Geosciences Barcelona (GEO3BCN-CSIC) is studying how rising temperatures and droughts in the Catalan Pyrenees may alter the hydrogeological balance of caves, caverns and grottoes. To do so, they will analyse the cavern pearls, calcareous formations that have been, to date, practically unexplored. It is an exploratory study on a virtually unknown natural heritage.

The Undammed project studies the impact of dams removal on river networks and ecosystems. These structures can be a source of methane emissions with a significant climate impact. In the last years, Europe has initiated a river restoration strategy by removing such dams, especially those no higher than 10 metres. But little is yet known about the effects on the carbon cycle of the river network once the dam has been removed.

The first Spanish group of experts on blue carbon ecosystems (G3ECA) has been created with the aim of protecting aquatic coastal vegetation. Blue carbon refers to the CO₂ that is sequestered by coastal ecosystems, basically seagrass meadows, mangroves and salt marshes. Although they cover less than 2% of the sea surface, they bury up to 50% of marine carbon in their sediments and can retain it for millennia. We talk to Miguel Ángel Mateo, a CSIC researcher at the Centre for Advanced Studies in Blanes (CEAB) and coordinator of G3ECA together with Fernando Brun (University of Cádiz).

Laura Recasens is a researcher in the Marine Living Resources Ecology and Conservation research group at the Institut de Ciències del Mar (ICM-CSIC), a group that aims to provide a scientific basis for the sustainable use and conservation of living marine resources and their habitats.

The LIFE Spot project, aimed at developing innovative solutions for the denitrification of groundwater, has been completed. The results include a combination of low-cost technologies, microalgae and cork, which can remove up to 99% of nitrates and 73% of pesticides from water. This solution could benefit an estimated 20 million people living in rural areas of Europe.

A team of experts has published A Roadmap for Ethical Rewilding in the Anthropocene, the first guide that identifies the moral challenges when returning wildlife to a territory and provides reflections to point out the opportunities and minimise the conflicts that may arise.

Knowing how bacteria adapt to their environment opens promising reserach avenues in biotechnology, biomedicine, or the environment. A study from CEAB shows that a nutrient-rich environment favors bacteria that have lost genes involved in processes such as amino acid self-production. Dispensing with genes represents an energy-saving for them and gives them an advantage in those contexts

The CRAG has just embarked on BioLumCity, a singular project that aims to offer an advanced form of real bioluminescence based on bacteria and algae, with applications in architecture and urban design.