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The concept of exchange values refers to the theoretical notion of an exchange happening for ecosystem services between an ecosystem asset and an economic agent. The United Nations System of Environmental Economic Accounting recommends using market prices as exchange values whenever possible, or otherwise, exchange value estimates that conceptually come close to market prices. However, in countries with highly regulated access to natural resources, the observable market prices or exchange value estimates for ecosystem services may often be distorted or even negative. When exchange values are used for decision support or as evidence base for policy making, negative values can be misleading. To address this issue, we present ideas on how to include the institutional resource regime that governs ecosystem services into the computation of exchange values. This analysis can help identify policy interventions that increase or decrease exchange values from free-market levels and can provide guidance on how to correct for distorted value estimates. Further it can help to better understand negative exchange value estimates as well as reasons why society may be willing to accept, and eventually, compensate for them. We argue that the insurance value of ecosystems can be one such reason. To exemplify the application of the extended framework, we present a case study on the monetary valuation of water for hydropower production in Switzerland.

Climate change, population growth and loss of arable land threaten the resilience of global and local food systems. Recent events have further exacerbated pressures on agriculture and trade, leading to a rise in food prices worldwide. Urbanisation of food production is one of the global megatrends for food culture. However, to date, indoor vertical farming players have focused on reducing investment and operating costs to stay competitive but failed to control rising waste volumes and huge energy consumption with low efficiency, thereby creating yet another unsustainable situation. Vertical farming is a costly industry, yet its growth should not be detrimental to the environment nor consumer wallets. In Switzerland alone, consumer demand for this product segment has grown at a 7% compound annual growth rate between 2017-2020, driven by the rising trend of plant-based diets. However, around 52% of the herbs and leafy green products are imported by land or worse, by air freight. The LOFT project intends to improve production efficiency in vertical farming and cut waste by combining existing cutting-edge technologies and innovative production know-how to optimize herbs production regarding lighting, water use and nutrient recycling in a closed system. Indoor vertical farming models can produce 100x more food per m2 compared to traditional farming methods, while using 95% less water, no soil, nor chemical pesticides. Furthermore, the controlled environment also has the benefit of providing predictable and consistent crop yield 365 days a year. Thus, reducing the risks of food supply chain failure and price fluctuation, while improving the company’s customers resilience. On the other hand, indoor vertical farming requires significantly more energy input and infrastructure than traditional farming. We conducted a comparative life cycle assessment of Italian basil (Ocimum basilicum) from vertical indoor farming and conventional cultivation in greenhouses. Foreground data o

Today agricultural residues and side streams are not valorised and still considered as a waste instead of a valuable resource. If the potential of these residues and side streams is recognised, products with a high value added can be produced with a biorefinery approach. A high potential for residue and side-stream usage lies in beer production: in Europe, 34 billion litres of beer were produced in 2021 and each cubic metre of beer produces 0.2 ton of the side-product bagasse. Within the European Project “CHEERS”, the side streams of beer production are transformed to five competitive and innovative bio-based products in a biorefinery. One product of this biorefinery is based on the use of brewer’s spent grain as feed for insects, namely mealworms (Tenebrio molitor larvae), to produce protein flour, that can then be utilized for protein-rich shakes for consumers striving for a healthy diet. The other four products are created by microbiological processes. They use carbon dioxide from the beer fermentation as input for their processes instead of releasing it to the atmosphere. Together with methane from the anaerobic digestion of wastewater, the following products are created: single cell protein and volatile fatty acids as ingredients for pet food, chlorine to be used in disinfectants, and ectoine for use in cosmetic products. This research describes the methodological approach for a comprehensive Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment (LCSA) quantifying environmental, social, and economic impacts of this biorefinery, namely the impact on climate change, resource depletion, biodiversity, and primary energy demand. The impact of the high value-added products produced by the biorefinery will be compared to both other ways of using and treating brewer’s spent grain and to the conventional production of the products produced by the biorefinery. The goal of our project is to provide a comprehensive evaluation of the CHEERS biorefinery system to valorise wastes (namely brew

Bei dieser Arbeit wurde eine Wandbegrünung mit integriertem Grauwasser Rezyklier-System untersucht. Das Rezyklieren von Grauwasser ist aus verschiedenen Gründen sinnvoll. In der Schweiz würde so der Trinkwasserbedarf um bis zu zwei Drittel sinken und die Kreislaufwirtschaft würde auf diese Weise gefördert werden. In anderen Regionen kann die Grauwasserbehandlung aus weiteren Gründen von Vorteil sein zum Beispiel bei Wasserknappheit oder auch bei fehlender Wasserversorgungs- oder Abwasserentsorgungsinfrastruktur. Damit dieses Grauwasseraufbereitungssystem in Betrieb genommen werden kann, wurden verschiedene Versuche mit 4 unterschiedlichen Anlagen durchgeführt. Bearbeitet wurden die Themen: Anordnung der Module, Einfluss der Durchflussgeschwindigkeit, Einfluss der Anfangskonzentration auf die Abbaurate und auf die Abbaudauer, Veränderungen bei einem diskontinuierlichen Betrieb, Unterschiede von künstlichem und reellem Grauwasser und die Grenzwerte von Grauwasser. Ein essenzieller Unterschied der Systeme war, dass einige mit künstlichem Grauwasser laufen, während eine Pilot-Anlage reales Grauwasser eines Mehrfamilienhauses aufbereitete. Aus den Resultaten ging hervor, dass eine geringere Durchflussrate zu einer höheren CSB-Abbaurate führt. Die Temperatur und die Anfangskonzentration haben keinen oder nur einen geringen Einfluss auf den CSB-Abbau. Für die Parameter CSB, Sauerstoffsättigung und pH waren die Konzentrationen nach höchstens 48 Stunden Aufbereitungszeit unter den Grenzwerten verschiedener Richtlinien. Bei der Trübung und dem Ammoniumgehalt sind die Konzentrationen auch nach der Aufbereitung über vorgeschriebenen Grenzwerten.

