Environmental Chemistry Group webinars
|
Tom Sizmur
University of Reading t.sizmur@reading.ac.uk |
Caroline Gauchotte-Lindsay
University of Glasgow caroline.gauchotte-lindsay@glasgow.ac.uk |
ECG Bulletin January 2022
The Environmental Chemistry Group hosted two webinars in autumn 2021 on the topics of wastewater-based epidemiology and the molecular biogeochemistry of soil organic matter.
Wastewater-based epidemiology
The first of our webinars on 9th September saw Professor Barbara Kasprzyk-Hordern (University of Bath) and Dr Glenn Watts, Dr Elena Armenise and Dr Kate Jackson (Environment Agency) presented on wastewater-based epidemiology. As the current pandemic has clearly demonstrated, the ability to rapidly monitor the spread of infectious diseases is centrally important for prevention, intervention, and control. One proposed monitoring scheme that has emerged in recent years is wastewater-based epidemiology, which suggests that through analysis of population aggregated wastewater, infectious disease and the emergence of new disease outbreaks can be monitored comprehensively, and in real-time. The webinar provided an overview of the history and various uses of wastewater-based epidemiology and a detailed account of its rapid and necessary adoption by the Environment Agency during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The first of our webinars on 9th September saw Professor Barbara Kasprzyk-Hordern (University of Bath) and Dr Glenn Watts, Dr Elena Armenise and Dr Kate Jackson (Environment Agency) presented on wastewater-based epidemiology. As the current pandemic has clearly demonstrated, the ability to rapidly monitor the spread of infectious diseases is centrally important for prevention, intervention, and control. One proposed monitoring scheme that has emerged in recent years is wastewater-based epidemiology, which suggests that through analysis of population aggregated wastewater, infectious disease and the emergence of new disease outbreaks can be monitored comprehensively, and in real-time. The webinar provided an overview of the history and various uses of wastewater-based epidemiology and a detailed account of its rapid and necessary adoption by the Environment Agency during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Molecular biogeochemistry of soil organic matter
The second of our webinars on 12th October, coinciding with our 2021 Annual General Meeting, was provided by Professor Myrna J. Simpson (University of Toronto) on the use of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) to better understand how soil organic matter is impacted by warming, atmospheric nitrogen deposition, and changes in plant detrital inputs. Soil organic matter is also a major global carbon sink, but how changes in composition will impact overall ecosystem function in the long-term remain highly uncertain. The webinar introduced analytical challenges, integrative approaches, and future perspectives. Conclusions were based on a large body of data, collected over many years.
The second of our webinars on 12th October, coinciding with our 2021 Annual General Meeting, was provided by Professor Myrna J. Simpson (University of Toronto) on the use of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) to better understand how soil organic matter is impacted by warming, atmospheric nitrogen deposition, and changes in plant detrital inputs. Soil organic matter is also a major global carbon sink, but how changes in composition will impact overall ecosystem function in the long-term remain highly uncertain. The webinar introduced analytical challenges, integrative approaches, and future perspectives. Conclusions were based on a large body of data, collected over many years.
