The use of the black solider fly, Hermetia illucens, for conversion of organic waste streams into valuable animal protein has become a hot topic in the past decade. Large-scale protein production facilities treating up to 200 tonnes of waste per day are already in operation, with focus on protein production. On the other end of the spectrum are decentralised small-scale household composting systems focusing on waste treatment, motivated by the thought of self-sufficiency. In the middle of the scale – waste management systems treating up to 10 tonnes per day – there is of yet no alternative. There are benefits and constrains, with both large- and small-scale BSF treatment. However, by combining the advantages of the centralised large-scale protein production systems with the benefits of decentralised waste management strategies, many of the constraints can be overcome. In this paper is suggested a semi-centralised BSF-treatment approach that could bridge the lack of waste management in places current management strategies have failed. The absence of adequate organic waste management has dire health implications in low and middle-income countries and serious negative impacts on the environment all around the world. In semi-centralised BSF treatment, a centralised facility is used for fly rearing – for the production of small larvae required for the treatment – and for the refinery of the products generated from the treatment (grown larvae and residue). From the centralised BSF Rearing and Refinery (BSF R2) facility, small larvae are sent to decentralised waste treatment units located at the place of waste production. The great volume reduction occurring in the treatment (80-85% on a wet weight basis) greatly reduce the need for transportation, while the valuable products generated from the treatment (animal protein and organic fertiliser) renders the treatment an economically viable option for the clients using the treatment units, while also allowing for business opportunities for waste management entrepreneurs operating a BSF R2 facility. The flexibility in waste source and amounts possible to treat with BSF-technology, along with the refining of high-value products and the reduced need for transportation, can make the semi-centralised BSF-treatment approach a key player in providing organic waste treatment in areas that today are either completely lacking any service or that are not adequately treating the organic fraction. This would substantially improve the health of millions and considerably reduce the negative environmental impacts associated with poor organic waste management.

Behavior that has changed following promotion campaigns is usually not maintained at its initial level. Psychosocial factors for initiating behavior are often not the same as for the continuation of health behaviors such as water treatment and are much less understood. Better knowledge of factors for behavioral continuation would help to improve programs, both in the design of strategies for sustainable behavior change and by defining stronger criteria for the evaluation of sustainability. This study compared the mindsets of caregivers who continuously performed household drinking water treatment over time with individuals that stopped doing so in a population sample from Chad. Several factors from health psychology based on the Risks, Attitudes, Norms, Abilities, and Self-Regulation (RANAS) model were used to compare the two groups and examine their differing development. Normative factors such as others’ behavior, personal obligation, social support and discourse, perceived self-efficacy convictions, action control, and intention best discriminated between the two groups and developed significantly more positively over time for continuers of water treatment. These factors should be considered when designing future interventions intended to lead to sustainable behavior change.

In the modular experimental building known as NEST, Eawag and Empa – together with industrial and scientific partners – are investigating new forms of living and working, innovative construction methods and energy-efficient technologies. In the Water Hub project, researchers are studying, for example, how urine-separating toilets can be used to save water and recover valuable nutrients.

A lake’s sediments are a window onto the past – the various layers deposited over time can provide valuable information on changes in local environmental conditions. Eawag researchers have studied how the settlement and economic development of the Joux Valley in Canton Vaud is reflected in the sediments of Lake Joux.

What is required to facilitate the adoption of new technologies such as potable water reuse? According to a study carried out by environmental social scientists in California, users need to see not only how an innovation benefits them personally, but also that it is compatible the community’s values and can become a routine part of daily life.

After alewife migration had been blocked by the damming of rivers in the Northeastern US, not only did new types of alewife emerge in coastal lakes but a distinct form of pickerel evolved which is specialized for alewife predation. The findings of recent research on this predator show how eco-evolutionary interactions are affected by human interventions in the environment. And they also shed light on the diversification of fish species in Swiss lakes.

The use of fracking for gas extraction is widely opposed in Switzerland. Despite the almost complete lack of concrete projects, certain cantons have already imposed bans. Social scientific analysis of the policy processes involved can help us to understand the factors driving such decisions. In the face of uncertainties, it is frequently argued that the precautionary principle should be applied.

Chlorination of water in swimming pools leads to the formation of trichloramine, a potentially harmful compound. How much of this by-product is formed depends on the amount of chlorine in the water – but chlorine concentrations cannot be significantly reduced without causing sanitary problems. The benefits of UV irradiation are also limited.