Infolge des Bevölkerungswachstums und des daraus resultierenden Siedlungsdrucks, der steigenden Nachfrage nach Energie und natürlichen Ressourcen sowie den Auswirkungen des Klimawandels steigt der Druck auf die Nutzung des Untergrunds und seiner Ressourcen. Die zunehmend vielfältigeren Nutzungsansprüche im Untergrund und die Vergabe von Nutzungsrechten nach dem Prinzip ‹first come, first served› erfordern eine verbesserte Planung und Koordinierung der verschiedenen Aktivitäten im Untergrund. Dabei weisen Forscher*innen darauf hin, dass ein systematischer Ansatz erforderlich ist, bei dem der Untergrund als komplexes System betrachtet wird, in dem verschiedenen Elemente (z. B. Ressourcen, Nutzungsformen, Akteure) miteinander interagieren. Statt die Nutzungsformen und Ressourcen des Untergrunds isoliert zu betrachten, ist es notwendig, den Untergrund in seiner Gesamtheit zu verstehen. Erfahrungen aus anderen Bereichen der Bewirtschaftung natürlicher Ressourcen zeigen, dass die Einbindung vielfältiger Akteure im Rahmen von partizipativen und kollaborativen Prozessen wichtig ist, um Veränderungen im System herbeizuführen. Da das Akteursnetzwerk des Systems Untergrund und die Bestrebungen zur Kollaboration bisher weitgehend unerforscht sind, wurde in dieser Arbeit die Stakeholder-Analyse und die soziale Netzwerkanalyse verwendet, um relevante Akteure zu identifizieren, die ein Recht, eine Verantwortung oder ein Interesse am Schweizer Untergrund haben, sowie ihre gegenseitigen Interaktionsbeziehungen (Partnerschaft, Kollaboration, Kommunikation, Mitgliedschaft) aufzuzeigen. Auf der Grundlage einer umfassenden Literaturrecherche war das Ergebnis der Stakeholder-Analyse die Identifizierung von 75 relevanten Akteuren (Organisationen). Zur Analyse der Interaktionsbeziehungen wurde ein Link zur Onlineumfrage an die identifizierten Akteure verschickt. Von den 75 angeschriebenen Akteuren nahmen 29 (38.7 %) an der Befragung teil. Die Ergebnisse der sozialen Netzwerkanalyse, die si, The increasing population growth and resulting urbanization pressures, rising demand for energy and natural resources, and the impacts of climate change are amplifying the pressure on the utilization of underground resources. The progressively diverse claims to underground usage and the allocation of usage rights based on the ‹first come, first served› principle necessitate enhanced planning and coordination of the various activities taking place underground. Researchers emphasize the requirement for a systematic approach that considers the underground as a complex system, wherein different elements (e.g., resources, forms of usage, actors) interact. Instead of isolating the forms of usage and resources in the underground, it is imperative to comprehend the underground in its entirety. Insights from other domains of natural resource management demonstrate the importance of involving diverse actors through participatory and collaborative processes to effect changes within the system. Given that the actor network of the underground system and efforts towards collaboration have remained largely unexplored, this thesis employed stakeholder analysis and social network analysis to identify relevant actors with rights, responsibilities, or interests in the Swiss underground and to elucidate their mutual interaction relationships (partnerships, collaborations, communications, memberships). Based on an extensive literature review, the stakeholder analysis resulted in the identification of 75 pertinent actors (organizations). A web-based online questionnaire was sent to the identified actors for analyzing their interaction relationships. Out of the 75 actors contacted, 29 (38.7 %) participated in the survey. The results of the social network analysis, focusing on the interaction relationship ‹partnership›, reveal a partnership network consisting of 132 actors belonging to 12 different stakeholder groups. Network visualization and statistics clearly indicate a low overall netw

The inclusion of indirect lifecycle-based environmental impacts (Scope 3) of products is becoming increasingly important for companies as well as for investors, consumers and other stakeholders in value chains. Life Cycle Assessment can provide valuable decision support for companies, investors and consumers. However, the availability of representative, consistent and reliable regionalised Life Cycle Inventory models is still lacking. In the preparation of life cycle assessments, the collection of the necessary data is a time-consuming and difficult step. This large effort is especially a problem if one wants to compare different large companies or different product groups. In addition to the large effort for data collection, in almost all cases the cooperation of the respective companies is required, and the underlying data are therefore mostly collected by the companies themselves, which limits the reliability and makes them susceptible to greenwashing. The aim of this project was to identify possible approaches to reduce the effort for data collection and at the same time the dependency on data collected by the companies themselves. To achieve this, we explored approaches to link remote sensing data from satellite imagery to LCI models. In the last ten years the availability of satellite imagery has increased significantly, and data providers have developed advanced remote sensing-based data products. Together with remote sensing and geoinformation systems experts we identified remote sensing-based data sources, which can be used for life cycle inventory models. The focus was on three economic sectors, (1) agriculture, (2) mining and (3) energy supply. However, satellite images cannot be used directly for LCA studies, but have to be processed and evaluated in order to derive information which can be used within LCA inventories, such as land use changes or transportation distances. There are several commercial providers which offer already processed remote sensing

Finally, nature risks like biodiversity and carbon footprints have been recognised as important business risks. Beyond immediate physical risks, transition risks include scenarios with disruptive consequences. Sustainable finance regulation calls for a transparent reporting of these risks. However, the full integration into the corporate risk framework, company valuations, and portfolio management needs a consistent quantitative treatment with discriminating precision down to company level. The crucial point is the objective of enabling allocation decisions between two competing companies from the same industry. This paper proposes a bottom-up scenario-based aggregation of company impacts measured by geospatial analysis rather than a top-down breakdown from global exposures. We overlay geospatial ESG variables mainly from global remote sensing products with the spatial footprints of asset-level data. In contrast to other approaches, the footprints of local operations are translated into a financial loss quantity for each single operational site before they are aggregated across the company. As the scenarios can be defined consistent across companies, statistically justified portfolio risk measures can be evaluated that enable portfolio risk management by a selection of individual investments and credit decisions rather than an exclusion of whole industry sectors. We illustrate our approach for the case of biodiversity risks and choose the mining sector as there is significant scientific literature on its environmental impacts and on remote sensing to detect these impacts.

The underground is an unknown territory, gloomy and often addressed by fairy tales. However, not only fairy tales, but also the federal government's Energy Strategy 2050 deal with the underground. Emerging technologies such as deep geothermal energy or carbon capture and storage aim to fight the climate change. There are other technologies like the freight transport system ‘cargo sous terrain’ that will be built underground. These forms of use put the underground increasingly in the focus of politics. Society will also have to form an opinion as further regulations and laws are required to govern the use of the underground. This thesis aims to shed light on Swiss society’s attitude towards the different uses of the underground and show how media coverage might have changed over time. While the use of the underground is of high relevance in Switzerland, a country nearly hollowed out by tunnels and bunkers, little research on the society’s attitude towards the use of its underground has been conducted. To assess the thematization of the underground and its use in Swiss media, a quantitative media analysis is executed. This thesis analyses Swiss media articles in German and English language over the period starting from 2011, the year of the nuclear catastrophe in Fukushima, till 2023. To evaluate the society’s attitude towards future forms of use, an in-depth exploration is undertaken involving three emerging technologies. Articles focusing on cargo sous terrain, deep geothermal energy and carbon capture and storage are analysed qualitatively. The results of this thesis indicate that media coverage of the use of the underground has increased since the nuclear disaster in Fukushima. However, the event and the resulting energy debate were not the only reasons for the increased media attention. In particular, the search for a potential site for a long-term nuclear waste repository has attracted interest. Additionally, deep geothermal energy has taken on a prominent role

