RMIT researcher calls for reducing ‘microplastics’ in bathroom products Mussels in Port Phillip Bay near Melbourne are ingesting microscopic pieces of plastic used in cosmetics. And it’s affecting their ability to grow and reproduce, an RMIT University eco-toxicologist has found. The microplastics travel from our bathroom sinks to the ocean, where they are easily confused…
A new type of concrete that is made out of waste materials and can bend under load has been developed by researchers from Swinburne University of Technology in Melbourne, Australia. This material, which incorporates industrial waste products such as fly ash produced by coal-fired power stations, is especially suited for construction in earthquake zones –…
The iconic Australian tea tree (Melaleuca decora) is more vulnerable than native eucalypt species to extreme temperature and moisture stress, Western Sydney University researcher Anne Griebel has discovered. To make the finding, Anne and colleagues fitted instruments that measure the exchange of carbon, water and heat at 10 times a second to an extendable mast…
We can’t easily monitor the health of plants, by the time we see that they’re sick it’s usually too late to save that. That’s an issue for your house plants, a field of wheat, orchards and plantations. Karina Khambatta has developed a way to use the waxy surface of leaves to monitor their health. Currently…
Climbing trees reveals a housing shortage for tree-rats and other endangered animals. Estimates of tree hollows – which form the houses of several endangered species in northern Australia – are much too high, researchers at Charles Darwin University in the Northern Territory have found. And the discovery could be bad news for several of Australia’s…
Location matters for species struggling to survive under a changing climate. A new study led by Macquarie University has found we need to provide more safe havens for wildlife and plant species to survive under climate change in New South Wales’ west. Along the Great Dividing Range, the vulnerable spotted-tailed quoll will be forced to…
Science is important in solving the world’s biggest problems. But can the social sciences solve our planet’s biggest issues on their own? Last month’s Woolworths’ and Coles’ plastic bag ban is a perfect example: environmental scientists have known for decades that plastic is harmful to the environment but changing habits at the individual level has…
Melbourne and Indonesian scientists work to improve shipping efficiency Scientists available for interview in Bahasa Indonesia and English. Video overlay and photos of ferry available below. Read the release in Bahasa Indonesia. Every shipping manager wages an endless battle against fouling – the bacteria, seaweed, barnacles and other marine life that take residence on the…
Our biggest hopes of keeping global methane levels down may be chewing the cud in a paddock near you.
A new land management tool using Aboriginal knowledge Ngan’gi speakers know it’s time to look for freshwater crocodile eggs when the red kapok trees near the Northern Territory’s Daly River burst into flower. This can occur at a different time each year, but the environmental link is solid. A Darwin-based scientist has converted this link […]