Eawag News 73e
Eawag News 73e, December 2012
complete issue [pdf, 4.5MB]
complete issue as leaf-through catalogue
Editorial
Increasingly rapid, specific, sensitive and integrated
Rik Eggen
Focus
«We need to have better access to environmental data»
Janet Hering
Information on the environment is a vital resource for scientific
research. And, thanks to advances in information technologies, more
observational data is now being collected than ever before. However, as Eawag
Director Janet Hering points out, much of this data is not readily available to
researchers and practitioners. She is therefore supporting efforts to improve
data accessibility. [...]
Interview:
Andres Jordi
Searching for unknown substances
Heinz Singer
Even at very low concentrations, organic micropollutants in natural
waters can be harmful to aquatic organisms. Owing to technical constraints,
analytical methods have so far been confined to the detection of a relatively
small number of known compounds. With new methods, previously undetected
substances can also be identified. [...]
Isotopes: tracking pollutant sources and breakdown
Thomas Hofstetter
The fate of organic micropollutants in soils and natural waters is
difficult to track using traditional methods. But with compound-specific
isotope analysis, the isotopic composition of contaminants can be studied. This
makes it possible, for example, to trace the origin of dishwasher detergents or
to determine the degradation pathways of explosives. [...]
Advantages of passive sampling
Etiënne Vermeirssen
With passive sampling, contamination of rivers can be analysed more
comprehensively than with spot sampling. The method is suitable for capturing spatial
and temporal patterns of pollutant inputs. It can also be used to detect
substances present in waters at concentrations below the limit of quantification
– for example, PCBs in the Birs river. [...]
Regulation of cellular functions altered by silver
Smitha Pillai
Traditional methods of assessing the effects of environmental toxicants
are often inadequate – especially if
these substances occur at low concentrations. But with the so-called omics
methods, effects can be detected at the molecular level – for example, alterations
of gene expression and protein profiles in green algae exposed to silver. [...]
An automated approach to lake monitoring
Francesco Pomati
Algae, like other life forms, are subject to biorhythms: the abundance
and diversity of phytoplankton vary from daytime to nighttime, as well as from
season to season and over the depth of
the water column. In research supported by the Swiss National Science
Foundation, Eawag and the ETH Zurich have deployed a floating monitoring platform
which – for the first time – is providing the high-resolution data that are needed
to improve our understanding of the drivers of phytoplankton dynamics. [...]
Biodiversity patterns shaped by connectivity
Florian Altermatt
River systems accommodate high levels of biodiversity. While greater
species richness is generally seen in
lower reaches than in headwaters, the latter exhibit greater variation in
species composition. It has now been shown experimentally that diversity
patterns of this kind can arise as a
result of network structures typical of rivers. Habitat connectivity is thus a
key factor in the preservation of biodiversity. [...]
Eutrophication in China - déjà vu for Europe
Michael Berg
Rapid economic and population growth in the Beijing-Tianjin region is
leading to heavy eutrophication of the
Haihe river system. Nutrient inputs derive mainly from wastewater. Although
treatment plants have been constructed in some areas, these often operate beyond their projected capacity or with poor
nutrient removal efficiency. [...]
Taking the human factor into account
Andres Jordi
The causes of environmental problems are primarily social. But in
environmental research and practice, they still tend to be approached from a
purely natural-science and engineering perspective. The integration of a social-science
perspective is essential if more sustainable solutions are to be achieved.
Though this insight is not new, it still needs to be more widely understood and
accepted. [...]
New department of Environmental
Social Sciences
(Interview with Bernhard Truffer)
In September 2012, a new research department was launched at Eawag. As
Bernhard Truffer – head of the new organization – explains, the aim of
Environmental Social Sciences is to build on the experience Eawag has
accumulated in this area over many years.