Vertical façade greening, also called green walls or living walls, is recognized as an effective measure to mitigate urban heat islands, to offer additional building insulation, and to promote biodiversity. Yet, it is important to evaluate these positive effects against the environmental impact caused by of the greening systems themselves. There are numerous scientific studies which compare the environmental impact of small- and medium scale test segments of different living wall systems. Actual façade greening projects, however, do not only follow environmental considerations, but also have to comply with economic expectations, regulations (e.g., concerning fire protection), weight restrictions or existing building structures. The goal of the presented study was to obtain comprehensive knowledge on the resource consumption and environmental impact of a full-scale façade greening system, to identify ecological hotspots and to develop recommendations for the ecological optimisation for future projects. For that reason, a life cycle assessment (LCA) of an existing façade greening in Zurich, Switzerland, was carried out. The analysed system extended over 16 storeys and covered ~3100 sqm. It consisted of planted troughs made of chromium-nickel steel (CNS), placed along the balcony of each storey and connected to an automated irrigation system. Primary data was collected on the entire life cycle of the greening system, including production, operation and disposal of all components. Assuming a service life of 15 years, the study showed that the façade greening led to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of 80 t CO2-eq over its entire life cycle. The corresponding cumulative energy demand amounted to 1.3 TJ oil-eq, with a 75% share of non-renewable energy. The production of CNS (with an assumed recycling share of 55%) emerged as the main ecological hotspot of the façade greening. If the service life of the façade was extended to 60 years, the environmental impact of the façade g

Mediterranean spring ecosystems are unique habitats at the interface between surface water and groundwater. These ecosystems support a remarkable array of biodiversity and provide important ecological functions and ecosystem services. Spring ecosystems are influenced by abiotic, biotic, and anthropogenic factors such as the lithology of their draining aquifers, their climate, and the land use of their recharge area, all of which affect the water chemistry of the aquifer and the spring discharges. One of the most relevant characteristics of spring ecosystems is the temporal stability of environmental conditions, including physicochemical features of the spring water, across seasons and years. This stability allows a wide range of species to benefit from these ecosystems (particularly during dry periods), fostering an unusually high number of endemic species. However, global change poses important threats to these freshwater ecosystems. Changes in temperature, evapotranspiration, and precipitation patterns can alter the water balance and chemistry of spring water. Eutrophication due to agricultural practices and emergent pollutants, such as pharmaceuticals, personal care products, and pesticides, is also a growing concern for the preservation of spring biodiversity. Here, we provide a synthesis of the main characteristics and functioning of Mediterranean spring ecosystems. We then describe their ecological value and biodiversity patterns and highlight the main risks these ecosystems face. Moreover, we identify existing knowledge gaps to guide future research in order to fully uncover the hidden biodiversity within these habitats and understand the main drivers that govern them. Finally, we provide a brief summary of recommended actions that should be taken to effectively manage and preserve Mediterranean spring ecosystems for future generations. Even though studies on Mediterranean spring ecosystems are still scarce, our review shows there are sufficient data to concl

Die vorliegende Bachelorarbeit beschäftigt sich im Grunde mit dem Thema der Biodiversität im Siedlungsraum. Die Relevanz dieser Thematik zeigt sich unter anderem in der Erbringung von Ökosystemleistungen durch die Biodiversität und deren gleichzeitigen Gefährdung. Eine Ursache für diese Gefährdung ist durch die einflussreiche Immobilienbranche, beziehungsweise deren Bautätigkeiten, gegeben. Obschon Siedlungsgebiete und Städte eine mannigfaltige Biodiversität aufweisen können, setzt dies eine hohe Qualität der verbleibenden Aussenräume voraus. Ein mögliches Förderinstrument dafür stellen in der Immobilienbranche Nachhaltigkeitslabels dar. Im ersten Teil der vorliegenden Abhandlung wurden Schweizer Labels dahingehend untersucht, in welchem Ausmass biodiversitätsrelevante Kriterien darin vorkommen. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass in der Mehrheit der untersuchten Labels biodiversitätsrelevante Kriterien im engeren Sinne nur mit bis zu 2.5 % Anteil an der Gesamtbewertung berücksichtigt werden. Die wenigen Labels, die Biodiversität stärker gewichten, berücksichtigen jedoch die Immobilien an sich kaum. Die Gründe für die geringe Gewichtung der Biodiversität in den meisten Labels wurden durch Experteninterviews eruiert. Im zweiten Teil dieser Arbeit wird in einer Fallstudie das Areal Sihlbogen in Zürich Leimbach untersucht. Das Areal ist mit einem Nachhaltigkeitslabel ausgezeichnet, die Kriterien für die Biodiversität gelten gemäss Analyse vor Ort jedoch als nicht erfüllt. Es wurde darum ein Konzept zur Förderung der Biodiversität entwickelt, um aufzuzeigen, wie ein Areal zwar nachträglich aufgewertet werden kann, die Möglichkeiten dafür durch den Bestand jedoch limitiert sind. Gerade darum ist es wichtig, vorausschauend zu planen. Ein Instrument für diese stärkere Verankerung der Biodiversität in der Immobilienbranche, gerade auch in der Planungsphase, bieten Labels. Für die zukünftige Entwicklung derer wird eine verbesserte Objektivität in der Beurteilung, stärkere Quantifizi

Erworben im Rahmen der Schweizer Nationallizenzen (http://www.nationallizenzen.ch), Context: Wildlife–vehicle collisions (WVCs) are a significant threat for many species, cause financial loss and pose a serious risk to motorist safety. Objectives: We used spatial data science on regional collision data from Switzerland with the objectives of identifying the key environmental collision risk factors and modelling WVC risk on a nationwide scale. Methods: We used 43,000 collision records with roe deer, red deer, wild boar, and chamois from 2010 to 2015 for both midlands and mountainous landscape types. We compared a fixed-length road segmentation approach with segments based on Kernel Density Estimation, a data-driven segmentation method. The segments’ environmental properties were derived from land-cover geodata using novel neighbourhood operations. Multivariate logistic regression and random forest classifiers were used to identify and rank the relevant environmental factors and to predict collision risk in areas without collision data. Results: The key factors for WVC hotspots are road sinuosity, and two composite factors for browsing/forage availability and traffic noise—a proxy for traffic flow. Our best models achieved sensitivities of 82.5% to 88.6%, with misclassifications of 20.14% and 27.03%, respectively. Our predictions were better in forested areas and revealed limitations in open landscape due to lack of up-to-date data on annual crop changes. Conclusions: We illustrate the added value of using fine-grained land-cover data for WVC modelling, and show how such detailed information can be annotated to road segments using spatial neighbourhood functions. Finally, we recommend the inclusion of annual crop data for improving WVC modelling.

