, a professor of Earth and planetary sciences, expressed concern about the state of environmental health research in an era of extreme weather.
"Baltimore is sinking, and the sea is rising,"
Zaitchik explained that Baltimore's aging infrastructure and underground water-flow channels are struggling to cope with excessive rainwater, leading to floods. He noted that the soil doesn't stay frozen as long in January, and it rains much more than it snows, exacerbating the problem.
Author's summary: Funding cuts threaten environmental health research.