- Venue
-
Building E, Rooms E.001 and E.004
Steingruberstraße 1a
91746 Weidenbach - Type
- Vortrag, Tagung, Workshop
- Organizer
- Department of Environmental Engineering
Environment Day 2026 will focus on the theme “Biomonitoring of air pollutants and climate change – new challenges for the coming years”. We warmly invite you to attend!
The event is being organised by the Department of Environmental Engineering in collaboration with the Association of German Engineers (VDI), as the framework for biomonitoring is being actively developed within various VDI guidelines committees. In addition to a review of activities over the past decades, the discussion will focus primarily on future and pressing challenges.
- How can ‘forever chemicals’ such as PFAS be detected using biomonitoring?
- What role do microplastics play in the environment, and which biomonitoring approaches are suitable for their detection?
- Which plant protection products will be used in the near future, and what level of drift can be expected?
- How does climate change affect phenology and biodiversity?
How is this reflected in spontaneous vegetation, such as lichens, in built-up areas?
Finally, these topics will be discussed by participants in workshops together with students. As part of the Environment Day, in addition to lectures, posters will also be presented, for example on the integration of biomonitoring into teaching.
The event is free of charge and is open to anyone interested in the topic of biomonitoring.
Day 1 – Wednesday, 4 November 2026
| Time | Programme item | Speaker |
|---|---|---|
| 1.00 pm | Welcome | |
| 1.10 pm | Introductory presentation: Biomonitoring – more than just measuring air pollutants and climate change | Dr Karsten Mohr, VDI Standards Committee NA 134-03-03-01 Working Group ‘Impact Assessment on Higher Plants’ |
| Session 1 – Phenology | Chair: Prof. Dr Michael Rudner, HSWT | |
| 1.30 pm | 65 Years of International Phenological Gardens: A Europe-wide network makes climate change visible | Prof. Dr Susanne Jochner-Oette, Catholic University of Eichstätt-Ingolstadt |
| 2.00 pm | Break | |
| Session 2 – PFAS | Chair: Prof. Dr Volker Nischwitz, HSWT | |
| 2.30 pm | Analysis of deposition samples for PFAS in North Rhine-Westphalia | Dr Uwe Bieling, LANUK |
| 3.00 pm | Monitoring of PFAS in wild fish and mussels: results and trends in Bavarian waters | Georgia Buchmeier, LfU Bavaria |
| 3.30 pm | New approaches to PFAS analysis | Annette Stallauer, HSWT |
| 4.00 pm | Break | |
| Session 3 – Microplastics (Chair: Prof. Dr Andreas Hoffmann, HSWT) | ||
| 4.30 pm | Interaction of microplastics with tissues and cells and its effects | Dr Anja Ramsperger, University of Bayreuth |
| 5.00 pm | Analysing microplastics – methods, pitfalls and the validity of biomonitoring | Dr Julia Möller, Wageningen University |
| 5.30 pm | End of Day One | Prof. Dr Michael Rudner and students |
| 5.45 pm | Workshop I with students and anyone interested | |
| 6.30 pm | Social gathering and presentation of the VDI Honorary Badge to Karina Hoffmann, followed by an evening lecture: Keeping track – remote sensing data, a source of information on the condition and changes in forests | Karina Hoffmann, Saxony State Forestry Authority |
Day 2 – Thursday, 5 November 2026
| Programme for Thursday, 5 November 2026 | Speakers | |
|---|---|---|
| 09:00 | Welcome and summary of the first day | |
| 09:05 | A journey through the history of Bavarian biomonitoring | Dr Jutta Köhler and Margit Krapp, LfU Bavaria |
| Session 4 – Plant protection products | Chair: Prof. Dr Klaus-Peter Wilbois, HSWT | |
| 09:35 | Pesticide input in non-agricultural areas in North Rhine-Westphalia | Dr Katja Hombrecher, LANUK NRW |
| 10.05 | Biomonitoring of the transport of plant protection products – Differences in plant protection product biomonitoring on non-target plants and in deposition | Dr Monica Wäber and Dr Frank Pompe, UMW Environmental Monitoring |
| 10.35 | How is plant protection changing? Challenges in Agriculture and application scenarios | Prof. Dr Bernhard Bauer, HSWT |
| 11.05 | Break | |
| Session 5 – Climate and Biodiversity | Chair: Prof. Dr Michael Rudner, HSWT | |
| 11.45 | Changes in biodiversity in Germany over the last 30 years based on environmental DNA | Dr Julian Hans, Environmental Sample Bank / University of Trier |
| 12.15 | VDI 3957 Part 22 Urban Climate Guideline – Biomonitoring using lichens and mosses | Dr Andreas Beck, Munich State Botanical Collection |
| 12.45 | Summary of Sessions 1 to 5 | Prof. Dr Michael Rudner and students |
| 1.00 pm | End of the lecture part of the event | |
| 1.30 pm | Workshop II with students and anyone interested | |
| 3.00 pm | End of the workshop | |