Europe is burning on our new cover. The scariest part? You can't see it. Heatwaves have aftershocks: vegetation + soils keep emitting pollutants after temperatures fall, driving ozone and secondary aerosols higher. Cover: Europe. Data: China. Lesson: global. doi.org/10.1016/j.ese.2026.1…

An #AI stack can translate #eDNA and eRNA signals into health evidence: molecular features, ecosystem-service change, then causal links to diet and disease—if uncertainty and governance keep pace. doi.org/10.1016/j.ese.2026.1… @NJU1902, @eDNA_Society, @UNEP, @WHO, @CDCgov, @EPA, @UN_Water, @IWAHQ, @WorldBankWater, @NRDC

Balloons are an overlooked #microplastics source: a burst can pulse-release tens to thousands of particles into breathing zones, with latex additives raising sensitization risk beyond conventional MNPs. doi.org/10.1016/j.ese.2026.1… @XMU_1921, @UNEP, @5gyres, @OurOcean, @HACplastic, @WHO, @EPA, @NRDC

A BN-in-CNT oxygen-confinement ladder on a membrane cathode yields 5× faster #electroFenton kinetics, complete SMX removal in 15 min, and 48 h stable treatment of real #NF concentrate via ¹O₂. doi.org/10.1016/j.ese.2026.1… @Xiaoguang_Duan, @HIT_1920, @IWAHQ, @WEForg, @WorldBankWater, @UN_Water, @WHO, @EPA, @NRDC, @IWAwaternews

Fluorosilane-engineered #PVDF contactors, guided by operando #OCT, recover 98.4% of #NH3 from real anaerobic digestion effluent at 44.8 g m⁻² d⁻¹ while holding Cassie–Baxter wetting. doi.org/10.1016/j.ese.2026.1… @ugent, @IWAHQ, @WEForg, @WorldBankWater, @UN_Water, @WHO, @EPA, @NRDC, @IWAwaternews, @nature_org

Locked-in emissions comprise ~84% of China's household #CO2 and air-pollutant footprints; food lock-in is ~97%. Deep 2035 co-reduction requires carbon-neutrality policy plus weaker #consumption inertia. doi.org/10.1016/j.ese.2026.1… @Tsinghua_Uni, @JKSteinberger, @KlausHubacek, @YumingGuo007, @IPCC_CH, @UNFCCC, @CarbonBrief, @WHO, @EPA, @NRDC

Across 497 U.S. cities, poverty-modulated #TreeEquity shapes 11 #UrbanHealth burdens; a 5-point TES rise corresponds to 2.7–35% lower prevalence, strongest in high-poverty cities. doi.org/10.1016/j.ese.2026.1… @SFreedlandMD, @AmericanForests, @CDCgov, @tpl_org, @YumingGuo007, @foresters, @ClemsonUniv, @WHO, @nature_org, @NRDC, @EPA

Across 4017 livestock metagenomes, #intI1 abundance is a quantitative proxy for livestock #AMR risk, with persistent hotspots in Asia, sub-Saharan Africa and South America. doi.org/10.1016/j.ese.2026.1… @ZJU_China, @YGZHURCEES, @UliKluemper, @MBlokesch, @mrillig, @petervikesland, @IneosOxford, @MSUMGI, @Macquarie_Uni, @HKUniversity, @JessicaMABlair

National 1 km grids (2000–2023) show #heatwaves dominate CHOE frequency while #ozone dominates intensity across China; the frequency–intensity asymmetry strengthened after 2016. doi.org/10.1016/j.ese.2026.1… @weijing_rs, @PKU1898, @minghao_qiu, @csuen27, @YumingGuo007, @xcyale, @Zhou_HKU, @RARohde, @HKUniversity, @iitmpune, @MonashUni, @HarvardChanSPH, @UMDscience

Emerging contaminants follow class-specific mechanistic regimes in #sediment–water partitioning: antibiotics controlled by molecular descriptors, PFASs by ion-mediated interfacial processes, and EDCs by synergistic molecular–geochemical–basin-scale factors. doi.org/10.1016/j.ese.2026.1… @SunYatsen_Uni, @CAS__Science, @livingtheflow, @Eco_hydro, @jcamthrash

Hydrodynamics rather than water temperature shapes #macroinvertebrate communities in alpine rivers on the Qinghai–Xizang Plateau, with taxa richness showing a unimodal response to specific stream power that peaks at moderate intensity. doi.org/10.1016/j.ese.2026.1… @Tsinghua_Uni, @PKU1898, @CAS__Science, @livingtheflow, @Eco_hydro

Moisture-driven redox dynamics shape oil-degrading #microbiomes in tropical intertidal sands, yielding ∼8-fold greater oil depletion under unsaturated oxic than saturated anoxic conditions through divergent aerobic and anaerobic hydrocarbon pathways. doi.org/10.1016/j.ese.2026.1… @NUSingapore, @ORNL, @UTKnoxville, @Yale, @jcamthrash

For decades, the rule has been: rewetting drained peatlands triggers a methane surge — and sparks land-use conflict with farmers. Plot twist. Rewetting severely burned peat soils cuts methane by 91% — without adding anything, using the fire's own biogeochemical legacy. Read free (OA): doi.org/10.1016/j.ese.2026.1…

Boron nitride wedge structures inside carbon #nanotubes form a molecular oxygen confinement ladder enabling kinetic antiwetting and selective singlet oxygen generation, achieving complete #sulfamethoxazole removal in 15 min and stable 48 h electro-Fenton treatment of nanofiltration concentrate. Full article available: doi.org/10.1016/j.ese.2026.1… @Xiaoguang_Duan, @HIT_1920, @UniofAdelaide, @environmentinst, @ESEjournal, @TheElimelechLab, @water4point0, @ewatgroup, @chemhugh, @DionDionysiou

Engineering constraints cut theoretical #PhosphorusRecovery from Japanese sewage sludge by 34–63%; integrated aqueous–ash pathways can still substantially advance national agricultural P targets under real facility-scale, cost and spatial limits. doi.org/10.1016/j.ese.2026.1… @K_Matsubae, @TohokuUniPR, @MarkvLoosdrecht, @PhosphorusESPP, @HuanLiuUBC, @S_Pap87, @cgernies_en, @CHIKYUKEN, @ZixuanWang15, @Reflow_ESR8

Balloons generate pulse-like releases of #microplastics and #nanoplastics upon bursting, with latex and foil materials producing particles of distinct composition and additive loads. Near-field inhalation exposure is elevated for children and vulnerable groups; species-specific controls and life-cycle measures are needed for this overlooked #microplastic source. sciencedirect.com/science/ar…

Rewetting severely #wildfire-affected peat soils suppresses #methane emissions >90% versus non-fire soils. Fire legacies raise carbon stability, pH and conductivity while reducing methanogenic genes, converting the usual CH₄ surge into a net climate benefit; global prioritization could avoid 0.8 Mt CO₂-eq yr⁻¹ (>70% in Asia). sciencedirect.com/science/ar…

Stricter #vehicle standards cut total #VOC emissions 75% in conventional vehicles, yet #OVOC fraction rose from 20% to 35%. A modern hybrid emitted nearly twice the OVOCs (25.4 vs 13.3 mg km⁻¹), raising non-carcinogenic risk 69% and nearly doubling carcinogenic risk; aromatics still dominate >70% of SOAP. sciencedirect.com/science/ar…