UrbanClean
UrbanClean addresses a key question: How can water retention and reuse in local water cycles be achieved without creating new risks for human health and the environment? The subproject investigates which chemical and microbial contaminants are mobilized during extreme weather events (heavy rainfall and drought periods), how they accumulate, transform, and are transported within BGR systems, and which measures can effectively reduce their concentrations. The outcomes include, among others, a city-specific water quality baseline as well as strategies and methods for the safe storage, treatment, and use of stormwater and urban water.
Profiles
Ariette Schierz
Dr. Ariette Schierz has been working at UFZ in the Department of Environmental Biotechnology since 2022. She holds a PhD in Environmental Engineering Chemistry and previously worked in the United States in research and technical consulting on environmental monitoring, remediation, risk assessment, and environmental technologies. Since 2024, she has led the In Situ Water Treatment Technologies research group and serves as co-spokesperson of the CityTech research platform.
Katharina Schaufler
Prof. Dr. Katharina Schaufler has headed the Department of Epidemiology and Ecology of Antimicrobial Resistance at HIOH since mid-2023 and is a Professor at the University Medicine Greifswald. As a veterinarian and microbiologist, her research focuses on antimicrobial resistance within the One Health framework, particularly on the emergence and transmission of infectious diseases as well as alternative strategies for combating resistant pathogens.
Alexandra Bahr
Dr. Alexandra Bahr works at the Helmholtz Institute for One Health in the Department of Epidemiology and Ecology of Antimicrobial Resistance. Her work focuses on developing and applying high-throughput standard protocols for the identification of antimicrobial resistance in environmental and wildlife samples, and she contributes to the establishment of the One Health Surveillance Platform. She previously studied Molecular Biology in Greifswald and completed her PhD in 2021 on the utilization of marine polysaccharides.
Qiuguo Fu
Dr. Qiuguo Fu is a Senior Scientist and Research Group Leader in the Department of Analytical Chemistry at UFZ. Her research focuses on innovative analytical methods for emerging organic contaminants such as PFAS, PMT substances, and pesticides, as well as on the identification, quantification, and transformation of organic pollutants. Since 2022, she has led a research group at UFZ specializing in the analysis of organic trace contaminants.
Anett Georgi
Dr. Anett Georgi heads the Advanced Adsorption and Oxidation research group in the Department of Environmental Biotechnology at UFZ. Her research focuses on oxidative water treatment, the removal of PFAS and PMT substances, the use of zeolites as adsorbents and catalysts, as well as electrosorptive technologies. For many years, she has been working at UFZ on environmental engineering approaches for the treatment of contaminated water resources.
Stefan Heiden
Stefan Heiden has been a Bioinformatician at the Helmholtz Institute for One Health in the Department of Epidemiology and Ecology of Antimicrobial Resistance since mid-2023. His research focuses on marine symbioses as well as the interactions between microorganisms, human and animal hosts, and the environment. He is also involved in the design, analysis, and interpretation of genomic and transcriptomic data.
Katrin Mackenzie
Dr. Katrin Mackenzie is Head of the Department of Environmental Biotechnology at UFZ and leads the Environmental Catalysis – Reductive Processes research group. Her research combines chemical water treatment, groundwater remediation, nanoremediation, and the removal of halogenated micropollutants, PMOCs, and PFAS. Within the KONATES project, she also investigates the use of contaminated aquifers for thermal energy management with Aquifer Thermal Energy Storage (ATES) systems.
Melanie Ruzanski
Melanie Ruzanski has been a Research Associate at Leipzig University of Applied Sciences (HTWK Leipzig), Faculty of Civil Engineering, since 2024. Her research focuses on microclimate analysis, building greening, and life cycle assessment (LCA). She has a background in civil engineering, having studied Civil Engineering at HTWK Leipzig, where she completed her Master's degree in 2023 with a specialization in structural engineering.