Coverage of my research and expertise
“While these six PFAS certainly pose threats to health that merit regulation, there are thousands of PFAS that likely have very similar impacts on human health.”
“PFAS are now ubiquitous in soils and regularly encountered during state transportation highway projects.”
— Transportation efforts needed to mitigate PFAS pollution: Digital Journal
“Charbonnet said these chemicals can lead to health effects even at very low concentrations...He added, once they’re in the environment, they’re pretty much there to stay.”
— EPA proposes limits for ‘forever chemicals’ in Iowans’ drinking water: KCRG News
“ ‘It’s really important that we talk clearly with each other when we say we found something new, or found something poorly characterized,’ Charbonnet said.”
— CCEE’s Joe Charbonnet Designs Communication Method for Identifying PFAS, the ‘Forever Chemicals’: Iowa State University College of Engineering News
“The UC Berkeley team's coated sand could be an inexpensive solution to treating the run-off water collected.”
— New Mineral Sand Helps Transform Storm Sludge into Clean Water: Interesting Engineering
“ ‘The way we treat storm water, especially in California, is broken. We think of it as a pollutant, but we should be thinking about it as a solution,’ said Joseph Charbonnet.”
— Engineered sand zaps storm water pollutants: Berkeley News
“Engineered sand turns stormwater into drinking water.”
— True Grit: Big Picture Science Podcast
“ “It’s really exciting that cities are starting to say that, ‘Wait, this is a new local source of water that we can get without importing it over long distances; let’s make use of it,’ ” Charbonnet said.”
—Water conservation in California drops after dry winter: The Daily Californian
“He loves interacting with students and seeing their faces when they learn something new. As an environmental engineer he has seen the capability of technology to improve lives.”
— Iowa Latinos in Higher Education Profile: Iowa Department of Human Rights
“ ‘The pollutants that hold back the potential of this water source rarely come one at a time,’ said study lead author Joe Charbonnet...‘It makes sense that we fight back with a treatment technology…to take out both toxic metals and organics.’ ”
— Sustainable sand pulls pollutants from stormwater: Phys.org
“UC Berkeley engineers have developed a sustainable sand that can soak up toxic metals from storm water.”
— UC Berkeley Engineers Develop Sand to Remove Pollutants from Storm Water: Stormwater Solutions
“UC Berkeley engineers have developed a mineral-coated sand…this material could help cities tap into stormwater, an abundant but underused water source.”
— Sustainable sand gives pollution a one-two punch: Berkeley Engineering
“[Charbonnet] said when any foam is installed under concrete or behind gypsum wallboard, that configuration ‘is much more effective at protecting lives from fire death than any chemical.’ ”
— Do Flame Retardants Work? Putting Foam Insulation to the Test: BuildingGreen