Current research projects

MERLIN project
MERLIN seeks new, widely applicable solutions for restoring the functions of freshwater ecosystems, for example to improve flood retention and store carbon dioxide.

Collaborative Research Centre 1439
RESIST investigates how water bodies and their habitats respond to the mutilpe pressures. Funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG) with 12.3 million Euros.

aquatag
The AQUATAG project is the first to quantify recreation along freshwaters in Germany at large spatial scales to assess its effect on the ecological status of these ecosystems.

Biological assessment of floodplain status
The aim of the project is the development of a standardized, practical and a nationwide applica-ble method to assess the biological floodplain status.

Gravel pit lakes
The project aims to assess freshwater biodiversity in gravel pit lakes.

Online tools for ecological river assessment
Plattform for online calculation tools to determine the ecological quality of water bodies. The plattform is operated by the Aquatic Ecology on behalf of the Federal Environment Agency.

BONUS FUMARI
Provide a proposal for a renewed monitoring system of the Baltic Sea marine environment.

Streams in the Arnsberger Forest
In cooperation with the ABU Soest, the Department of Aquatic Ecology investigated the macrozoobenthos of streams in the Arnsberg Forest

OSCAR
Developing knowledge rules for different scenarios in four case-study catchments to derive management recommendations how to optimize the overall effect of woody riparian buffers.

ESDecide
The joint Irish-German project aims to develop an evidence-based and interactive decision support tool for managing Ireland’s freshwater ecosystem services.

MAESTRO
Multivariate analyses of the impacts of water quality deterioration and further stressors on freshwater organism (MAESTRO)

Water body diagnosis Baden-Württemberg
Development of diagnostic tools to identify causal stressors using macrozoobenthos in line with the stream assessment according to the WFD

INWAT
Quality and management of intermittent rivers and associated groudwaters in the Mediterranenan Basis

BIOMOD
How bioinvasions and parasites modulate climate change impact on benthic communities

PGEAquaTox
Novel approaches to assess toxicity of platinum-group elements in aquatic environments

Low water, groundwater recharge, and drought
The aim is a literature-based inventory of the current situation with regard to dry periods in Germany

Toxicity to zebra mussels
Combining uptake and subcellular partitioning/toxicokinetics and toxicodynamics in modelling Cu2+ toxicity to zebra mussels, taking into account water chemistry

Cryptic species coexistence
Drivers of cryptic species coexistence in stream ecosystems – a case study using gammarid amphipods from Sicily

Tracking down trace substances
Research on the operating behaviour and resource consumption of the activated carbon stage of the Dülmen wastewater treatment plant with special consideration of the achievable effects on the upstream water body

Micropollutants and biosensors
Ecotoxicological Effects of Micropollutants on Macroinvertebrates by using the Biosensor-System LimCo®