The Conversation

THE CONVERSATION: One of the biggest microplastic pollution sources isn’t straws or grocery bags – it’s your tires

July 22, 2025

By Boluwatife S. Olubusoye, University of Mississippi and James V Cizdziel, University of Mississippi Every few years, the tires on...

THE CONVERSATION: California farmers identify a hot new cash crop: Solar power

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Agriculture

July 16, 2025

By Jacob Stid, Michigan State University; Annick Anctil, Michigan State University, and Anthony Kendall, Michigan State University Imagine that you...

THE CONVERSATION: After the smoke clears, a wildfire’s legacy can haunt rivers for years, putting drinking water at risk

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Wildfires and watersheds

June 23, 2025

Ben Livneh, University of Colorado Boulder, The Conversation Picture a wildfire raging across a forested mountainside. The smoke billows and...

THE CONVERSATION: Supreme Court changes the game on federal environmental reviews

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Policy and regulation

June 4, 2025

By J.B. Ruhl, Vanderbilt University Getting federal approval for permits to build bridges, wind farms, highways and other major infrastructure...

THE CONVERSATION: Managing forests and other ecosystems under rising threats requires thinking across wide-ranging scenarios

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Ecosystems Planning and management

May 27, 2025

By Kyra Clark-Wolf, University of Colorado Boulder; Brian W. Miller, U.S. Geological Survey, and Imtiaz Rangwala, University of Colorado Boulder...

THE CONVERSATION: How redefining just one word could strip the Endangered Species Act’s ability to protect vital habitat

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Ecosystems Policy and regulation

May 14, 2025

By Mariah Meek, Michigan State University and Karrigan Börk, University of California, Davis It wouldn’t make much sense to prohibit...

THE CONVERSATION: Federal laws don’t ban rollbacks of environmental protection, but they don’t make it easy

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Policy and regulation

April 21, 2025

By Stan Meiburg, Wake Forest University President Donald Trump and Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin have announced their intent...

THE CONVERSATION: Drug pollution in water is making salmon take more risks – new research

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Water quality

April 12, 2025

By Jack Brand, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences and Michael Bertram, Stockholm University “Out of sight, out of mind” is...

THE CONVERSATION: EPA must use the best available science − by law − but what does that mean?

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Policy and regulation Science

April 8, 2025

By H. Christopher Frey, North Carolina State University Science is essential as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency carries out its...

THE CONVERSATION: Revoking EPA’s endangerment finding – the keystone of US climate policies – won’t be simple and could have unintended consequences

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Policy and regulation

March 20, 2025

Patrick Parenteau, Vermont Law & Graduate School Most of the United States’ major climate regulations are underpinned by one important...

THE CONVERSATION: Zombie water apocalypse: Is Trump’s rhetoric over Canada’s water science-fiction or reality?

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Policy and regulation

March 13, 2025

By Tricia Stadnyk, University of Calgary Interest from the United States in Canada’s water is concerning, though nothing new. In...

THE CONVERSATION: Supreme Court sides with San Francisco, requiring EPA to set specific targets in water pollution permits

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Policy and regulation

March 5, 2025

By Robin Kundis Craig, University of Kansas The U.S. Supreme Court has limited how flexible the Environmental Protection Agency and...

THE CONVERSATION: NOAA’s vast public weather data powers the local forecasts on your phone and TV – a private company alone couldn’t match it

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Hydrology Planning and management

February 11, 2025

By Christine Wiedinmyer, University of Colorado Boulder and Kari Bowen, University of Colorado Boulder When a hurricane or tornado starts...

THE CONVERSATION: Drought can hit almost anywhere: How 5 cities that nearly ran dry got water use under control

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Planning and management

February 5, 2025

By Sara Hughes, Adjunct Professor of Environment and Sustainability, University of Michigan; and Michael Wilson, Professor of Policy Analysis, Pardee...

THE CONVERSATION: After the fire: Rain on wildfire burn scars can trigger deadly debris flows – a geologist explains how

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Wildfires and watersheds

January 23, 2025

By Jen Pierce, Boise State University While firefighters work to extinguish the Los Angeles-area wildfires, city officials and emergency managers...

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