With the aim to address water scarcity and support the sustainable use and treatment of (waste-) water, this study examines a self-sufficient, off-grid water system in the inhabited demonstration house “KREIS-Haus”. The water system is based on rainwater harvesting and greywater treatment with a low-tech treatment implementing submerged, attached biofilm growth. Treated rainwater is used as drinking water and treated greywater is used for the washing machine and irrigation of the rooftop garden. In an experimental period of 17 weeks, several water quality parameters were analyzed once per week before and after the rainwater and greywater treatment. Comparing the results to Swiss/EU regulation and literature, the treated greywater is suitable for irrigation and laundry. However, the treated rainwater did not always meet the required limit values for turbidity and TOC. The greywater treatment unit achieved removal rates of 92% for COD and 98% for turbidity, and no accumulation of substances was observed in the treated greywater. Water self- sufficiency was at 100% over the whole experimental period, and excess water pumped out of the system met the standard for discharge into a water body. While these first results indicate a promising approach to the water concept, more long-term monitoring and testing with higher occupancy is needed.

Während der Bedarf an Süsswasser weltweit stetig steigt, wird dessen Verfügbarkeit immer knapper. Um dem entgegenzuwirken, ist die lokale Behandlung und Wiederverwendung von Grauwasser ein vielversprechender Ansatz. Von besonderem Interesse sind der Einsatz von grünen Wänden, als platzsparende Alternative zu Pflanzenkläranlagen, und Filtersäulen zur biologischen Reinigung des Abwassers. Im vorliegenden Projekt wurden die Grundlagen für einen energie- und wasserautarken Waschmaschinenbetrieb, basierend auf der biologischen Reinigungstechnologie, erarbeitet. Es wurde eine Reihe von Experimenten durchgeführt, um Waschmaschinenabwasser zu charakterisieren, eine geeignete Vorreinigung auszuwählen, ein geeignetes Filtersubstrat für die grüne Wand zu identifizieren, die Keimbelastung zu analysieren und den Energieautarkiegrad zu bestimmen und zu optimieren. Die Analyse des Waschmaschinenabwassers zeigte, dass ein Grossteil der Verschmutzung im Abwasser vom Waschmittel selbst stammt. Daher ist die Verwendung eines ökologischen Waschmittels und dessen korrekte Dosierung essenziell für einen ressourceneffizienten Betrieb. Für die physikalisch-mechanische Vorreinigung wurden ein Sandfilter und ein Feinfilter getestet. Aufgrund der hohen Faserbelastung im Waschmaschinenabwasser zeigte sich der Sandfilter als ungeeignet, da er schnell verstopfte. Stattdessen konnte mit dem Feinfilter eine gute Vorreinigung erzielt werden. Die Faserbelastung im Waschmaschinenabwasser betrug durchschnittlich 25 mg/L vor der Vorreinigung und konnte durch den Feinfilter auf 2 mg/L reduziert werden. Die Analyse der Reinigungsleistung verschiedener Substrate für die grüne Wand, darunter Vulkaponic, Vulkaponic/Pflanzenkohle-Mischung und Perlit, zeigte, dass mit reinem Vulkaponic die besten Ergebnisse erzielt wurden. Die Reinigungseffizienz von Vulkaponic betrug im Durchschnitt 85%, während die Mischung aus Vulkaponic und Pflanzenkohle eine Reinigungsleistung von 78% aufwies. Perlit erreichte eine Reini

Seit Mitte des 20. Jahrhunderts kommt der Rothirsch im Wallis wieder in nennenswerten Beständen vor. Trotz teilweise intensiver Bejagung stiegen die Bestände bis um die Jahrtausendwende in vielen Regionen des Kantons stark an und verursachten mancherorts erhebliche Konflikte. Besonders gravierende Probleme zeigten sich im Hinblick auf die Schutzwälder in der Region Aletsch-Goms. Über die Raumnutzung und das Wanderverhalten der Rothirsche in dieser Region lagen bislang jedoch kaum gesicherte Fakten vor. Das zwischen 2017 und 2022 durchgeführte Rothirschprojekt Aletsch-Goms hatte deshalb zum Ziel, die bedeutenden Grundlagen für ein fachlich fundiertes Rothirschmanagement zu erarbeiten. Ein weiterführendes Fotofallenmonitoring soll noch bis 2024 zusätzliche Langzeitdaten über die dortigen Wildhuftierbestände liefern.

The LaundReCycle project aimed to address water and energy shortages and provide laundry services to communities in Cape Town, South Africa, with limited access to these resources. The project successfully demonstrated the technical feasibility of the LaundReCycle system through pilot tests and adaptations of core technologies. In terms of operational feasibility and acceptance, the pilot plant in Cape Town achieved an energy self-sufficiency rate of 92% and a water self-sufficiency rate of 92%. Only 8% of the water used for washing came from an external supply (tap water), with greywater reuse accounting for 43% and rainwater collection contributing 49%. Expanding the rainwater collection area by just 6m2 could potentially achieve complete water self-sufficiency. The project conducted a survey to assess the acceptance of LaundReCycle in Switzerland and South Africa. South Africans displayed a more positive attitude, with 57% in favour of greywater reuse for laundry compared to 35% in Switzerland. The survey revealed that the positive environmental impact held greater importance than cost savings for users, with the assurance of human health through greywater reuse being a critical aspect. In terms of financial feasibility and business development, the LaundReCycle system generated a total income of 40,000 ZAR from customers utilizing the laundromat services, while costs amounted to 30,000 ZAR. The project also created new jobs and provided training to personnel, contributing to local employment opportunities and skills development. Preparatory work for multiplication and replication involved conducting market surveys and analysing consumer preferences. The project developed a scalable business model and explored financing options for establishing a spin-off organization. Efforts were made to develop a self-sufficient water system capable of addressing larger water challenges. The project's impacts include the installation of 4.32 kWp renewable energy capacity, resu

Reliable and comparable estimates of biodiversity are the foundation for understanding ecological systems and informing policy and decision-making, especially in an era of massive anthropogenic impacts on biodiversity. Environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding is at the forefront of technological advances in biodiversity monitoring, and the last few years have seen major progress and solutions to technical challenges from the laboratory to bioinformatics. Water eDNA has been shown to allow the fast and efficient recovery of biodiversity signals, but the rapid pace of technological development has meant that some important principles regarding sampling design, which are well established in traditional biodiversity inventories, have been neglected. Using a spatially explicit river flow model, we illustrate how sampling must be adjusted to the size of the watercourse to increase the quality of the biodiversity signal recovered. We additionally investigate the effect of sampling parameters (volume, number of sites, sequencing depth) on detection probability in an empirical data set. Based on traditional sampling principles, we propose that aquatic eDNA sampling replication and volume must be scaled to match the organisms' and ecosystems' properties to provide reliable biodiversity estimates. We present a generalizable conceptual equation describing sampling features as a function of the size of the ecosystem monitored, the abundance of target organisms, and the properties of the sequencing procedure. The aim of this formalization is to enhance the standardization of critical steps in the design of biodiversity inventory studies using eDNA. More robust sampling standards will generate more comparable biodiversity data from eDNA, which is necessary for the method's long-term plausibility and comparability.

