Agriculture

Agriculture is one of the dominant land uses in Switzerland. On these areas, substantial amounts of fertilizers and agrochemicals are applied. Rain transports a certain amount of these chemicals into surface and groundwater. Hence, the majority of our water resources is affected by agricultural activities.

The Department of Environmental Chemistry investigates the input, distribution and the fate of agrochemicals. One focus is the development of realistic exposure scenarios for bioactive agrochemicals like pesticides and pharmaceuticals on a national and pan-european scale. The identification of contributing areas for diffuse pollution is an important base for developing successful mitigation strategies. Model predictions of such areas are developed and tested against experimental field data at different scales.

Contact persons

• Christian Stamm
• Heinz Singer
  
  

Projects

• Sources and pathways of glyphosate in surface waters
• Identification of organic micro pollutants in selected samples of the national ground water monitoring network NAQUA
• Aaretal - Monitoring of pesticides in the Kanton of Bern
  
• Pesticides & Biocides: Realistic Exposition scenarios (Rexpo)
• Diffuse pollution: Site-adapted agriculture 
• Phosphorus: Prediction of contributing areas
• REXPO Realistic Exposition szenarios of surface waters
• Diffuse Pollution: Feasibility study on "Critical Source Areas"
• Diffuse Pollution: COST Action 869: Mitigation options for nutrient reduction in surface water and groundwaters
  
  

Closed projects

• Evaluation of the ecological measures in agriculture - natural waters, pesticides and the Swiss policy
• ERAPharm (Environmental Risk Assessment of Pharmaceuticals)
• Herbicides: Prediction of critical areas for herbicide losses to surface waters in the Greifensee catchment