The BioRemid Conference is one of the leading events organised in Europe on the topic of technological developments to address environmental problems.
Hosted by the School of Life Sciences – University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland in Muttenz, on 29 and 30 June 2023, the conference was the chance for scientists and industry members to discuss cutting-edge solutions tackling different forms of pollution, for example bioremediation technologies.
It was also an opportunity for the EU-funded projects dealing with bioremediation to meet and exchange knowledge: the EU bioremediation project cluster, held on 28 June, in conjunction with the final conference of the project GREENER, had the objective of discussing the different bioremediation solutions developed by each project.
The scene was set by Prof. Philippe Corvini of FHNW, the conference’s organiser and coordinator of the ELECTRA project, and by Silvia Maltagliati, Policy officer at DG Research and Innovation, providing an overview of the EU bioremediation policy context and its different funding opportunities.
The stage was then taken by the project coordinators of the different EU bioremediation projects, who presented a wide range of bioremediation solutions that aim at using micro-organisms to restore Europe’s environment, by eliminating pollutants from contaminated sites.
In front of the full room, Dr. Leire Ruiz Rubio of the University of the Basque Country took the stage to present the SYMBIOREM project, the consortium, its objective for the next three years.
The pitches of the project coordinators on bioremediation (BIOSYSMO, MIBIREM, NYMPHE, ELECTRA, EiCLaR, and GREENER) were followed by a roundtable where views were exchanged among experts on bioremediation strategies, their potential and limitations, and their contribution to the EU Zero Pollution Strategy.
At the end of a stimulating debate, the event concluded with the closing remarks by Dr. Francesco Matteucci of the European Innovation Council.