The Conversation

A proposal for 270m tall wind turbines on Robbins Island has ruffled some feathers – but here's why towering turbines are here to stay. Con Doolan, Professor, School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, UNSW Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Adani's request for the names of individual scientists reviewing their groundwater management plan has chilling implications for scientific independence. Samantha Hepburn, Director of the Centre for Energy and Natural Resources Law, Deakin Law School, Deakin University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Clownfish eggs exposed to artificial light completely fail to hatch, highlighting the growing problem of light pollution. Emily Fobert, Research Associate, Flinders University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

An eight year study of half hourly prices finds that wind and solar generation have been pushing wholesale electricity prices down. Zsuzsanna Csereklyei, Lecturer in Economics, RMIT University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

The endangered Australasian bittern offers a way past the 'farmers vs environmentalist' debate in the Murray-Darling basin. Matt Herring, PhD Candidate, Charles Darwin University Kerstin Zander, Associate professor, Charles Darwin University Stephen Garnett, Professor of Conservation and Sustainable Livelihoods, Charles Darwin University Wayne A. Robinson, post doctoral research fellow, Charles Sturt University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

The NSW government has announced plans to remove feral deer from its list of official game animals. With careful monitoring, the resulting free-for-all could help curb their booming numbers. Thomas Newsome, Lecturer, University of Sydney Emma Spencer, PhD candidate, University of Sydney Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Red gums connect the continental fringes of Australia with its arid heart, marching along waterways. Gregory Moore, Doctor of Botany, University of Melbourne Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Some 58 metres of sea level rise is locked up in Antartica's ice sheets, and it's melting faster than expected. Nerilie Abram, ARC Future Fellow, Research School of Earth Sciences; Chief Investigator for the ARC Centre of Excellence for Climate Extremes, Australian National University Matthew England, Australian Research Council Laureate Fellow; Deputy Director of the Climate Change Research Centre (CCRC); Chief Investigator in the ARC Centre of Excellence in Climate System Science, UNSW Matt King, Professor, Surveying & Spatial Sciences, School of Technology, Environments and Design, University of Tasmania Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Humans and dogs have lived together for thousands of years, but we may be forgetting how to co-exist peacefully. Paul McGreevy, Professor of Animal Behaviour and Animal Welfare Science, University of Sydney Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Fewer than 1,000 Siamese crocodiles exist, but can captive crocs survive again in the wild? Paul McInerney, Research Fellow, La Trobe University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Australia doesn't want to deal with its own recycling waste, so why do we think other countries should do it for us? Trevor Thornton, Lecturer, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

This year's national conference of the Australian Marine Science Association is a plastic-free zone, as marine scientists aim to reduce the environmental burden of throwaway plastic. Elizabeth Sinclair, Senior Research Fellow, School of Biological Sciences and The UWA Oceans Institute, University of Western Australia Charlotte Birkmanis, PhD Candidate, The UWA Oceans Institute and School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia Robert Pemberton, Business Support Manager, UWA Oceans Institute, University of Western Australia Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

New Zealand has one of the world's largest ocean territories, but the marine environment is at risk from climate change, pollution and fishing. Rebecca Jarvis, Research Fellow, Auckland University of Technology Tim Young, Marine Scientist, Auckland University of Technology Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Australian houses are not designed and built for the realities of climate change Anir Kumar Upadhyay, Lecturer in Built Environment, UNSW Chris Lockhart Smith, Director - ecodweller, UNSW Krishna Munsami, PhD student, UNSW Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Iran has announced it will breach the limits on uranium enrichment agreed under the 2015 nuclear deal, after the US turned its back on the agreement. What does that mean for Iran's nuclear program? Martin Sevior, Associate Professor of Physics, University of Melbourne Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Parts of Antarctica's largest ice shelf are melting ten times faster than the rest of the shelf, and solar heated waters below the ice are to blame. Craig Stewart, Marine Physicist, National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

We need to understand what a swallow's nest is really for – and it is not mainly for sleeping. Graham Fulton, PhD student, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

A federal program to help the Murray-Darling environment accidentally lowered water levels – but not as much as previous reports had feared. Q J Wang, Professor, University of Melbourne Avril Horne, Research fellow, Department of Infrastructure Engineering, University of Melbourne Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Seagrass may look unassuming, but healthy oceans depend on the huge meadows that grow in temperate and tropical waters. Valentina Hurtado-McCormick, PhD Candidate, University of Technology Sydney Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.

Vanuatu has banned them outright, while many Chinese families use just one every 24 hours. So why are Australians still sending millions of dirty nappies to landfill every single day? Kelly Dombroski, Senior Lecturer in Human Geography, University of Canterbury Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.