Archive News

February 25, 2022The European Geochemical Association (EAG) has presented Lenny Winkel, associate professor of Inorganic Environmental Geochemistry at the aquatic research institute Eawag and ETH Zürich, with the 2022 Science Innovation Award and honoured her with the title of Geochemistry Fellow. The award recognizes scientists who have recently made an important and innovative breakthrough in geochemistry.

February 24, 2022Nearly a hundred year old tissue samples from Lake Constance have enabled Eawag researchers to compare genetic material of an extinct whitefish species with that of extant co-occurring species. Their investigation showed that fragments of the genome of the extinct species have survived in today’s species. This could potentially facilitate the recolonization of the currently not occupied deep-water habitat.

February 17, 2022Often overlooked until now: symbioses could be a driving force for the emergence of biodiversity. A case where bacteria live in aphids shows that this can even have practical implications for biological pest control.

February 15, 2022The buffet of healthy insects starts earlier, is no longer as varied, and is only half as plentiful as it once was. This is the situation faced by insectivorous birds at Northern Temperate latitudes, such as Switzerland, during the breeding season. Ryan Shipley from the Eawag water research institute, has been investigating how climate change affects the timing and quality of the food supply for breeding birds.

February 11, 2022To mark today’s International Day of Women and Girls in Science, female researchers at Eawag talk about their experiences and motivation in short videos.

February 10, 2022Eawag researchers have won a competition organised by Britain’s National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research (NC3R). The prize money is awarded for use in research to develop technologies to replace animal testing.

February 9, 2022Wastewater treatment plants are ‘hotspots’ for antibiotic resistance genes and bacteria but sewer overflows exacerbate the problem by disseminating them into rivers. Researchers at Eawag suggest ways to minimise these effects.

February 8, 2022Mining can have serious consequences for nature and the health of the population in countries of the Global South, where environmental laws are often only inconsistently implemented. In Hwange, in western Zimbabwe, people have been fighting water pollution from coal mining for years. But they were powerless against the operators – until doctoral student Désirée Ruppen launched a citizen science project in 2018.

February 7, 2022The newly created Swiss Groundwater Network, CH-GNet for short, has now launched its online presence. A big step for Eawag’s new exchange, information and networking platform.

February 4, 2022Those who have just undergone surgery in the hospital, with their weakened immune systems, are easy prey for pathogens that lurk on a wide variety of surfaces. Even careful disinfection can only partially prevent these hospital-acquired infections. One hope in the fight against the pathogenic bacteria are bacteriophages. Eawag researchers were able to show that they improve the removal of pathogens from surfaces, especially in combination with chemical disinfection.