Die Erhaltung der Biodiversität ist eine unserer wichtigsten Zukunftsaufgaben. Je früher Kinder dafür sensibilisiert werden, umso selbstverständlicher wird für sie der nachhaltige Umgang mit unserer Umwelt. Um auch Kinder zu erreichen, welche nicht besonders umweltaffin sind, wurde ein innovativer, niederschwelliger Ansatz des Kommunizierens ausprobiert, bei welchem Unterhaltung und Wissensvermittlung in einer Augmented Reality Outdoor Mission (AROM) miteinander verbunden werden. Dieses Scientainment-Angebot soll Familien und Kinder zwischen 7 und 11 Jahren ansprechen und wird auf einem Smartphone oder einem Tablet in den Gärten des Campus Grüentals in Wädenswil gespielt. Rund eine Stunde haben die Spielenden Zeit, um durch das Lösen von verschiedenen Rätseln die verschwundenen Helden der Biodiversität zurückzubringen. Die AROM wurde nach einem User-Centered-Design-Ansatz entwickelt. Eine begleitende Evaluation wurde in zwei Phasen gegliedert. In einer ersten Phase wurden Prototypen der Mission durch qualitative, formative Studien mit drei Schulklassen und einer Familie bewertet und bis zur finalen Version weiterentwickelt. Diese iterativen User-Tests beinhalteten Befragungen und qualitative Beobachtungen. In einer anschliessenden, zweiten Phase wurden fünf weitere Schulklassen für eine Feldstudie mit der finalen Version der Mission eingeladen, um den Lerneffekt sowie die Lernmotivation zu untersuchen. Über 100 Kinder haben dabei die Mission in den Gärten gespielt und vor und nach dem Erlebnis einen Fragebogen ausgefüllt. Die Ergebnisse der User-Tests aus der ersten Phase trugen jeweils zur Verbesserung der Qualität der nachfolgenden Prototypen bei und resultierten schliesslich in einer finalen Version, welche für die Zielgruppe ein positives Benutzererlebnis bietet. Aus der zweiten Phase ging hervor, dass die AROM die Kinder in einen Lernzustand versetzen und sie motivieren konnte, sich aktiv Wissen anzueignen. Es wurde ein signifikanter Lerneffekt festgestellt. Zu, Preserving biodiversity is one of our most important tasks for the future. The earlier children are sensitized to its importance, the more natural it will be for them to treat the environment in a sustainable manner. In order to reach children who are not particularly environmentally aware, an innovative, low-threshold approach to communication was used, in which entertainment and knowledge transfer are combined in an Augmented Reality Outdoor Mission (AROM). This scientainment offer is intended to appeal to families and children between the ages of 7 and 11 and is played on a smartphone or tablet in the gardens of the university campus in Wädenswil. The players have one hour to solve various puzzles and bring back the missing heroes of biodiversity. The AROM was developed according to a user-centered design approach. An accompanying evaluation was divided into two phases. In the first phase, the prototypes were developed and evaluated through various qualitative formative studies with three school classes and one family. Furthermore, in a second phase, a field study was conducted with the final version of the mission to investigate the learning effect as well as the learning motivation. This involved over 100 children playing the mission in the gardens and completing a questionnaire before and after the experience. The results of the user tests each helped to improve the quality of subsequent prototypes and ultimately resulted in a final version that provided a positive user experience for the target audience. Furthermore, the AROM was able to motivate them to actively acquire knowledge. Also, a significant learning effect was found. In addition, challenges and opportunities for further development were identified. Conclusively, augmented reality appears to be suitable for scientainment projects and follow-up projects are already being planned.

Biodiversitätsförderflächen (BFF) haben einen positiven Effekt auf die Tagfalterfauna. Über den Einfluss der unterschiedlichen BFF-Typen auf die Biodiversität ist jedoch erst wenig bekannt. Für eine effektive und gezielte Förderung der Biodiversität anhand der BFF ist es relevant zu wissen, welchen Effekt die unterschiedlichen BFF-Typen auf die Biodiversität und die Fauna ausüben. Da Extensivwiesen und Buntbrachen flächenmässig einen grossen Teil der BFF ausmachen und Flächen mit einem Q-II Status eine höhere Biodiversität aufweisen, wurden in der vorliegenden Masterarbeit Extensivwiesen mit QII-Status und Buntbrachen anhand der Tagfalterfauna analysiert und verglichen. Zudem wurde der Einfluss der Vegetationsparameter («small scale») und der Landschaftsparameter («large scale») auf die Tagfalterfauna untersucht. Dazu wurde eine Tagfalterkartierung von zwölf Dubletts mit je einer Extensivwiese mit QII-Status und einer Buntbrache im Kanton Aargau (Schweiz) durchgeführt. Zusätzlich wurden Vegetationsparameter aufgenommen und Landschaftsparameter anhand einer GIS-Analyse berechnet. Für den Vergleich der Tagfalterfauna und der Vegetationsparameter der Extensivwiesen mit QII-Status und der Buntbrachen wurden T-Tests und Wilcoxon-Rangsummen-Tests durchgeführt. Zur Analyse des Einflusses der Vegetationsparameter und der umgebenden Landschaft auf die Tagfalterfauna wurden multivariate Modelle erstellt. Zudem wurden typische Arten und Artgemeinschaften anhand Gradientenanalysen eruiert, Indikatorarten berechnet und die Resultate mit der Beta-Diversität quantifiziert. Die beiden BFF-Typen unterschieden sich in der Anzahl an Arten, der Anzahl an Individuen und dem Simpson-Index nicht signifikant. Die Vegetationsparameter «Vegetationshöhe», «Deckungsgrad der Vegetation» und «Blütenhorizont» der beiden BFF-Typen unterschieden sich hingegen signifikant. Der Blütenhorizont hatte den grössten Einfluss auf die Tagfalterfauna und korrelierte mit der Anzahl an Arten und Individuen hoc, Biodiversity promotion areas (BPA) have a positive effect on butterfly fauna. However, the influence of the different BPA types on biodiversity is still poorly understood. For an effective and targeted promotion of biodiversity based on BPA, one needs to know what effect the different BPA types have on biodiversity and fauna. Since extensively used meadows and wildflower strips make up a large proportion of BPAs in terms of area, and since BPA with a Q-II status have a higher biodiversity, in the present master’s thesis extensively used meadows with Q-II status and wildflower strips were analysed and compared based on the butterfly fauna. In addition, the influence of vegetation parameters ("small scale") and landscape parameters ("large scale") on the butterfly fauna was determined. Therefore, a butterfly mapping of twelve doublets, each with an extensively used meadow with QII-status and a wildflower strip was carried out in the Canton of Aargau (Switzerland). In addition, vegetation parameters were recorded, and landscape parameters were calculated using a GIS analysis. To compare the butterfly fauna and vegetation parameters of the extensively used meadows with Q-II status and the wildflower strips, t-tests and Wilcoxon rank-sum tests were performed. Multivariate models were built to analyse the influence of vegetation parameters and the surrounding landscape on the butterfly fauna. In addition, typical species and species communities were determined using gradient analyses, indicator species were calculated, and the results were quantified with beta diversity. The two BPA types did not differ significantly regarding the number of species, the number of individuals and the Simpson index. However, the vegetation parameters "vegetation height", "vegetation cover" and "flower horizon" of the two BPA types differed significantly. The flower horizon had the greatest influence on the butterfly fauna and was highly significantly positively correlated with the number of

