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Environment - Life Sciences - 08:02 
Fish diversity documented in Switzerland’s rivers
In a major survey of Swiss rivers and streams, more than 50 different fish species were recorded. For the first time, more than one species was also found in the case of smaller types of fish such as the bullhead. In "Progetto Fiumi", riverine fish were surveyed using standardised methods and both morphological and genetic characteristics were analysed.
Environment - Life Sciences - 27.03.2023 
Sensitive microorganisms in the stream benefit from forested banks
A forest is crucial for life in streams, particularly in the catchment area and in the headwaters. Eawag researcher Rebecca Oester has quantified the extent of this influence of forests in the riparian zone and found a significant effect, particularly for sensitive species. This work shows once again how closely terrestrial and aquatic habitats are linked.
Environment - 23.03.2023 
Climate change and nutrient fluctuations disrupt networks in lakes
Thanks to a unique data set from ten Swiss lakes, an international team of researchers led by Eawag has succeeded in reconstructing entire ecological plankton networks and determining how they respond to climate change and phosphate levels. The results make one sit up and take notice. In most lakes, there are millions of small creatures that generally remain hidden from our eyes.
Physics - Materials Science - 06.03.2023 
Forecast for accidents with nanomaterials
Researchers have for the first time estimated how probable the accidental release of nanomaterials will be in the future. They based this on models from the nuclear industry. For a risk assessment, the results now have to be linked to information about the hazardous nature of the materials. Every year, more than two million tonnes of nanomaterials are produced and used for a wide variety of consumer goods.
Environment - Innovation - 16.02.2023 
Decentralised water treatment: from motivation to implementation
Putting decentralised water treatment technologies into practice is not always easy. It often takes many small steps to motivate people to use these technologies. In a recent article, two environmental health psychologists from Eawag summarise in a "Theory of Change" what is known so far about the psychological factors influencing the use of decentralised water treatment technologies and the measures that could promote their adoption.
Environment - Life Sciences - 27.01.2023 
The wondrous world beneath our feet - researching groundwater fauna
Switzerland's groundwater is home to a multitude of hitherto unknown organisms. An Eawag research project is shining a light into the darkness and revealing this habitat's exceptional biodiversity. Switzerland has plentiful groundwater reserves. Found in cavities under the earth, groundwater is almost ubiquitously present, and is the country's biggest source of drinking water.
Environment - Earth Sciences - 26.01.2023 
Who done it? Searching for clues with sediments
The sediments near Horn Richterswil - today a recreation and bathing resort on Lake Zurich - are contaminated with toxic metals, particularly mercury. On behalf of the Canton of Zurich, researchers have used sediment cores to reconstruct when the pollutants entered the lake. In this way, they could help clarify the origin of the contaminants.
Environment - 23.01.2023 
Optimising nitrogen removal from wastewater
Too much nitrogen continues to enter many water bodies, negatively impacting ecosystems and human health. The anammox process co-developed by Eawag can make an important contribution to reducing outputs from wastewater treatment plants and also saves energy and resources. It has now been further optimised by researchers at Eawag.
Environment - Earth Sciences - 17.01.2023 
Protecting ecosystems with ecological theory
Ecosystems respond sometimes very differently to human impacts. However, it is still poorly understood what causes these differences. A team of researchers from Eawag and WSL is now proposing an integrative approach based on four fundamental processes shaping biodiversity on land and in water. The approach provides guidance for how biodiversity in blue (water) and green (land) ecosystems can be better protected.
Life Sciences - 09.01.2023 
How fungi promote bacterial diversity
In theory, the genetic diversity of populations should decrease as they expand across space. But this is not true for bacteria. Researchers at Eawag are now showing that fungi play an important role in this context. They make it easier for bacteria to spread and thus also promote genetic exchange between different bacteria.
Environment - 06.12.2022 
Remove micropollutants with granulated activated carbon
Currently, the first Swiss wastewater treatment plants are being upgraded with an additional treatment stage for the removal of micropollutants using granulated activated carbon (GAC), including the WWTP at Muri.
Environment - 24.11.2022 
Pollution of the Glatt by trace substances is decreasing
Together with the Canton of St. Gallen, Eawag has been investigating the impact of the expansion of the wastewater treatment plant at Flawil to include a stage for the removal of micropollutants on water quality in the River Glatt. Initial results now show a very positive picture. The expansion of the Oberglatt WWTP in Flawil with an additional treatment stage to remove micropollutants is having an effect.
