Leibniz Institute for Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries

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Leibniz Institute of
Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries
Leibniz Institute for Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries
Institute logo
Category: Research institute
Carrier: Research Association Berlin
Legal form of the carrier: Registered association
Seat of the wearer: Berlin
Membership: Leibniz Association
Facility location: Berlin-Friedrichshagen
Branch offices: Neuglobsow , Berlin-Adlershof
Type of research: Basic research
Subjects: Natural sciences
Areas of expertise: Biology , ecology
Basic funding: Federal government (50%), states (50%)
Management: Luc De Meester
Employee: about 400
Homepage: www.igb-berlin.de

The Leibniz Institute for Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB) is a research facility that is sponsored by the Forschungsverbund Berlin  e. V. (FVB) and is a member of the Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Scientific Association (WGL). The institute is based in Berlin-Friedrichshagen , its research activities are to be assigned as basic research to the subject of natural science and the fields of biology and ecology .

history

The institute emerged from four units and three predecessor institutions from the former Academy of Sciences of the GDR . Based on a recommendation by the Science Council , the institute was re-established on January 1, 1992.

The predecessor institutions of the IGB in Berlin and Neuglobsow :

  • Institute for Inland Fisheries, Berlin-Friedrichshagen:
    This institute was founded in 1893 to research inland fisheries in natural waters and to monitor the water quality in Müggelsee . In 1906, teaching activities in fishing and fish farming at Berlin universities were added.
  • Institute for Geography and Geoecology, Leipzig:
    This institute, founded in 1976, had two departments in Berlin: Hydrology  I in Adlershof and Hydrology II ( aquatic ecosystems ) on Lake Müggelsee. The tasks included basic and preventive research on the water quality of surface and groundwater as well as research in the field of physical limnology and the mathematical modeling of aquatic ecosystems.
  • Central Institute for Microbiology and Experimental Therapy (ZIMET), Limnology Division in Neuglobsow:
    Founded in 1959 to record the water-ecological effects of the Rheinsberg nuclear power plant on the Großer Stechlinsee . At the end of the 1980s, the institute's task was to research ecological mechanisms of action as a basis for ecotechnologies.

tasks

The IGB conducts complex ecosystem process analyzes on ecological principles and precautions with the aim of sustainable water management (including groundwater protection ) for ecotechnologies of eutrophic and degraded water bodies.

To this end, the institute has defined four research topics:

  • Environmentally influenced biological signal transmission:
    The particularly highly developed sensitivity of organisms to perceive external chemical     stimuli through receptors also makes them susceptible to natural substances or anthropogenic chemicals influencing these specific signal transduction pathways or interacting with the corresponding receptors. The way in which aquatic organisms absorb both endogenous and exogenous chemical signals and respond to changes in their cellular metabolism such as energy allocation , growth, development, reproduction and behavior are investigated.
  • Processes at interfaces:
    In the glacial landscape of north-east Germany, nutrients and energy are transported and converted in changing directions across different interfaces between groundwater and sediment and between sediment and open water. The question arises to what extent and at what speeds these conversions are subject to physical, chemical and biological processes. The common research goal in this focus is the quantification of the exchange processes up to the determination of the mechanisms at the respective interfaces and their modeling.
  • Adaptation, plasticity and dynamics of communities:
    This focus is based on long-term studies of lowland ecosystems such as the Müggelsee, Großer Stechlinsee, Breiter Luzin and the rivers Spree and Oder . Here ecological and evolutionary , biologically based optimization strategies of speciation and biodiversity , especially the adaptation , plasticity and dynamics of communities of the microbiota, as well as plankton and fish, are to be investigated. The results should contribute to a theoretically well-founded strategy for the sustainable management of aquatic ecosystems and the organisms living in them.
  • Sustainable water management:
    Research deficits have so far existed in the causal analysis and evaluation of integrative management processes, such as running water management, the reduction of external nutrient inputs in combination with ecological technologies in standing waters and sustainable species protection and inland fisheries management. In this context, sustainability aims for maximum benefit for all stakeholders with minimal environmental impact.

ASTAF-PRO project ( tomato fish )

Aquaponics is fish farming ( aquaculture ) combined with plant breeding ( hydroponics ). The ASTAF-PRO project (aquaponics system for emission-free tomato and fish production) consists of a greenhouse in which an aquaculture and hydroponics circuit are installed. Fish and tomatoes grow under one roof at the same time, living things with similar demands on environmental conditions, such as an ambient temperature of 27 ° Celsius. That is why the project was called tomato fish .

