An underground river has been confirmed beneath the Amazon River but it is a river in name only as it moves only a few centimeters per year. It doesn’t really flow like a real river.

Research by CSIRO has shown that less rainfall occurred over the past 50 years in southern Australia in the fall and winter – and less rain is expected to continue for another 50 years.

A comprehensive report by WorldFish Center and Conservation International states that aquaculture is less damaging to the environment and more efficient than the production of livestock such as cows and pigs.

Research headed by the U.S. National Center for Atmospheric Research has found that paved roads in coastal cities, like Houston, Texas, create less breezes, which makes it more difficult for pollution to blow out to sea and away from such areas. The result: more pollution.

The Chinese news agency Xinhau is reporting that China is expanding its nationwide ban on free plastic shopping bags to minimize the “white pollution”. This seems to be a good policy for all countries, including the United States and Australia.

The 2011 “State of the Air” report from the American Lung Association states some progress has been made to get rid of dirty air in the United States, but it still exists in many large cities. Over 154 million Americans continue to be threatened with air pollution.

The first comprehensive mapping of life found on Australia’s continental shelf was made after a three-year study of the sea-shelf. Scientists now have much more valuable information available to study life within its continental shelf habitats.

Scientists are planning to dig a really deep hole through the Earth’s crust and into its mantle. The start of this mega-deep hole will be made under the ocean off the coast of Costa Rica, and scientists hope to return never-before-taken samples from Earth's mantle.

Understanding how climate change could impact on the deterioration of the basic building block of much of Australia's infrastructure – concrete – is crucial to ensuring major assets such as roads, ports and buildings continue to perform up to expectations, according to a CSIRO report.

Earthquake experts from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution announced on March 11, 2011, that the world should learn from the gigantic Japanese earthquake, especially those who live along similar faults. And, people should be prepared for the next big earthquake that hits.

They are called Safe Road Trains for the Environment (SARTRE) and like something out of the film Minority Report they promise an improved way of travelling our moterways.  On the Volvo Proving Ground in Sweden, trials are underway on a new self-driving automobile system.

The end of each year seems to be the appropriate time to review the highlights of the past year. The journal Nature has dramatic pictures included with its 2010 science highlights, and it’s well worth a look.

According to a first-time worldwide study conducted on the largest lakes found on Earth, NASA has concluded that these lakes have warmed steadily in surface temperature over the past 25 years.

A study published in the journal Nature Geoscience states that the global economic recession has done one positive thing. It has reduced carbon dioxide levels for the first time in ten years.

Although Mr McGuire recommended “plastics” to Benjamin in “The Graduate”, ye olde plastic bags are being bagged, done, dusted and dismissed from Tasmania’s retail stores, although the ban is yet to go through Tasmania’s parliament.

A team of Australian researchers is working on a way to capture greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide, with what it being called “molecular sponges." These sponges could help in our fight to control greenhouse gases in our atmosphere.  

Australian researchers have studied different types of coral and their susceptibility to disease and bleaching brought on by global warming. Depending on their level of immunity, corals such as those within Australia’s Great Barrier Reef may be more or less affected by global warming.  

Phytoplankton, a tiny algae, is the start of the food chain. However, scientists have found that their numbers have declined by about 40% since 1950 and are continuing to decline by about 1% per year. This trend could spell disaster for the entire marine ecosystem.

The U.S. space agency NASA has produced the world’s first map of the height of all Earth’s forests. The map will help scientists learn more about the carbon cycle and its affect on our atmosphere.

Beginning on Tuesday 29, 2010, Australia will hold its first climate change adaptation conference. It will be held on the Gold Coast for three days.