In many regions of Asia, Africa and South America, consumption of groundwater contaminated with arsenic or fluoride causes severe health problems. A new handbook offers authorities and planners practical guidance on addressing geogenic contamination.

With an innovative recycling method, valuable nutrients recovered from urine can be sold as fertilizers. As well as conserving natural resources, this reduces water pollution and makes sanitation systems in developing countries economically more attractive. Three pilot plants are already in operation – one at Eawag in Dübendorf and two in the South African city of Durban.

Political actors tend to perceive their opponents as more influential than they really are, and to overestimate the differences between opposing groups. As a result, policy-making and the search for feasible compromises become more difficult. This phenomenon, as Eawag political scientists have now shown, is apparent even in a consensus-based democracy like Switzerland.

Biologists at Eawag have described a new amphipod species which is endemic to the Alps. While alpine lakes provide relatively undisturbed habitats for <I>Gammarus alpinus</I>, this species is being displaced by an invasive amphipod in Lake Constance.

Switzerland’s lakes are not only diverse ecosystems, but also recreation sites, fishing grounds and energy sources. At this year’s Info Day, the tensions between these competing interests were explored. It was concluded that sustainable management calls for an understanding of the complex interactions occurring in lakes – which in turn requires scientific data and appropriate methods of observation.

In the last century, the natural reproduction of whitefish and Arctic char in several Swiss lakes was adversely affected by high levels of nutrient inputs. So far, stocking measures have been implemented in efforts to support fish populations and maintain yields. The effectiveness of these measures varies according to the particular species and lake.

Im letzten Jahrhundert beeinträchtigten hohe Nährstoffeinträge in die Schweizer Gewässer die natürliche Fortpflanzung von Felchen oder Seesaiblingen in manchen Seen. Mit Besatzmassnahmen hat man bisher versucht, die Fischbestände zu stützen und die Fangzahlen aufrechtzuerhalten. Wie gut das gelingt, hängt von der Art und vom See ab.

Im modularen Experimentalgebäude Nest erforschen Eawag und Empa zusammen mit Partnern aus Industrie und Wissenschaft zukünftige Wohn- und Arbeitsformen, neue Konstruktionsmethoden und energieeffiziente Technologien. Im Projekt «Water Hub» untersuchen Forschende etwa, wie man mit Trenntoiletten Wasser sparen und Nährstoffe aus dem Urin zurückgewinnen kann.

Die Sedimente eines Sees sind Fenster in die Vergangenheit. Aus den Schichten, die sich im Lauf der Zeit abgelagert haben, lassen sich wertvolle Informationen über die jeweiligen Umweltbedingungen einer Region gewinnen. Forschende der Eawag haben untersucht, wie sich die Besiedlung und die wirtschaftliche Entwicklung des Vallée de Joux im Kanton Waadt in den Sedimenten des Lac de Joux niedergeschlagen haben.

Was braucht es, um einer neuen Technologie wie der Trinkwassergewinnung aus Abwasser zum Durchbruch zu verhelfen? Die Betroffenen müssen in der Neuerung nicht nur einen Nutzen für sich erkennen, sondern diese auch mit den gesellschaftlichen Werten vereinbaren und in ihren Lebensalltag integrieren können. Das zeigen umweltsozialwissenschaftliche Untersuchungen in Kalifornien.

Seit die Wanderung der amerikanischen Flussheringe mit Dämmen unterbrochen wurde, begannen sich in den isolierten Seen neue Heringsarten zu bilden – und eine auf Heringsjagd spezialisierte Form von Hechten. Neue Forschungsresultate zu diesen Jägern zeigen, wie Eingriffe in die Umwelt das Wechselspiel zwischen Evolution und Ökologie verändern. Und sie öffnen den Blick für die Formenvielfalt auch in Schweizer Seen.

Die Gasgewinnung mittels Fracking stösst in der Schweiz vielerorts auf Opposition. Auch wenn kaum konkrete Projekte existieren, haben einzelne Kantone bereits Verbote beschlossen. Die sozialwissenschaftliche Analyse der politischen Prozesse hilft zu verstehen, wie es zu solchen Entscheidungen kommt. Ein häufiges Motiv: Fehlt das Wissen, kommt das Vorsorgeprinzip zum Tragen.