Closed aquaponic systems work almost emission-free, energy, water, fertilizer and raw materials can be saved, the environment is protected. The water of the aquaculture cycle is mechanically freed from solids by means of a filter. The ammonium still in the water - a metabolic product of the fish, which is toxic to the fish even in low concentrations, is converted into nitrate by nitrification using a biofilter populated by bacteria , which then serves as fertilizer for the tomato plants. The plants grow on mineral wool ( nutrient film technology ), absorb a nutrient film via the roots, from which they remove the nutrients and release the excess water into the air via the leaves. This water is fed back into the system after condensation , which reduces fresh water consumption.

In 2012, the project received the Research Award for Sustainable Developments from the Federal Ministry of Education and Research and in 2013 it was named an Award-winning Landmark in the Land of Ideas . Nevertheless, we are constantly working on further developing the efficiency of the system.

Since 2014, the institute has been in charge of the four-year EU project INAPRO ( Innovative model & demonstration based water management for resource efficiency in integrated multitrophic agriculture and aquaculture systems ), in which four large aquaponics projects in Germany, Spain, Belgium and China Systems are modeled, built and evaluated on around 500 square meters each in order to demonstrate the feasibility of the system for food production on a large scale.

A demonstration system on the eco-island of the children, youth and family center FEZ Berlin in the Wuhlheide shows how the system works and is a contribution of the IGB to education for sustainable development . Children and young people get an insight into biological-chemical processes in nature in connection with sustainable food production and consumption and their global significance.

Measuring stations

IGB operates measuring stations in Müggelsee, Arendsee and Großer Stechlinsee.

The station in Müggelsee allows the continuous measurement of meteorological , hydrological , chemical and biological parameters such as global radiation , wind speed and wind direction, air humidity, air and water temperature, turbidity, oxygen content, conductivity, pH value and chlorophyll -a concentration (a Measure of the concentration of algae in the lake). The measurements in the water are carried out at several depths, so that statements about vertical differences and the stratification in the lake can be made up to depths of 5.5 meters.

With the measuring system in the Arendsee, as on the Müggelsee, meteorological and hydrological values ​​are recorded.

In the Großer Stechlinsee, a measuring buoy records hydrological and chemical parameters using a probe.

Cooperations

The institute's work is carried out in cooperation with universities and other research institutions in the Berlin / Brandenburg region and worldwide. This currently includes almost 70 national and international collaborations. At the university level is about S Professorships close cooperation with the Institute of Biology of the Humboldt University of Berlin , the Free University of Berlin , the University of Potsdam and the Technical University of Berlin . The IGB Fellowship Program also contributes to networking.

Infrastructure

Mark Gessner took over the interim management of the institute in 2016. In addition to the director, the heads of the six research departments also belong to the management level. Their main research areas are organized across disciplines in three program areas.

  • The department of ecohydrology researches exchange processes between surface and underground water with a special focus on hydraulic and hydrogeochemical interrelationships between water bodies and catchment areas. In the “Loss of the Night” project, the effects of light pollution on people and nature are examined.
  • The Department of Ecosystem Research deals with the structure and function of lowland river systems. Within this department, a nutrient input model for carrying out studies on water quality in catchment areas (Moneris model) was also developed.
  • The research of the Department of Experimental Limnology focuses on the consequences of global environmental change on aquatic ecosystems and their biodiversity . The focus is on microorganisms and the associated interactions. The establishment of the lake laboratory in the Großer Stechlinsee enables experiments under realistic conditions.
  • The Department of Fish Biology and Ecology examines the extent to which ecological and evolutionary processes influence the structure, dynamics and function of fish populations and communities. The main research areas include: swarm intelligence as well as the ecology, social and economic dimensions of angling and the reintroduction of the European sturgeon .
  • The Department of Ecophysiology and Aquaculture develops the scientific basis for resource-saving, environmentally friendly inland fishing and aquaculture . In this context, the tomato fish plant was developed. Another focus of this department is the effect of hormonally active substances (e.g. pharmaceuticals) on aquatic organisms.
  • The department for chemical analysis and biogeochemistry deals with biogeochemical metabolism processes in inland waters and wetlands, develops appropriate methods and supports the research work of the other departments. One issue is the rewetting of moors.

Around 400 scientists, technicians and administrative staff work at the institute.

The total budget of the institute is 13.2 million euros. Half of the funding is provided by the federal and state governments. In addition, third-party funds are acquired.

See also

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Project tomato fish , accessed on August 8, 2014
  2. ↑ INAPRO project press release by FBV e. V., 2014, accessed August 8, 2014