Vegetation-plot resurvey data are a main source of information on terrestrial biodiversity change, with records reaching back more than one century. Although more and more data from re-sampled plots have been published, there is not yet a comprehensive open-access dataset available for analysis. Here, we compiled and harmonised vegetation-plot resurvey data from Germany covering almost 100 years. We show the distribution of the plot data in space, time and across habitat types of the European Nature Information System (EUNIS). In addition, we include metadata on geographic location, plot size and vegetation structure. The data allow temporal biodiversity change to be assessed at the community scale, reaching back further into the past than most comparable data yet available. They also enable tracking changes in the incidence and distribution of individual species across Germany. In summary, the data come at a level of detail that holds promise for broadening our understanding of the mechanisms and drivers behind plant diversity change over the last century.

Global patterns of regional (gamma) plant diversity are relatively well known, but whether these patterns hold for local communities, and the dependence on spatial grain, remain controversial. Using data on 170,272 georeferenced local plant assemblages, we created global maps of alpha diversity (local species richness) for vascular plants at three different spatial grains, for forests and non-forests. We show that alpha diversity is consistently high across grains in some regions (for example, Andean-Amazonian foothills), but regional 'scaling anomalies' (deviations from the positive correlation) exist elsewhere, particularly in Eurasian temperate forests with disproportionally higher fine-grained richness and many African tropical forests with disproportionally higher coarse-grained richness. The influence of different climatic, topographic and biogeographical variables on alpha diversity also varies across grains. Our multi-grain maps return a nuanced understanding of vascular plant biodiversity patterns that complements classic maps of biodiversity hotspots and will improve predictions of global change effects on biodiversity.

Das Thema Biodiversität ist schwierig. Der Begriff sperrig. Dennoch lassen sich Menschen für das Thema begeistern und auch zu konkretem Handeln motivieren. Warum Umweltkommunikation dennoch häufig ins Leere läuft und wie wir es besser machen können, wird im Artikel erklärt.

Long-term analyses of biodiversity data highlight a 'biodiversity conservation paradox': biological communities show substantial species turnover over the past century1,2, but changes in species richness are marginal1,3-5. Most studies, however, have focused only on the incidence of species, and have not considered changes in local abundance. Here we asked whether analysing changes in the cover of plant species could reveal previously unrecognized patterns of biodiversity change and provide insights into the underlying mechanisms. We compiled and analysed a dataset of 7,738 permanent and semi-permanent vegetation plots from Germany that were surveyed between 2 and 54 times from 1927 to 2020, in total comprising 1,794 species of vascular plants. We found that decrements in cover, averaged across all species and plots, occurred more often than increments; that the number of species that decreased in cover was higher than the number of species that increased; and that decrements were more equally distributed among losers than were gains among winners. Null model simulations confirmed that these trends do not emerge by chance, but are the consequence of species-specific negative effects of environmental changes. In the long run, these trends might result in substantial losses of species at both local and regional scales. Summarizing the changes by decade shows that the inequality in the mean change in species cover of losers and winners diverged as early as the 1960s. We conclude that changes in species cover in communities represent an important but understudied dimension of biodiversity change that should more routinely be considered in time-series analyses.

Diese Forschung wurde von einem Forschungsteam im Auftrag von ZHAW sustainable, dem strategischen Programm für nachhaltige Entwicklung der Zürcher Hochschule für Angewandte Wissenschaften (ZHAW), unabhängig durchgeführt und im Rahmen der Umsetzung der ZHAW-Nachhaltigkeitsstrategie finanziert. www.zhaw.ch/sustainable, Die ZHAW hat im Ziel 8 des Green Impact Books das Ziel definiert, die Grün- und Dachflächen an ihren Standorten ökologisch zu bewirtschaften, um Mitarbeitern und Studierenden ein ökologisch wertvolles Umfeld zu bieten und die Biodiversität insgesamt zu verbessern. Die meisten Mietobjekte weisen erhebliche Mängel in Bezug auf die ökologische Qualität auf, da sie oft keine Grünflächen haben und somit kaum Lebensräume für Flora und Fauna bieten. Es besteht ein grosses Potenzial zur Aufwertung dieser Objekte durch Entsiegelung und klimaangepasste Vegetationssysteme. Die Liegenschaften im kantonalen Eigentum haben zwar einen hohen Grünflächenanteil, aber ihr ökologisches Potenzial ist noch nicht vollständig ausgeschöpft. Es sollten Strukturelemente wie Wildhecken und standortgerechte Pflanzen hinzugefügt und Asphaltflächen entsiegelt werden. Die Aufwertung trägt zur Biodiversitätsförderung und Hitzeminderung bei und hat positive Auswirkungen auf die Gesundheit und Arbeitszufriedenheit der Mitarbeiter und Studierenden. Der Schutz bestehender Grünflächen und Bäume ist von höchster Priorität, da Bäume eine der wirkungsvollsten Massnahmen zur Förderung von Biodiversität und Hitzeminderung sind.

Die Mehrheit der Schweizer Mieter wünscht sich Wohneigentum. Was macht also den Traum der eigenen vier Wände aus? In erster Linie Stabilität: Wohneigentum wird weniger als Renditeobjekt als vielmehr ein langfristiges Zuhause angesehen. Finanzielle Aspekte sind aber nicht zu vernachlässigen, da sie wichtige Barrieren sind.

Vortrag im Rahmen der Veranstaltung "Hochhaus im Kontext nachhaltigen Bauens und Baukultur - Nachhaltiges Bauen".

