Science that matters

Wastewater monitoring became well known during the coronavirus period from 2020, when Eawag and its partners began monitoring whether and which coronaviruses could be detected in wastewater throughout Switzerland. However, the researchers are now able to make far more statements about the health of the population because other pathogens and traces of medicines and drugs are also being monitored in parallel. The combination of data from both programmes opens up new perspectives.

By the end of the century, water temperatures in Swiss rivers will rise by up to 3.5 degrees if no action to protect the climate is taken. The rivers in the Alps are particularly affected. This is the conclusion reached by researchers from Eawag and the University of Basel in a research project funded by the FOEN.

The ETH Board appointed Daniel McCurry as a joint professor at EPFL and Eawag. The environmental engineer, who is currently still teaching in the USA, is already on sabbatical at Eawag. From summer 2026, alongside his teaching and research activities at EPFL, he will set up a research group that will also be active at Eawag.

To curb global plastic pollution and to make plastics safer and more sustainable, countries are currently negotiating a global treaty. A new study with participation from Eawag and Empa published in Nature provides a comprehensive and systematic overview of all chemicals that can be present in plastics, their properties, uses, and hazards. Moreover, the study also provides a scientific approach for identifying chemicals of concern. This allows scientists and manufacturers to develop safer plastics and policy makers to promote a non-toxic circular economy.