Innovation - Environment - 22.11.2022 
The Swiss water turnaround: wait and see or take a proactive approach?
New technologies in the water sector can contribute to the flexible and sustainable development of urban water management and the sustainable utilisation of water as a resource. In a recent article in the journal Aqua & Gas, a team of researchers from the aquatic research institute Eawag shows what opportunities and risks are associated with this.
Environment - Health - 15.11.2022 
Monitoring antibiotic resistance in wastewater
Researchers at Eawag recommend setting up a monitoring system for antibiotic resistance in the synthesis report of the National Research Programme NRP 72 Antimicrobial resistance, similar to the wastewater monitoring for Sars-CoV-2. Antibiotic resistance endangers human and animal health worldwide. In order to be able to introduce effective measures against antibiotic-resistant pathogens, it is important to have detailed knowledge of the current situation and how resistances are spreading in the environment.
Environment - Earth Sciences - 07.11.2022 
Green and blue food webs are wired differently
Terrestrial and aquatic food webs respond differently to changes in the environment. Understanding these differences is fundamental to identifying the species most important to an ecosystem and to effectively protecting biodiversity. This is shown by a study led by the research institutes Eawag and WSL and published in the journal Nature Communications .
Environment - Chemistry - 24.10.2022 
Accurately tracking how plastic biodegrades
Researchers at ETH Zurich and Eawag have developed an approach to accurately record and fully track the biodegradation of plastics in soils. Modern agriculture uses a lot of plastic, especially in the form of mulch film that farmers use to cover field soils. This keeps the soils moist for crops, suppresses weeds and promotes crop growth.
Environment - Earth Sciences - 18.10.2022 
How rusting iron removes arsenic from water
In many regions of the world, groundwater is contaminated with arsenic of natural origin. The harmful substance can be filtered out of water with the help of iron. researchers have for the first time made visible exactly what happens in this process in a new type of experimental set-up. When metallic iron corrodes, i.e. rusts, iron oxides are formed that can strongly bind pollutants such as arsenic.
Environment - 10.10.2022 
With new ponds against amphibian extinction
Nature conservation pays off: amphibians benefit from new ponds - despite many causes of endangerment that still affect them. This is what researchers from WSL and Eawag found in a joint study using data from amphibian monitoring in the canton of Aargau. The study was published in the scientific journal PNAS.
Environment - Life Sciences - 07.10.2022 
Alpine fish biodiversity is amazingly young
A high fraction of the endemic biodiversity of the Alps is very old. The endemics - species found only in a confined area - have developed over the past millions of years during the cycles of glacial and interglacial periods or even before these cycles began. Fish, however, are an exception: most endemic fish species emerged only after the end of the last ice age about 15,000 years ago.
Environment - Life Sciences - 22.09.2022 
How nanoplastics enter the aquatic food web
The smallest of all plastic particles have remained largely unexplored until now, because they could not be detected in the environment. Now researchers at Eawag show: Nanoplastics stick to slimy biofilms, which can for example be found on stones in streams or rivers. When freshwater snails feed on the slime, the nanoplastics are taken up.
EAWAG, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology
Results 1 - 20 of 195.
In a major survey of Swiss rivers and streams, more than 50 different fish species were recorded. For the first time, more than one species was also found in the case of smaller types of fish such as the bullhead. In "Progetto Fiumi", riverine fish were surveyed using standardised methods and both morphological and genetic characteristics were analysed.
A forest is crucial for life in streams, particularly in the catchment area and in the headwaters. Eawag researcher Rebecca Oester has quantified the extent of this influence of forests in the riparian zone and found a significant effect, particularly for sensitive species. This work shows once again how closely terrestrial and aquatic habitats are linked.
Thanks to a unique data set from ten Swiss lakes, an international team of researchers led by Eawag has succeeded in reconstructing entire ecological plankton networks and determining how they respond to climate change and phosphate levels. The results make one sit up and take notice. In most lakes, there are millions of small creatures that generally remain hidden from our eyes.
Researchers have for the first time estimated how probable the accidental release of nanomaterials will be in the future. They based this on models from the nuclear industry. For a risk assessment, the results now have to be linked to information about the hazardous nature of the materials. Every year, more than two million tonnes of nanomaterials are produced and used for a wide variety of consumer goods.
