Science that matters

New perspectives thanks to wastewater monitoring

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. Read more




How much Swiss watercourses will warm up


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. New research findings show that rivers in the Alps are particularly affected. Read more

Identifying chemicals of concern in plastics


To curb plastic pollution and to make plastics more sustainable, countries are negotiating a global treaty. A new study provides a systematic overview of chemicals in plastics, their properties, uses, and hazards. Read more

The cities of the future are blue-green


Two workshops on urban development and biodiversity with participants from research and politics show how cities can be designed to be biodiversity-friendly, inclusive and resilient. Read more

The search for the appropriate environmental flow


In many rivers, little water remains for nature after hydropower use. In light of climate change and biodiversity loss, this is having increasingly serious consequences. A new report provides an interdisciplinary overview. Read more

Underground microbial life more stable than expected


Microbial communities living deep underground in the groundwater of Lavey-les-Bains remain surprisingly stable throughout the year, even though the composition of the water changes seasonally. This is the finding of a new study that contributes to a better understanding of geothermal systems and microbial life deep underground. Read more

Early detection for wastewater treatment plants


A combination of biological and chemical online monitoring was tested as an early warning system at a wastewater treatment plant. The system is able to detect peak loads of micropollutants in treated wastewater and identify toxic pollutants in real time. Read more


Bacteria eat bacteria



Many bacteria produce a protein complex to inject poison in their neighbouring cells. This was previously thought to eliminate their competitors. But now researchers  have shown: The killer bacteria can act as biological predators that feed on their prey. Read more

Cold shock in Lake Geneva – Alplakes shows why


A drop in temperature in Lake Geneva over the Whitsun weekend is leaving swimmers feeling chilly: within a few days, the surface water temperature near the city of Geneva fell by around 8 degrees. The natural phenomenon can be observed impressively on the Alplakes platform. Read more





Reading climate history from sediment cores
The water resources of the Tibetan plateau are crucial for almost a quarter of the world's population. Eawag is therefore involved in investigating sediment cores from Lake Nam Co at an altitude of almost 5000 metres above sea level. The aim is to gain a better understanding of the relationship between the water cycle, climate development and the geological formation of the plateau. Watch the video.







Eawag in the media
The media regularly report on our research. You can find the most interesting articles from print media, radio and television here.


New website
PFAS –  Forever Chemicals
The website provides facts on exposure to this problematic class of substances – and sheds light on what Empa, Eawag and the Ecotox Center are doing about it. Read more


Abishek Narayan becomes a member of the Swiss Young Academy
The Swiss Academies of Arts and Sciences have elected eight new members to the Swiss Young Academy, including Abishek Narayan, a Scientist in the Sandec Department. Read more


Two new professors at Eawag
The ETH Board has appointed Daniel McCurry as Professor of Water and Wastewater Chemistry at EPFL and Thomas Hofstetter as Adjunct Professor at ETH Zurich.





Groundwater – utilising and protecting the resource drinking water
Thursday, 4 September 2025, AKADEMIE, Empa-Eawag Campus, Dübendorf

80 percent of Switzerland's drinking water comes from groundwater. Its protection is becoming increasingly difficult, especially in the densely utilised Central Plateau. Can suppliers continue to supply consumers with virtually untreated groundwater under these circumstances? Why have problems that have long been recognised, such as nitrate pollution, still not really been solved? Eawag researchers will address such questions at the Info Day. They will present results and tools that support practitioners and administrators in safeguarding the quality and quantity of drinking water resources.

➡ Further information and registration






26 August 2025
Bern
27 August 2025, 6.15 pm - 7.45 pm
Eawag Kastanienbaum

4 September 2025
Info Day 2025, Eawag Dübendorf
22 - 23 September 2025
D-A-CH-Fachtagung Aqua Urbanica Rapperswil

29 September 2025
PEAK-Basiskurs, Eawag Dübendorf
21 - 22 October 2025
Wirkungskontrolle Revitalisierung – Avifauna PEAK-Vertiefungskurs, Vogelwarte Sempach

5 - 6 November 2025
VSA-PEAK-Wassertage, Emmetten
19 November 2025
Advanced course PEAK, Eawag Dübendorf & Online

In our agenda you will find further events as well as our Eawag seminars with internationally renowned researchers.






oekotoxzentrum news
The Ecotox Centre  provides information on latest projects, events and background knowledge from the field of ecotoxicology (in German and French)




Scientific publications from Eawag can be found on DORA Eawag.


Cover picture: Artificial intelligence, data science, modelling and digitalisation are now central elements of water research. Eawag researchers, in particular the Department Systems Analysis, Integrated Assessment and Modelling, use these technologies and develop innovative approaches and algorithms to identify plankton species, predict the toxicity of chemicals, simulate riverine biocoenoses, study insect biodiversity and the development of floods and droughts. Foreground: handwritten notes, formulas and programme codes of Eawag researchers. Background: Shutterstock, Ostranitsa Stanislav.

You can find more articles on our News Portal.
If you have any questions or suggestions, please send us an e-mail to redaktion@eawag.ch
or visit our website eawag.ch.

Publisher
Eawag: Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology

Contact
Eawag
Überlandstrasse 133
8600 Dübendorf
Switzerland
www.eawag.ch
redaktion@eawag.ch


The texts and photos credited as "Eawag" on the linked websites are subject to the Creative Commons “Attribution 4.0 International” licence. As long as the source is indicated, this material may be freely copied, redistributed and modified. Further information on the licence.