Environment and Sustainability

A computing division is teaching students how to put their computers to "sleep." A chemistry department found ways to reduce fume hood use without affecting classes or research. A library department found a way to recycle microfiches and microfilms. These are just a few of the University at Buffalo's environmental efforts being celebrated this Earth Day (April 22) as part of the new Green Partners program, organized by faculty, staff and students of UB's Environmental Task Force.

For years, residents living in the Bellevue section of Cheektowaga have wondered if something in their environment contributes to an increased incidence of disease in their neighborhood. University at Buffalo researchers, working with the New York State Department of Health, hope finally to be able to answer that question by year's end, but first they say they need more residents to fill out and return to them important 10-page surveys.

Investigations into lava lakes on the surface of Io, the intensely volcanic moon that orbits Jupiter, may provide clues to what Earth looked like in its earliest phases, according to researchers at the University at Buffalo and NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

The harvesting of a Caribbean soft coral off the coast of the Bahamas for use in a popular beauty product is providing a University at Buffalo marine biologist with an extraordinary experimental opportunity to answer fundamental questions about the ability of corals to survive environmental challenges.

Environmental Advocates, the New York State affiliate of the National Wildlife Federation, has named the University at Buffalo its "Environmentalist of the Year" for initiating an effort to buy wind energy that has become so successful it has made the university the state's largest purchaser of wind power.

Researchers from the University at Buffalo are developing a handheld sensor that can detect the presence of toxins potentially used as agents in biological warfare.

The tradeoff in fiberglass insulation products has always been between strength and safety: making glass fibers stronger by adding aluminum oxide to them also increases the risk that they will cause lung cancer when inhaled. But biomaterials and biophotonics researchers at the University at Buffalo recently reported on the surprising chemical mechanism behind one type of fiberglass fortified with aluminum oxide that does not persist in the lungs.

Western New Yorkers will have the opportunity to learn about and discuss some of the important scientific and technological advances of our time during "Research Revolution: Science and the Shaping of Modern Life," a free video and discussion series to be offered during October by the University at Buffalo Libraries.

The University at Buffalo's commitment to sustainable energy use and "green" building principles was underscored today as members of the university community gathered at the Creekside Village apartments to unveil a plaque citing the certification of the complex's community center as a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building.

The University at Buffalo has received a donation of 10 zero-emission electric cars that are expected to reduce pollution on campus, as well as cut operating costs. The Global Electric Motorcars (GEM) are among 130 donated to the State University of New York as a joint effort of the New York Power Authority (NYPA) and Global Electric Motorcars LLC, a division of DaimlerChrysler.