Conventional large-scale water infrastructures in urban areas are increasingly under pressure to transition toward more flexible and sustainable modes to cope with the major challenges of the 21st century. Climate change and population growth coupled with increased urbanization will likely expand the demand for water services, which are already confronted with water scarcity due to hydro-climatic variability. On top of these challenges, ageing water supply and sanitation infrastructures are facing underinvestment and shrinking subsidies. Integrating decentralized water technologies that are multi-functional and fit-for-purpose could enable a more efficient treatment of resources and diversify water assets, creating mixed-scale or hybrid water systems. Although such technological solutions already exist, the implementation rate remains low, as the transition of infrastructures also necessitates institutional change, altering, e.g., user practices, regulations, organizational structures and markets. As institutions provide stability and regularity to urban water infrastructures and their management, however, they are not easily changed. Against this backdrop, this thesis investigates how shifts in urban water governance arrangements ¬– i.e. actor constellations, organizational structures, policies (instruments) and mechanisms – can overcome institutional inertia and steer infrastructure transitions. It examines how new actor constellations, altered or novel policy instruments and organizations support the integration of decentralized water technologies, enabling the development of more sustainable urban water infrastructures. Insights are drawn from four individual research papers, which are linked by the following overall research question that examines the different elements of urban water governance arrangements: how can urban water governance arrangements foster the implementation and operation of decentralized water technologies as part of hybrid infrastructures?

Water systems are experiencing dynamic societal demands and extreme environmental changes. The integration of modular water systems into existing centralized infrastructures, creating hybrid systems, could mitigate these challenges by enabling more resilient water management. However, the existence of technological alternatives has not changed the continuous reliance on centralized water infrastructure. Supportive policy instruments are key to foster the operation of modular technology within hybrid water systems. This article focuses on the role of substantive and procedural policy instruments for the successful operation of modular water systems within a hybrid water infrastructure. Based on Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA), we can confirm the claim in the literature that relying on regulatory instruments is relevant for operating modular technology within hybrid systems. However, we also find combinations of policy instruments where regulatory instruments do not matter. Furthermore, we find that procedural instruments emphasizing stakeholder participation interplay with different substantive policy instruments to support the successful operation of modular systems.

This article presents an exploratory review of alternative governance arrangements for modular systems in the urban water sector in terms of policy instruments, organizational structure, and underlying mechanisms. We develop an analytical framework to review the literature on alternative arrangements for innovative technologies. The preliminary results highlight the importance of governmental involvement and formal policy instruments to ensure public and environmental health in the context of modular water infrastructures. This is in line with the status quo of conventional water governance arrangements. However, the findings also suggest that informal instruments supplement the formal ones and that instead of political-administrative accountability more horizontal mechanisms, such as answerability toward citizens and consumers, play an important role in the context of new water technologies.

Dieser Bericht schliesst das medienpsychologische Teilprojekt des interdisziplinären Hauptprojekts «Lifesaving» ab. Mit dem Forschungsprojekt «Lifesaving – Lebensdauerverlängerung von Mobilgeräten» soll der ökologische Fussabdruck von Smartphones und anderen internetfähigen Geräten reduziert werden. Ende 2020 wurde eine Befragung von gut 1400 Personen durchgeführt, um mehr über Verhaltensweisen bei Smartphonekauf und -nutzung, die Motivation dahinter und den Wissensstand zu erfahren. Ein Auszug aus den Ergebnissen: Der grösste Teil der Befragten kauft das Smartphone neu. Technische Eigenschaften, der Preis sowie die Marke eines Gerätes sind bei der Anschaffung die zentralen Aspekte. Secondhandkäufe stellen unter den Befragten die Ausnahme dar, doch wer einmal einen Secondhandkauf getätigt hat, ist zufrieden und würde es wieder tun. Die Weitergabe eines alten Geräts wird von mehr als der Hälfte als positiv und wichtig angesehen. Fast alle Befragten bestätigten, dies sei gut für die Umwelt. Dem Verkauf des gebrauchten Geräts gegenüber ist die Einstellung etwas weniger positiv. Vor allem die Meinungen, ein altes Gerät lasse sich noch gut zu Geld machen, Freunde befürworteten einen Verkauf bzw. ein Gerät, für das man keine Verwendung mehr hat, solle lieber verkauft werden, teilen nur etwa ein Drittel der Befragten. Von den positiven Aspekten des Weitergebens und auch des Verkaufens sind also viele der Befragten überzeugt. Dies steht im Widerspruch zum kleinen Anteil jener, die das alte Gerät effektiv verkauft oder weitergegeben haben. Die Hinderungsgründe, die von rund einem Drittel der Befragten bestätigt wurden, scheinen schwerer zu wiegen. Beim Verkauf wurden als Hinderungsgründe vor allem der Aufwand, Bedenken bezüglich persönlicher Daten auf dem Gerät angegeben, aber auch, dass sich ein mehr als zwei Jahre altes Gerät nicht mehr verkaufen lasse. Bei der Weitergabe wird der Zustand des Geräts als wichtiger empfunden als das Alter. Ebenfalls rund ein Drittel der Befr

The present chapter provides a comprehensive overview about the biogeographic setting and environmental state of 166 European rivers, stretching from the Atlantic coast to Turkey and the Ural mountains, and identifies future research and management challenges for these rivers. European rivers exhibit a long history of human modification, with very few free-flowing rivers remaining. Hence, the conservation of the last wild rivers is of utmost priority. Moreover, the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration offers major opportunities to restore regulated rivers across the entire continent.

An increase in the demand for renewable energy is driving hydropower development and its integration with variable renewable energy sources. When hydropower is produced flexibly from hydropower plants, it causes rapid and frequent artificial flow fluctuations in rivers, a phenomenon known as hydropeaking. Hydropeaking and associated hydrological alterations cause multiple impacts on riverine habitats with cascading effects on ecosystem functioning and structure. Given the significance of its ecological and socio-economic implications, mitigation of hydropeaking requires an inter- and transdisciplinary approach. An interdisciplinary network called HyPeak has been conceived to enrich international research initiatives and support hydropower planning and policy. HyPeak has been founded based on exchange and networking activities linking scientists from several countries where hydropeaking has been widespread for decades and numerous studies dedicated to the topic have been carried out. HyPeak aims to integrate members from other countries and continents in which hydropower production plays a relevant role, and grow to be a reference group that provides expert advice on the topic to policy-makers, as well as researchers, stakeholders, and practitioners in the field of hydropeaking.

