When humans try to constrain rivers, the results can be calamitous. (Editorial)

http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg21028142.700-mississippi-delta-blu...

Coastal zone is very dynamic, being the meeting place of land and sea water. The development in coastal area and subsequent population growth have given rise to problems such as erosion, sedimentation, saltwater intrusion, degradation of natural resources etc. Satellite data has proved to be more appropriate for change detections quantifying and monitoring coastal zones compared to conventional sources. An attempt is being made to elucidate the effect of shoreline changes with reference to the spatial and field data observed along the Tharangampadi area.

Watershed response to produce runoff by a rainfall event depends upon the watershed characteristic and each watershed has its exclusive characteristics. However, most of the watersheds lacks in the facility of recording runoff, in such a case, morphometric parameters of a watershed are valuable information to evaluate watershed capacity to produce runoff.

Could the devastation caused by hurricanes Katrina and Rita have had a silver lining? The sediment washed into New Orleans by the floods accompanying the storms may have blanketed over heavily polluted, lead-laden soil in the city, leading to a decrease in lead levels in the bloodstreams of children across the city.

Increased erosion associated with the rise of the world's great mountain ranges has been held to be the cause of a prolonged episode of past climate cooling. That connection is now brought into doubt.