Bei der Chlorung von Badewasser entsteht potenziell schädliches Trichloramin. Die Menge des Chlors im Wasser beeinflusst, wie viel des unerwünschten Stoffs sich bildet. Doch die Chlorkonzentration lässt sich nur beschränkt reduzieren, ohne dass sich hygienische Probleme ergeben. Auch eine UV-Bestrahlung nützt wenig.

Das Grundwasser vieler Regionen Asiens, Afrikas und Südamerikas ist mit Arsen oder Fluorid belastet. Der regelmässige Konsum führt zu schweren gesundheitlichen Schäden. Ein Handbuch gibt Behörden und Planern praxiserprobte Anleitungen, wie sie mit solchen geogenen Verunreinigungen umgehen können.

Ein neuartiges Recyclingverfahren gewinnt aus Urin wertvolle Nährstoffe zurück, die sich als Dünger verkaufen lassen. Das schont natürliche Ressourcen, entlastet Kläranlagen und macht Sanitärsysteme in Entwicklungsländern wirtschaftlich attraktiver. Drei Anlagen sind schon in Betrieb: eine an der Eawag in Dübendorf und zwei in der südafrikanischen Stadt Durban.

Politische Akteure neigen dazu, ihre Kontrahenten negativer und einflussreicher wahrzunehmen, als diese tatsächlich sind. Das erschwert Entscheidungsprozesse und das Erarbeiten tragfähiger Kompromisse. Dieses Phänomen konnten Politikwissenschaftler der Eawag sogar in der Konkordanz-Demokratie der Schweiz nachweisen.

Biologen der Eawag haben eine neue Bachflohkrebs-Art entdeckt, die nur im Alpenraum vorkommt. Während <I>Gammarus alpinus</I> in den meisten Bergseen noch frei von Störungen lebt, wird die Art im Bodensee von einem invasiven Höckerflohkrebs verdrängt.

Die Schweizer Seen sind vielfältige Ökosysteme, Erholungsräume, Fischgründe und Energiequellen in einem. Die Eawag widmete ihren diesjährigen Infotag diesem Spannungsfeld unterschiedlicher Interessen. Ein nachhaltiges Seenmanagement bedinge, dass man die komplexen Wirkungszusammenhänge im See verstehe, so das Fazit. Und dazu brauche es Daten und die richtigen Methoden.

Les sédiments accumulés au fond des lacs sont une fenêtre sur le passé. L’analyse des couches qui se sont superposées au cours du temps livre des informations précieuses sur les conditions qui régnaient aux alentours quand elles se sont formées. Les chercheurs de l’Eawag ont étudié les traces laissées dans les sédiments du lac de Joux, dans le canton de Vaud, par le peuplement de la vallée puis son développement industriel.

Que faut-il pour qu’une nouvelle technologie telle que le recyclage des eaux usées pour la production d’eau potable soit acceptée ? Il faut que les habitants soient convaincus de son utilité, qu’elle soit compatible avec leurs valeurs sociales et qu’elle puisse s’intégrer dans leur quotidien. C’est ce que montre une étude de sciences sociales de l’environnement réalisée en Californie.

Depuis que des barrages sont venus entraver la libre circulation des gaspareaux dans les rivières américaines, de nouvelles espèces de ces aloses ressemblant à des harengs sont apparues dans les lacs désormais isolés – de même que des brochets spécialisés dans la chasse aux pseudo-harengs. De nouveaux travaux sur ces prédateurs montrent comment les modifications anthropiques de l'environnement interfèrent dans les relations entre évolution et écologie. Et attirent l’attention sur la diversité morphologique des poissons, même dans les lacs suisses.

L’extraction du gaz de schiste par fracturation hydraulique rencontre une forte opposition en Suisse. Malgré l’extrême rareté des projets concrets, certains cantons ont déjà pris des mesures d’interdiction. Une analyse sociologique des processus politiques aide à mieux comprendre comment ils en sont arrivés à de telles décisions. Le motif est bien souvent qu’en l’absence de connaissances suffisantes, la société opte pour la prudence.

La désinfection au chlore de l’eau des piscines donne naissance à des trichloramines potentiellement toxiques. La quantité de chlore utilisée est alors décisive, mais elle ne peut être significativement réduite sans conséquence pour la qualité bactériologique de l’eau. Un traitement aux ultra-violets ne semble pas non plus permettre d’éliminer durablement les trichloramines qui se forment dans les bassins.