The hydrological regime of many alpine rivers is heavily altered due hydroelectric power generation. Hydropeaking operation produces frequent and irregular discharge fluctuations. Depending on the operational changes of flow amplitude and/or upramping rate as well as on river morphology, hydropeaking can lead to quick and strong variations in hydraulic stress affecting stream invertebrates and causing increased drift. In the present flume experimental study, we analyzed trait-specific drift reactions to single and combined effects of increased flow amplitude and upramping rate. We analyzed taxa according to their hydraulic habitat preference and flow exposure, as these traits seem to be indicative toward hydropeaking. The results show that the sudden increase in discharge and related flow velocity led to increased macroinvertebrate drift proportions in hydropeaking treatments, which differed significantly to parallel control runs (mean drift proportion in all hydropeaking setups: 13% compared to 5% in controls). Increasing flow amplitudes led to an increase in drift for most taxa and traits. This was particularly significant for taxa associated with lentic areas. The effect of the up-ramping rate on macroinvertebrate drift was nonsignificant but showed strong interactive effects with the flow amplitude, especially for taxa dwelling on the substrate surface. Our results therefore indicate that dischargerelated parameters, such as flow velocity, primarily affect macroinvertebrate drift and the importance of the up-ramping rate increases, if certain discharge-related thresholds are exceeded. Vice versa, a reduction of the up-ramping rate at hydropeaking events with high flow amplitudes may reduce the effect on macroinvertebrate drift. Flow-exposed (surface) and flow-sensitive (lentic) taxa showed distinct drift reactions following hydropeaking treatments, which were significantly higher compared to effects on taxa associated to lotic and interstital habitats. Therefore

Hydropeaking operation leads to fluctuations in wetted area between base and peak flow and increases discharge-related hydraulic forces (e.g. flow velocity). These processes promote macroinvertebrate drift and stranding, often affecting benthic abundance and biomass. Our field experimental study—conducted in three hydropeakingregulated Swiss rivers—aimed to quantify (a) the short-term effects of the combined increase in flow amplitude and up-ramping rate based on macroinvertebrate drift and stranding, as well as (b) long-term effects based on the established community composition. Hydropeaking led to increased macroinvertebrate drift compared to base flow and to unaffected residual flow reaches. Moreover, stranding of macroinvertebrates was positively related to drift, especially during the up-ramping phase. Flow velocity and up-ramping rate were identified as major determinants for macroinvertebrate drift, while flow ratio and down-ramping rate for stranding. Particularly high sensitivity towards hydropeaking was found for Limnephilidae, whereas Heptageniidae seemed to be resistant in respect to short- and long-term hydropeaking effects. In the longterm, hydropeaking did not considerably reduce benthic density of most taxa, especially of some highly resistant and resilient taxa such as Chironomidae and Baetidae, which dominated the community composition even though they showed comparably high drift and stranding responses. Therefore, we argue that high drift and/or stranding, especially of individual-rich taxa, does not necessarily indicate strong hydropeaking sensitivity. Finally, our results demonstrate the necessity to consider the differences in river-specific morphological complexity and hydropeaking intensity, since these factors strongly influence the community composition and short-term drift and stranding response of macroinvertebrates to hydropower pressure.

Um dem Ziel von Netto-Null Treibhausgasemissionen näher zu kommen und eine Übersicht über den aktuellen Stand der Emissionen zu erhalten, wurde eine Betriebsökobilanz des Pflegezentrums Käferberg in Zürich durchgeführt. Als Bezugsgrösse der Analyse wurde der «Betrieb des Pflegezentrums Käferberg während eines Jahres» gewählt. Das Bezugsjahr der Daten ist 2019. Es wurden Treibhausgasemissionen, Gesamtumweltbelastung gemäss der Methode der ökologischen Knappheit und kumulierter Energieaufwand analysiert. Folgende Bereiche wurden berücksichtigt: Energie, Infrastruktur, Verpflegung, Textilien und Wäsche, Verbrauchsmaterial, Wasser und Abfälle sowie Mobilität. Der Betrieb des Pflegezentrums verursachte im Jahr 2019 Treibhausgasemissionen von insgesamt 1’810 t CO2-eq. Bei den Treibhausgasemissionen ist die Verpflegung Hauptverursacher mit 36 %, gefolgt von der Mobilität mit 24 %. Bei der Verpflegung ist insbesondere der Fleischanteil ausschlaggebend, bei der Mobilität das Pendeln der Mitarbeitenden mit dem Auto. Weitere relevante Bereiche sind die Infrastruktur mit 13 %, bei welcher das Gebäude ausschlaggebend ist, sowie das Verbrauchsmaterial mit 14 %. Der grösste Teil der Treibhausgasemissionen, namentlich 93 %, werden dem Scope 3 aus Sicht des Pflegezentrums zugeordnet, während nur knapp 1 % der Emissionen in Scope 1 und knapp 7 % in Scope 2 entstehen. Bei der Gesamtumweltbelastung verursacht das Pflegezentrum im Jahr 2019 4.52 Mia. Umweltbelastungspunkte (UBP). Auch hier ist die Verpflegung der umweltrelevanteste Bereich und hat im Vergleich zu den Treibhausgasemissionen mit 43 % einen höheren Anteil. Innerhalb dieses Bereiches sind die Fleisch- und Milchprodukte für 54 % der Umweltbelastung verantwortlich. Die Mobilität hat den zweitgrössten Anteil an der Gesamtumweltbelastung mit 17 %, wobei auch hier das Pendeln der Mitarbeitenden mit dem Auto ausschlaggebend ist und 80 % der Umweltbelastung dieses Bereiches verursacht. Weitere relevante Bereiche sind die Infrastru

PFAS (per- und polyfluorierte Alkylverbindungen) umfassen mehrere tausend synthetische Verbindungen, die in zahlreichen industriellen Prozessen oder in den daraus resultierenden Produkten zum Einsatz kommen. Aufgrund ihrer hohen chemischen Stabilität und der damit verbundenen Persistenz ist davon auszugehen, dass sie sich in Umweltkompartimenten und in Organismen akkumulieren. Da viele PFAS als toxisch gelten, stellt ihre Verbreitung und Akkumulation ein Risiko dar. Über Niederschläge und atmosphärische Deposition werden PFAS praktisch überall auf der Welt in terrestrische und aquatische Ökosysteme eingetragen. In Schweden wurden PFAS landesweit in Bodenproben nachgewiesen, wobei es regionale Unterschiede zwischen den Konzentrationen gab. Auch in der Schweiz wurden nun Bodenproben auf PFAS untersucht. Es handelt sich dabei um Proben aus drei Probenahmekampagnen: (i) vom Nationalen Bodenbeobachtungsnetz (NABO), (ii) vom Biodiversitätsmonitoring (BDM) und (iii) von einer Messkampagne im Kanton Wallis. Im Rahmen dieses Artikels sollen im Auftrag des Bundesamtes für Umwelt (BAFU) die Daten aus Oberbodenproben im Hinblick auf ihre Verteilung gezeigt und Zusammenhänge zwischen PFAS Gehalten von Böden, deren Nutzung und weiteren Standort- oder Bodeneigenschaften diskutiert werden.