Eawag - Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology

Eawag is one of the world’s leading aquatic research institutes. With its professional diversity, close partnerships with practitioners and an international network, Eawag offers an excellent environment for the study of water as a habitat and resource, for identifying problems at an early stage and for developing widely accepted solutions.

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Below dams that were licensed before 1992, there is still hardly any residual water flowing in many places. (zvg)

News

Data-driven modelling of residual flows

February 24, 2026

Estimates as to how much more electricity could be generated from hydropower in the absence of residual flow requirements vary widely, and they have previously been based on inadequate data. A team of researchers from WSL, the University of Bern and Eawag has now used a new database and simulations to show that, between now and 2050, the additional decrease in production due to residual flow requirements – amounting to barely 2% – is likely to be much lower than feared.

Preparation of wastewater samples for virus monitoring at Eawag (Eawag, Andri Bryner)

News

Continuation of wastewater monitoring secured

February 19, 2026

The Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology (Eawag) has been newly commissioned by the Federal Office of Public Health as the National Reference Centre for Wastewater Monitoring. This work centres around the collection of health data from municipal wastewater, and particularly that of viruses that are known to be pathogenic. A new national mandate has also been introduced for the analysis of substances related to pharmaceutical and illicit drug use.

Rare earths are indispensable for many technical applications, but they also find their way into bodies of water and can have a negative impact on the organisms living there. (Photo: Adobe Stock)

News

Rare earths pollute Zurich's waters

February 10, 2026

An investigation in the canton of Zurich has shown that certain rare earth elements can enter bodies of water via wastewater treatment plants in concentrations that pose a risk to aquatic organisms. These elements are gadolinium, which comes from contrast agents used in healthcare facilities, as well as lanthanum and cerium, which are used in a number of wastewater treatment plants to remove phosphorus.

The WSL-Eawag Biodiversity Centre was officially launched on 22 January 2026 during the joint Biodiversity Research Day. (Photo: Beate Kittl, WSL)

News

New Biodiversity Center of WSL and Eawag

January 27, 2026

WSL and Eawag join forces: the new WSL-Eawag Biodiversity Center links research on biodiversity on land and in water.

ETH Zurich presents Lisa Deutsch with the ETH Medal for her doctoral thesis, which she wrote at Eawag and ETH Zurich.(Photo: Sabine Hoffmann)

Institutional

ETH Medal for Lisa Deutsch

January 26, 2026

Sociologist and political scientist Lisa Deutsch was awarded the ETH Medal for her doctoral thesis written at Eawag and ETH Zurich. Her research demonstrated how interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary research can be successful and how theory and practice can be effectively combined in research.

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Health – Water and well-being

Biodiversity – Threatened water habitats

Climate – Water at the centre of the climate crisis

Cycles – Closing cycles sustainably

26.02.2026

Eawag Seminar

Prioritizing technology development pathways for sustainable resource recovery (CANCELLED)

4.00 pm

Eawag Dübendorf, FC-C20

01.03.2026

Presentation

Wasserknappheit: Neue Denkansätze und Wege

11.00 am

Alte Kaserne Winterthur, Winterthur (CH)

02.03.2026

Surf Seminar

From natural flow to engineered response: Understanding river systems through graphs, models, and satellites

1.00 pm

Eawag Kastanienbaum, Seminar room Seeheim & online via Zoom

Publication

In Switzerland, most wastewater is treated in centralised treatment plants. Depending on the context, decentralised solutions can also offer advantages. These involve separating the various wastewater streams, treating them decentrally and recovering resources. The Eawag toolbox shows possible technologies for decentralised sanitation systems and helps to find the best solution for each objective.

we are investigating the basis for clean drinking water and sustainable management of drinking water resources.

we are investigating how to optimise wastewater infrastructures and overcome new challenges.

our research contributes to understanding and conserving aquatic biodiversity.

we are investigating biotic communities and their habitats in order to conserve ecosystem services for us humans.

we are investigating the effect of chemical substances on the environment and developing methods to remove them from drinking water, wastewater and bodies of water.