Tempo

In 2020, Waardenburg Ecology received a European grant from SNN, the Province of Groningen and the ERDF for the development of new ecological monitoring techniques of plankton, diatoms and macrofauna using DNA. Thanks to this subsidy, a new molecular lab has been built at our location in Haren (Groningen) and is now fully operational.

In conventional ecological monitoring of surface waters, species are identified and counted using microscopy. Current genetic techniques have been refined in recent years to such an extent that many organisms can now also be traced and named using DNA. This development provides new opportunities for innovation in the field of (genetic) biomonitoring.

In the coming years, Waardenburg Ecology will mainly focus on the innovation of biomonitoring of surface waters, with the TEMPO project as a starting point. Our new DNA laboratory allows us to combine the latest genetic technology with our broad ecological knowledge in the field of water ecology.
Based on our many years of expertise in biomonitoring, we want to further develop the latest DNA techniques into new inventory and monitoring methods, with an initial focus on plankton, diatoms and macrofauna.

If you would like to know whether molecular techniques are also useful for your monitoring programs or research questions, please contact us. We are happy to think with you about whether and how we can use, develop and improve DNA methods for monitoring projects and ecological research.