Canopy Tree Project
Positive News You Can Use: Golden Age of Discovery
February 9, 2026
Positive News You Can Use is EARTHDAY.ORG’s monthly feature showcasing inspiring environmental progress from around the world. February’s edition delves into recent solutions addressing deforestation and forest regrowth with new technology, forever chemical removal that can be applied on a large scale, evidence of solar’s success, and a recent record-breaking rate of species discovery.
Learn, hope, and share this news with your friends.
No Longer Forever: New Technology Breaks Down PFAS
Rice University researchers found an environmentally friendly way to break down PFAS, commonly known as “forever chemicals,” which can take up to 1,000 years to break down.
Since the 1940s, PFAS have been used in many everyday products, such as clothing, carpets, and cookware, for their heat and water-resistant properties. As a result, these chemicals accumulate in food, water, animals, people, and the environment. Over 200 million people likely receive water with measurable PFAS concentrations. Exposure is linked to causing pervasive health issues, including some cancers and reproductive disorders.
Current removal methods, like incineration, fail to eliminate all the chemicals. However, testing this new invention in river, tap, and wastewater yielded positive results, suggesting it could be used in municipal water treatment systems.
The technology uses layered double hydroxide (LDH), a material composed of copper and aluminum. The eco-friendly aspect stems from its reuse and cleanup: early testing showed that LDH can be reused in at least six cycles of PFAS capture, destruction, and renewal. With the adoption of this technology and other innovative solutions, we are one step closer to removing hazardous chemicals impacting human and environmental health.
Species Discovery Rate Hits Record-breaking 16,000 Yearly
Scientists discover over 16,000 new species every year, with the most recent comprehensive data from 2015 to 2020 showcasing a higher rate than any period ever recorded, researchers at the University of Arizona found.
Certain groups are more diverse than previously thought. Long-term projections suggest there could be up to 73,000 more fish species and 32,000 more amphibian species than previously thought. There may also be over half a million plant species in total.
Right now, we know of about 2.5 million species, but the true number may be in the tens or hundreds of millions or even the low billions.
John Wiens, University of Arizone
Many scientists have declared we are in a mass extinction event, the sixth of the last 500 million years, but the first directly caused by human activity. Being able to use and redirect human influence for positive efforts through effective biological conservation efforts relies on documenting, identifying, and discovering species.
Brazilian AI System Stops Deforestation Before it Happens
The growing integration of artificial intelligence into environmental initiatives continues with Brazilian nonprofit Imazon, a scientific institution fighting for Amazon rainforest survival. The AI deforestation prediction model uses colored dots to indicate risk levels in Amazon patches. Notably, 71% of the 15,000 square kilometers identified as high-risk forest areas were saved: Imazon’s map has helped inform 4,400 environmental legal cases and uncovered 99% of illegal deforestation since its 2021 launch
The Amazon is home to over 10% of the planet’s biodiversity and 40 million people. Deforestation has impacted the Amazon’s overall forest loss of 17%, and with current deforestation rates, 27% of the forest will be without trees.
Predictive and large-scale modeling projects like these provide efficient methods to identifytopographic data in real time and combat deforestation. Models can therefore be used to inform environmental policy and direct government reforestation efforts involving high-risk and vulnerable forest patches. Imazon partners with local state prosecutors to push for deforestation prevention over punishment.
Solar Just Met 61% of America’s 2025 Electricity Needs, and Costs 96% Less Than it Did 40 Years Ago
Solar, wind, and batteries continue to grow in the US, with solar named as the fastest-growing source of America’s electricity in 2025. Solar power generation met 61% of America’s electricity demand growth last year, the entire rise in daytime electricity demand, and with batteries, also met most of the rise in evening electricity demand.
Fossil fuels like coal, oil, and natural gas are finite resources, meaning that at some point they will be depleted. For instance, global coal reserves are estimated to run out in 133 years with our current use rates. Renewable energy technology allows a promise for energy generation far beyond this deadline. Solar energy sustains human populations using the Sun as an unlimited power source, all while contributing far fewer harmful greenhouse gases that accelerate the climate crisis.
Solar energy costs have reduced 96% over the past four decades, and are projected to keep reducing from scaled-up production, manufacturing advancements, and technological improvements.
Nitrogen Fertilizer Doubles Forest Regrowth Speed
Researchers at the University of Leeds found that when forest soils contain enough nitrogen, tropical forests can regrow twice as fast after deforestation. Plants depend on nitrogen to form chlorophyll, allowing sunlight and nutrient absorption for growth.
Forests help capture carbon through carbon sequestration. This helps slow climate change by taking carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Reforestation efforts are gaining more traction in Brazil with the announcement of the Tropical Forest Forever Facility, which can protect and revitalize tropical forests worldwide.
Even as global reforestation rates slowed in 2025, the current rate yields 10.9 million hectares of forest lost every year. Findings on how to direct regrowth efforts and exploring natural solutions help inspire different methods for governments, organizations, and individuals to regrow our forests.
These discoveries serve as a reminder that people are doing their part to save the planet, and you can too. We have the power to innovate, using science to understand our natural world and technological advances to protect it. Mark Earth Day 2026 with Our Power, Our Planet, on April 22nd and every day to continue, promoting scientific progress that helps protect our world.