Les nappes phréatiques de nombreuses régions d'Asie, d'Afrique et d'Amérique du Sud sont contaminées par de l'arsenic ou du fluor. La consommation régulière de leur eau est très dommageable pour la santé. Un nouveau guide indique aux autori - tés et aux urbanistes des pistes d'action pratique en cas de contamination d'origine géologique des ressources en eau potable.

Une nouvelle technique de valorisation permet d'extraire les éléments nutritifs de l'urine et de fabriquer un fertilisant commercialisable. Cette approche préserve les ressources naturelles, limite les charges à traiter dans les stations d'épuration et augmente la rentabilité des systèmes d'assainissement dans les pays en développement. Trois stations pilotes sont déjà en fonction: une à Dübendorf et deux dans la ville sud-africaine de Durban

Les acteurs politiques ont tendance à envisager leurs adversaires comme plus puissants et mal intentionnés qu’ils ne le sont réellement. Ce phénomène handicape les prises de décision et la recherche de solutions consensuelles. Des chercheurs en science politique de l’Eawag ont montré qu’il existait même dans le système suisse basé sur la démocratie de concordance.

Des biologistes de l’Eawag ont découvert une nouvelle espèce de gammare présente uniquement dans l’arc alpin. Mais alors que <I>Gammarus alpinus</I> vit encore en paix dans la plupart des lacs de montagne, il est menacé par une espèce invasive, la « crevette tueuse », dans le lac de Constance.

Les lacs suisses sont à la fois des écosystèmes variés, des espaces de détente et des sources de richesses halieutiques et énergétiques. L'Eawag a consacré sa journée d›ainformation 2016 aux conflits et rapports entre ces différents domaines d ́ intérêt. Ses conclusions: une gestion durable des milieux lacustres suppose une bonne com - préhension des systèmes, ce qui requiert des données et méthodes adéquates.

Les quantités excessives de nutriments déversées dans les eaux suisses au siècle dernier ont affecté la reproduction naturelle des corégones et des ombles-chevaliers dans certains lacs. Jusqu’à présent, des programmes d’alevinage ont alors été mis en place pour soutenir les effectifs et maintenir l’attractivité de la pêche. Ont-ils atteint leurs objectifs ? Leur efficacité varie selon les espèces et les lacs.

L’Eawag et l’Empa se servent du bâtiment modulaire expérimental NEST pour étudier de nouvelles formes d’habitat et de travail et tester de nouveaux matériaux de construction et systèmes énergétiques avec leurs partenaires de l’industrie et de la recherche. Dans le projet « Water Hub », les chercheurs étudient ainsi les possibilités d’utilisation des toilettes à séparation pour économiser l’eau et récupérer les nutriments contenus dans les urines.

Biological monitoring has a long history in freshwaters, where much of the pioneering work in this field was developed over a 100 years ago—but few of the traditional monitoring tools provide the global perspective on biodiversity loss and its consequences for ecosystem functioning that are now needed. Rather than forcing existing monitoring paradigms to respond to questions they were never originally designed to address, we need to take a step back and assess the prospects for novel approaches that could be developed and adopted in the future. To resolve some of the issues with indicators currently used to inform policymakers, we highlight new biological monitoring tools that are being used, or could be developed in the near future, which (1) consider less-studied taxonomic groups, (2) are standardised across regions to allow global comparisons, and (3) measure change over multiple time points. The new tools we suggest make use of some of the key technological and logistical advances seen in recent years—including remote sensing, molecular tools, and local-to-global citizen science networks. We recommend that these new indicators should be considered in future assessments of freshwater ecosystem health and contribute to the evidence base for global to regional (and national) assessments of biodiversity and ecosystem services: for example, within the emerging framework of the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services.

Human-induced environmental changes are causing major shifts in ecosystems around the globe. To support environmental management, scientific research has to infer both general trends and context dependency in these shifts at global and local scales. Combining replicated real-world experiments, which take advantage of implemented mitigation measures or other forms of human impact, with research-led experimental manipulations can provide powerful scientific tools for inferring causal drivers of ecological change and the generality of their effects. Additionally, combining these two approaches can facilitate communication with stakeholders involved in implementing management strategies. We demonstrate such an integrative approach using the case study EcoImpact, which aims at empirically unravelling the impacts of wastewater-born micropollutants on aquatic ecosystems.

