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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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.

Eawag environmental chemist Kathrin Fenner explained how AI-based models can be developed and used to predict how chemicals behave. (Photo: Luzia Schär)

News

Research meets the future: AI for sustainability

January 23, 2026

To mark the 2026 World Economic Forum (WEF), the ETH Domain presented highlights from its research, demonstrating how artificial intelligence is paving the way for greater sustainability. Policymakers and business leaders learned about practical AI applications for the environment and society.

Leaves are the main food source for amphipods and play a key role in the functioning of the ecosystem. (Photo: Florian Altermatt, Eawag)

News

Temporal changes in leaf fall have consequences for ...

January 23, 2026

Aquatic ecosystems are fragile. But just how fragile they are has been revealed in a new study by the Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology (Eawag) and the University of Zurich. Researchers investigated how climate change is affecting amphipods by shifting the timing of leaf fall in autumn. These creatures feed on leaves and, as the base of the food chain, have an impact on the entire ecosystem.

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Our newsletter is published six times a year and provides information on current research and development projects, publications and events at the aquatic research institute Eawag. In addition, two special newsletters a year provide in-depth information on a current research topic at Eawag.

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Find out more about us in the media

18.02.2026

FishEc Seminar

Enhancing coral heat tolerance using artificial selection

9.00 am

Eawag Kastanienbaum, Seeheim

19.02.2026

Practice-oriented course various

CAS Water, Sanitation and Hygiene for humanitarian and developing contexts

9.00 am

Mendrisio & Online (4 Modules)

25.02.2026

Practice-oriented course

Quaggamuschel in der Schweiz – aktueller Wissensstand und Weiterentwicklung von Präventions- und Monitoringmassnahmen

9.00 am

Eawag Dübendorf

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.