Environment & Health

Series 02 · 3 explainers

Some of the most hopeful environmental work happens at small scale: fungi that break down oil in soil, slow sand filters that clean drinking water, budgets that show how much carbon is left to burn. This series also covers harder questions about pollution and health, such as depleted uranium, with the evidence laid out as it stands.

We separate what is measured from what is promising, and we name the limits.

The Carbon Budget Explained: Why Studies Say Most Fossil Fuel Reserves Can’t Be Burned A carbon budget is the total amount of CO2 the world can still emit while keeping warming below a set limit, such as 1.5 °C or 2 °C, with a given probability. As of October 2026, the latest estimates put… FN·02·000091
Depleted Uranium: Health Effects, Evidence and Open Questions Depleted uranium (DU) is the dense, weakly radioactive metal left over from uranium enrichment and used in armor-piercing ammunition, including in the 1991 Gulf… FN·02·000054
Mushroom Power: How Fungi Clean Up Pollution (Mycoremediation Explained) Mycoremediation is the use of fungi, mostly wood-decaying species such as oyster mushrooms, to break down pollutants like petroleum hydrocarbons and PAHs in soil.… FN·02·000049

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