Kibera is Kenya’s largest slum and one the most notorious and unsanitary informal settlements in Africa. With around 240,000 inhabitants Kibera plays an important role in Nairobi’s booming economy. Kibera’s notoriety stems from its lack of a basic functional infrastructure and its contested legal status as residents are excluded from formal access to land, housing and basic urban services. After decades of underperforming policies and failed upgrading projects, new legislation, policies and financing instruments have been established which are set to improve overall living conditions. Major slum improvement lessons learnt from previous slum upgrading policies in Kenya emphasise the importance of community collaboration, communication strategies, capacity building, and welfare policies.

Ecosystem responses to changes in species diversity are often studied individually. However, changes in species diversity can simultaneously influence multiple interdependent ecosystem functions. Therefore, an important challenge is to determine when and how changes in species diversity that influence one function will also drive changes in other functions. By providing the underlying structure of species interactions, ecological networks can quantify connections between biodiversity and multiple ecosystem functions. Here, we review parallels in the conceptual development of biodiversity–ecosystem functioning (BEF) and food web theory (FWT) research. Subsequently, we evaluate three common principles that unite these two research areas by explaining the patterns, concentrations, and direction of the flux of nutrients and energy through the species in diverse interaction webs. We give examples of combined BEF–FWT approaches that can be used to identify vulnerable species and habitats and to evaluate links that drive trade-offs between multiple ecosystems functions. These combined approaches reflect promising trends towards better management of biodiversity in landscapes that provide essential ecosystem services supporting human well-being.

All biological rates depend on temperature, as they are based on biochemical reactions. Hence, the same holds for feeding rates and their functional components. From a 'biologically relevant' scope, feeding rates increase exponentially with temperature. Recent studies suggest that this increase of feeding rates with warming is shallower than the increase in metabolism. Theoretically, this mismatch should lead to a lower numerical response of biological control agents, presumably resulting in a higher probability of insect pest outbreaks. While depending on temperature, the more complex, non-linear nature of feeding rates further implies that they are also critically dependent on prey densities (i.e. the functional response). The fundamental elements of the functional response are the capture rate and the handling time. Basically, the capture rate determines the feeding success at low densities, whereas the handling time determines the maximum amount a predator is able to consume in a given time window. Moreover, capture rates themselves can also depend on prey density, turning a hyperbolic type II into a sigmoid type III functional response. This shift in the shape of the response is introduced by refuges for the prey, among other mechanisms. Contrasting the type II functional response, type III functional responses are well known to promote stable population dynamics and community structure. Therefore, changes in habitat complexity driven by climate change might also affect feeding interactions and insect pest control. Here, we review how climate change influences the functional responses of predator-prey and parasitoid-host pairs directly via increased temperature and indirectly via changes in habitat structure. We complement our review by exploring the potential consequences of feeding relations that are altered by climate change-induced mechanisms, through the application of model simulations of such consumer-resource population dynamics.

Ribosome profiling (also called Ribo-Seq) is a relatively new method for studying translational regulation of biological processes. Based on the assumption that ribosomes bound to mRNA molecules are all actively decoding the nucleotide sequence to produce polypeptides, ribosome profiling uses next-generation sequencing of mRNA fragments protected by the translating ribosome to determine translational efficiency. It has been, among others, used to study miRNA regulation mechanisms, open reading frames and differential translation of specific genes. Although the method is already 6 years old, it is still in the development phase, and although a detailed protocol has been published, individual wet lab and computational analysis steps are still being optimized. In the following pages, we present different applications of ribosome profiling and the current state-of-the-art experiment guidelines, with special attention put to alternative protocols and open questions.

This comprehensive handbook provides an authoritative source of information on global water and health, suitable for interdisciplinary teaching for advanced undergraduate and postgraduate students. It covers both developing and developed country concerns.It is organized into sections covering: hazards (including disease, chemicals and other contaminants); exposure; interventions; intervention implementation; distal influences; policies and their implementation; investigative tools; and historic cases. It offers 71 analytical and engaging chapters, each representing a session of teaching or graduate seminar.Written by a team of expert authors from around the world, many of whom are actively teaching the subject, the book provides a thorough and balanced overview of current knowledge, issues and relevant debates, integrating information from the environmental, health and social sciences.