An ecological perspective on nanomaterial impacts in the environment.
Abstract
Growing concerns over the potential for unintended, adverse consequences of engineered
nanoparticles (ENPs) in the environment have generated new research initiatives focused
on understanding the ecological effects of ENPs. Almost nothing is currently known
about the fate and transport of ENPs in environmental waters, soils, and sediments
or about the biological impacts of ENPs in natural environments, and the bulk of modern
nanotoxicogical research is focused on highly controlled laboratory studies with single
species in simple media. In this paper, we provide an ecological perspective on the
current state of knowledge regarding the likely environmental impacts of nanomaterials
and propose a strategy for making rapid progress in new research in ecological nanoscience.
Type
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https://hdl.handle.net/10161/15724Collections
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Emily S. Bernhardt
James B. Duke Distinguished Professor
Emily Bernhardt is an ecosystem ecologist and biogeochemist whose research is principally
concerned with tracking the movement of elements through ecological systems. Dr. Bernhardt's
research aims to document the extent to which the structure and function of aquatic
ecosystems is being altered by land use change (urbanization, agriculture, mining)
global change (rising CO2, rising sea levels) and chemical pollution. Ultimately this
information is necessary to determine whether and how
Curtis J. Richardson
Research Professor of Resource Ecology in the Division of Environmental Science and
Policy
Curtis J. Richardson is Professor of Resource Ecology and founding Director of the
Duke University Wetland Center in the Nicholas School of the Environment. Dr. Richardson
earned his degrees from the State University of New York and the University of Tennessee.
His research interests in applied ecology focus on long-term ecosystem response to
large-scale perturbations such as climate change, toxic materials, trace metals, flooding,
or nutrient additions. He has specific interests in phosphor
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