Putting decentralised water treatment technologies into practice is not always easy. It often takes many small steps to motivate people to use these technologies. In a recent article, two environmental health psychologists from Eawag summarise in a "Theory of Change" what is known so far about the psychological factors influencing the use of decentralised water treatment technologies and the measures that could promote their adoption.
Switzerland's groundwater is home to a multitude of hitherto unknown organisms. An Eawag research project is shining a light into the darkness and revealing this habitat's exceptional biodiversity. Switzerland has plentiful groundwater reserves. Found in cavities under the earth, groundwater is almost ubiquitously present, and is the country's biggest source of drinking water.
The sediments near Horn Richterswil - today a recreation and bathing resort on Lake Zurich - are contaminated with toxic metals, particularly mercury. On behalf of the Canton of Zurich, researchers have used sediment cores to reconstruct when the pollutants entered the lake. In this way, they could help clarify the origin of the contaminants.
Too much nitrogen continues to enter many water bodies, negatively impacting ecosystems and human health. The anammox process co-developed by Eawag can make an important contribution to reducing outputs from wastewater treatment plants and also saves energy and resources. It has now been further optimised by researchers at Eawag.
Ecosystems respond sometimes very differently to human impacts. However, it is still poorly understood what causes these differences. A team of researchers from Eawag and WSL is now proposing an integrative approach based on four fundamental processes shaping biodiversity on land and in water. The approach provides guidance for how biodiversity in blue (water) and green (land) ecosystems can be better protected.
In theory, the genetic diversity of populations should decrease as they expand across space. But this is not true for bacteria. Researchers at Eawag are now showing that fungi play an important role in this context. They make it easier for bacteria to spread and thus also promote genetic exchange between different bacteria.
Currently, the first Swiss wastewater treatment plants are being upgraded with an additional treatment stage for the removal of micropollutants using granulated activated carbon (GAC), including the WWTP at Muri.
Together with the Canton of St. Gallen, Eawag has been investigating the impact of the expansion of the wastewater treatment plant at Flawil to include a stage for the removal of micropollutants on water quality in the River Glatt. Initial results now show a very positive picture. The expansion of the Oberglatt WWTP in Flawil with an additional treatment stage to remove micropollutants is having an effect.
New technologies in the water sector can contribute to the flexible and sustainable development of urban water management and the sustainable utilisation of water as a resource. In a recent article in the journal Aqua & Gas, a team of researchers from the aquatic research institute Eawag shows what opportunities and risks are associated with this.
Researchers at Eawag recommend setting up a monitoring system for antibiotic resistance in the synthesis report of the National Research Programme NRP 72 Antimicrobial resistance, similar to the wastewater monitoring for Sars-CoV-2. Antibiotic resistance endangers human and animal health worldwide. In order to be able to introduce effective measures against antibiotic-resistant pathogens, it is important to have detailed knowledge of the current situation and how resistances are spreading in the environment.
Terrestrial and aquatic food webs respond differently to changes in the environment. Understanding these differences is fundamental to identifying the species most important to an ecosystem and to effectively protecting biodiversity. This is shown by a study led by the research institutes Eawag and WSL and published in the journal Nature Communications .
Researchers at ETH Zurich and Eawag have developed an approach to accurately record and fully track the biodegradation of plastics in soils. Modern agriculture uses a lot of plastic, especially in the form of mulch film that farmers use to cover field soils. This keeps the soils moist for crops, suppresses weeds and promotes crop growth.
In many regions of the world, groundwater is contaminated with arsenic of natural origin. The harmful substance can be filtered out of water with the help of iron. researchers have for the first time made visible exactly what happens in this process in a new type of experimental set-up. When metallic iron corrodes, i.e. rusts, iron oxides are formed that can strongly bind pollutants such as arsenic.
Nature conservation pays off: amphibians benefit from new ponds - despite many causes of endangerment that still affect them. This is what researchers from WSL and Eawag found in a joint study using data from amphibian monitoring in the canton of Aargau. The study was published in the scientific journal PNAS.
A high fraction of the endemic biodiversity of the Alps is very old. The endemics - species found only in a confined area - have developed over the past millions of years during the cycles of glacial and interglacial periods or even before these cycles began. Fish, however, are an exception: most endemic fish species emerged only after the end of the last ice age about 15,000 years ago.
The smallest of all plastic particles have remained largely unexplored until now, because they could not be detected in the environment. Now researchers at Eawag show: Nanoplastics stick to slimy biofilms, which can for example be found on stones in streams or rivers. When freshwater snails feed on the slime, the nanoplastics are taken up.
