Environment

When wolves consume an ungulate (i.e. a hoofed mammal), little is left except bones, skin and gut contents. However, a surprisingly species-specific microbial community thrives beneath these remains, according to a study led by the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL). This is significant not only for our understanding of ecosystem interactions but also, potentially, for forensic scientists.

Process Engineer Adriano Joss from Eawag water research institute has been working for many years on wastewater treatment plants and the removal of micropollutants from water. Together with Ralf Kägi, Head of the Eawag Particle Laboratory, he has compiled the current status of knowledge on microplastics. In an interview, he presents the most important findings. We have recently posted detailed information on the website “Microplastics in the environment”.

Summer series: A calling for research. Initially, the dynamic, Danish-born Anders Meibom, a professor at EPFL’s Laboratory for Biological Geochemistry since 2012, was not the slightest bit interested in corals. Now he studies them, a loaf of homemade bread always close at hand.

With climate change, summers in Switzerland will become hotter and drier, like those of 2003 and 2018. A research team led by the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL) has for the first time mapped the stress behaviour of beech trees in increasingly dry conditions. In soils that can store only small amounts of water and dry out quickly, beeches will be more likely to desiccate as the climate changes.

Researchers from Agroscope, Eawag and ETH Zurich have developed a method for the comprehensive detection of organic pollutant residues in soils and sediments. Initial results show that, in addition to known substances, there are also a number of substances detected for the first time.

As climate change raises sea levels, estuarine cities are facing up to the dual threat of flooding and significant erosion. Research by a joint team from EPFL and the UNSW Sydney sheds new light on the hydrodynamic forces at play and paves the way for preventive strategies.