Energy & Environment

UC Merced Aerial Picture
New Precision Ag Project Would Help Farmers Measure Plant Moisture
November 2, 2020
One of the biggest challenges in managing crops, especially in large fields, is knowing how much water each section of a field needs. Determining that accurately is a cumbersome process that requires people to hand-pluck individual leaves... Read More
With Fire Threatening, National Parks Turn to UC Merced for Help Preserving History
October 15, 2020
Ward Eldredge warily monitored the fire’s progress. As curator of the archives of the Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks, he deliberated what would need to be done if the nearby Castle Fire continued its approach toward the parks’... Read More
Restoring State's Forests to Reduce Fire Risks Will Take Time, Money and Broad Commitment
October 13, 2020
School of Engineering professors Roger Bales and Martha Conklin have written a new article for The Conversation discussing the changes that need to be undertaken in land-management practices in California's mountain forests: "As California... Read More
New Project Focuses on Life in Soil in the Earth’s Critical Zone
October 6, 2020
Since 2007, UC Merced researchers have been extremely productive in the Southern Sierra Critical Zone Observatory (CZO), delving into investigations of hydrology, climate change, geology, biology and more. But the National Science... Read More
AI is for the Birds in a New Computer Science Project
September 30, 2020
Bird species usually are counted twice a year by wildlife surveyors: once during the breeding season and again during the Christmas Bird Count . New technology, however, is increasing the accuracy of bird population studies. A team of UC... Read More
UC Merced Named Top 5 ‘Cool School’ by Sierra Club and Makes 'Green College Honor Roll'
September 29, 2020
UC Merced’s national reputation for sustainability continues to grow, with the Sierra Club naming the university No. 5 on its 2020 “Cool Schools” list and The Princeton Review placing it on its Green College Honor Roll. Sierra magazine,... Read More
Past Wildfires Offer Future Roadmap for Forest Management’s Effects on Water
September 15, 2020
Forest restoration is often associated with mitigating wildfire risk and improving ecosystem health throughout the Sierra Nevada. But restoration also dramatically affects water use within forests and the amount of runoff that flows... Read More
Professor Tracey Osborne Taking on Complex, Grand Challenges in Climate and Social Justice
September 9, 2020
The world is a complex place, and humanity faces major challenges. Climate change mitigation might be the most difficult, in large part because of the interdependency of living things and their ecosystems. How do people transform economic... Read More
Global Fire Outlook Not Good News, but Mitigation is Possible, Analysis Shows
September 3, 2020
Wildfire is a natural process necessary to many ecosystems. But wildfires are getting worse and more damaging, and it is our fault, according to new research. A paper by two UC Merced researchers and their colleagues, published in a new... Read More
New Project Shining a Light on Energy Storage
August 20, 2020
California’s leaders want the state to reach 100 percent clean energy in the future, including being 60 percent powered by renewable energy by 2030 and being free of fossil fuels entirely by 2045. But if the state wants power without... Read More