项目介绍

2026年2月27日

Department of Aquatic Sciences and Assessment

We are looking for a person who wants to develop new practices for managing risks from unwanted chemical pollutants in drinking water sources and wastewater reuse.

About the position

Chemical pollution in water poses significant risks to aquatic ecosystems and to drinking water production for society. Current regulations governing chemical risks in water remain poorly harmonised and fragmented across separate water directives, typically addressing only a small set of chemicals and adapting slowly to emerging chemical risks. There is, therefore, a clear need for transition towards more proactive approaches to identify, assess and manage chemical risks in water. In this project, funded by Water Wise Societies (Impact Innovation programme), we will work with the water sector to develop a new praxis for the risk assessment of waterborne chemical pollutants. This work will lead to the establishment and implementation of a holistic framework as future guidance for the water sector, integrating risks of chemicals from catchment to tap water and wastewater reuse. The frameworks will target not only single-chemical assessments but also chemical mixtures, incorporating information on their aquatic occurrences derived from analytical and effect-based measurements. The research will include developing user-friendly tools for application of water practitioners and support the guidance of risk assessment practices in the water sector.     

We are seeking for a post-doctoral researcher, who will carry out studies to (i) compile and meta-analyse existing approaches for risk assessment of undesirable chemical substances in water; (ii) contribute to the development of a holistic risk assessment framework for individual chemical substances and chemical mixtures as future guidance for the water sector; (iii) conduct quantitative and semi-quantitative chemical analysis in relevant case studies; (iv) apply the framework using results from the case studies and existing monitoring data and evaluate the effectiveness; (v) identify knowledge gaps and future improvements for classical and next-generation risk assessment tools. The duties also include writing scientific manuscripts and reports in English, participating in workshops, communication with practitioners in the water sector, and dissemination of the results.

You will be employed at the Department of Aquatic Sciences and Assessment, and the project will be conducted in close collaboration with researchers from the Department of Animal Biosciences (SLU).

Your profile

Applicants should have a PhD in environmental organic chemistry, ecotoxicology, environmental engineering, environmental science, or equivalent. Specialisation towards (i) chemical risk assessment in the environment and human health exposure, as well as (ii) chemical analysis using high resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS) are valuable merits. Knowledge on organic micropollutants in the environment is desirable. Prior focuses on chemical pollution in water resources and water quality in (waste)water reuse are assets. Data processing skills using statistical computing and graphics, e.g. R, MATLAB, are of high merit too. Cross-disciplinary experience in presenting and communicating scientific results, especially where societal values are involved, is extra valuable. High emphasis is also placed on personal characteristics such as interpersonal skills, communication skills and problem-solving skills and the ability to work independently. Proficiency in English (both spoken and written) is required, and Swedish would also be beneficial.

As postdoctoral appointments are career-developing positions for junior researchers, we are primarily looking for candidates with a doctoral degree that is three years old at most.

About us

The Department of Aquatic Sciences and Assessment is working with applied environmental science, with a national responsibility for assessing the condition of Swedish surface waters with respect to water chemistry, pollution and aquatic biota. The research focuses on geochemical and hydrological processes, aquatic ecology and biodiversity, microbial ecology as well as on environmental chemistry and aquatic ecotoxicology. The department has some 150 employees, of which approximately half are researchers/doctoral students and the other half are technical and administrative staff.

For more information about the department visit: www.slu.se/aquatic-sciences