Highlights on the 2022 CLIMACT Starting Grants (Part 1)
Event details
| Date | 22.01.2024 |
| Hour | 12:00 › 13:15 |
| Speaker |
Prof. Rizlan Bernier-Latmani Prof.Gabriele Manoli Dr. Horst Pick |
| Location | Online |
| Category | Conferences - Seminars |
| Event Language | English |
Irrigation practices and their impact on greenhouse gas emissions
Presented by Prof. Rizlan Bernier-Latmani, ENAC, EPFL
Greenhouse gases (GHG), particularly nitrous oxide and methane, are produced by soil microorganisms. The production is related to microbial activity that occurs in the absence of oxygen. Therefore, waterlogged soils tend to produce higher fluxes of these GHG. In irrigated mountain grassland (such as in Wallis), automated irrigation that optimises water use and plant growth has been deployed as part of the ODILE project. By reducing soil water content, automated irrigation also has the potential to reduce GHG production from these grasslands.
Project description => CLIMACT - Impact of mountain grassland irrigation in nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions
Monitoring urban ecosystem services
Presented by Prof. Gabriele Manoli, ENAC, EPFL
The purpose of this research is to investigate the impact of urban built and green areas on carbon fluxes and local climate. Specifically, we aim to answer the following simple yet still open question: how should urban (green) areas be configured to minimise urban heat, maximise water recharge, and act as a carbon sink? Answering such a question is crucial for providing greener, healthier, and more sustainable environments for a growing urban population. As a first step, we deployed a flux-tower at the roof of the Géopolis building (UNIL). Initial monitoring results will be presented, as well as an outlook for future research.
Project description => CLIMACT - Sustainable future cities: monitoring urban ecosystem services
Designing microbial communities for the environmental- and climate-friendly degradation of end-of-life bioplastics
Presented by Dr. Horst Pick, SB & ENAC, EPFL
Bioplastics have a great potential to replace petroleum-based plastics, moreover some of them show a higher biodegradability, forming a closed cycle whereby material used to produce them can be redirected back into soil biomass via microbial degradation.
The project aims to reduce the environmental persistence of undegraded bioplastics by directing the bioplastic-derived carbon stock for longer-term storage in form of soil microbial biomass.
Project description => CLIMACT - Designing microbial communities for the environmental- and climate-friendly degradation of end-of-life bioplastics
Presented by Prof. Rizlan Bernier-Latmani, ENAC, EPFL
Greenhouse gases (GHG), particularly nitrous oxide and methane, are produced by soil microorganisms. The production is related to microbial activity that occurs in the absence of oxygen. Therefore, waterlogged soils tend to produce higher fluxes of these GHG. In irrigated mountain grassland (such as in Wallis), automated irrigation that optimises water use and plant growth has been deployed as part of the ODILE project. By reducing soil water content, automated irrigation also has the potential to reduce GHG production from these grasslands.
Project description => CLIMACT - Impact of mountain grassland irrigation in nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions
Monitoring urban ecosystem services
Presented by Prof. Gabriele Manoli, ENAC, EPFL
The purpose of this research is to investigate the impact of urban built and green areas on carbon fluxes and local climate. Specifically, we aim to answer the following simple yet still open question: how should urban (green) areas be configured to minimise urban heat, maximise water recharge, and act as a carbon sink? Answering such a question is crucial for providing greener, healthier, and more sustainable environments for a growing urban population. As a first step, we deployed a flux-tower at the roof of the Géopolis building (UNIL). Initial monitoring results will be presented, as well as an outlook for future research.
Project description => CLIMACT - Sustainable future cities: monitoring urban ecosystem services
Designing microbial communities for the environmental- and climate-friendly degradation of end-of-life bioplastics
Presented by Dr. Horst Pick, SB & ENAC, EPFL
Bioplastics have a great potential to replace petroleum-based plastics, moreover some of them show a higher biodegradability, forming a closed cycle whereby material used to produce them can be redirected back into soil biomass via microbial degradation.
The project aims to reduce the environmental persistence of undegraded bioplastics by directing the bioplastic-derived carbon stock for longer-term storage in form of soil microbial biomass.
Project description => CLIMACT - Designing microbial communities for the environmental- and climate-friendly degradation of end-of-life bioplastics
Practical information
- General public
- Free