We speak to Dr Craig Smeaton, lecturer in physical geography at the University of St Andrews, about his research into blue carbon storage and it's implications for climate change research.

In order to understand the global warming, scientists around the world are researching the cycle of greenhouse gases. They are seeking methods through which to decode the complex climate system and better predict the reaction to sustained emissions on Earth. One of these methods is to look back at the past. Very far back in history: over more than one million years. The only direct information source available to them is drilled ice cores from Antarctica.

Wastewater treatment plants, often hidden on the outskirts of our cities and towns, play a critical role in our modern society. In the following article, we will focus on this hidden but important infrastructure and shed light on the role of TOC (Total Organic Carbon) concentration in the process control of wastewater treatment plants.