Themes

Specific research agenda

Land Management

• Assessment of agricultural land for safe food production
• Analyses of plant exposure reduction to soil pollutants,
• Characteristics of sites contaminated with organic and inorganic pollutants
• Removal of heavy metals (Pb, Cd, Hg) from soil using plants (phytoextraction method)
• Development of land reclamation concepts and management scenarios
• Land life cycle analysis

Integrated Atmospheric Protection

• Deposition of air pollutants in the aspect of land surface and water contamination
• Impact of pollutants resuspension on the quality of air
• Secondary air pollution as a source of human exposure
• Monitoring of air pollution

Management of Water Resources

• Strategies for surface and groundwater protection
• Enhancement of natural attenuation processes
• Sustainable management of river basins
• Monitoring of water quality in the aspect of human health

Risk Analysis and Assessment

• Adaptation of human health risk assessment methods to the needs of environmental management
• Assessment of human exposure to toxic metals by determining biomarkers in biological materials
• Assessment of soil and edible plants contamination with heavy metals and PAHs
• Determination of target pollutant concentrations in the processes of brownfields remediation

Soil and Groundwater Remediation Technologies

• Development of cost – effective and environmentally friendly technologies for soil and groundwater remediation:
• Bioremediation as a promising technology for removal of petroleum contaminated sites
• Phytoremediation as a socially acceptable technology for removal of heavy metals
• Environmentally safe utilisation of by-products from remediation technologies as e.g. alternative energy sources

Integrated Environmental Monitoring and Modelling

• Measurement and modelling of the contaminants uptake by plants
• Impact of environmental pollution on plant organisms
• Cycling of pollutants and mineral nutrients in forest ecosystems
• Monitoring and modelling of the impact of pollutants on ecosystems using critical loads methodology

Solid and Hazardous Waste Management

• Optimisation of municipal waste management and waste management technologies
• Monitoring of waste management facilities,
• Innovative solutions for safe disposal of solid waste,
• Concepts for rehabilitation of landfill sites

Environmental Microbiology

• Impact of microbiological and chemical contamination on human health,
• Use of bacterium and microscopic fungus biomass in removal of heavy metals and toxic pollutants from the environment,
• Determination of petroleum hydrocarbons (carcinogenic PAH’s, BTEX) in water and soil using immunological tests,
• Use of microorganisms in environmental biotechnology processes.

Environmental Policy

• Strategic environmental analyses and assessment,
• Methodology for strategic environmental impact assessments,
• Guidelines for sustainable development programs
• Product and land life-cycle analyses and assessment

Geostatistical Analyses

• Innovative techniques for acquisition and processing of spatial data for redevelopment purposes
• Application of GIS techniques for identification, inventory and characterisation of degraded areas
• Analysis of spatial data for sustainable environmental management and sustainable planing
• Modelling of contamination plumes migration in remedial actions
• Analysis of uncertainty and assessment of errors in redevelopment processes

Public Involvement

• Guidelines for effective public involvement in environmental decision making processes
• Studies on public awareness concerning brownfields redevelopment
• Risk communication strategies
• Campaigns for promotion and dissemination of IETU RTD projects results
• Analysis of public perception of the principle of sustainable development