In a recent interview, Dr. Korbinian Kätzl, an environmental engineer and expert in urban water management, shared his vision of transforming waste materials from grasslands into valuable resources for the future of sustainable water systems. His goal is clear: "Unser Ziel ist es, Abfallstoffe aus dem Grünland-Bereich zu nehmen. Daraus eine hochwertige biogene Aktivkohle zu erzeugen, um damit die gesamte Wasserwirtschaft ein Stück weit nachhaltiger zu gestalten." (Our goal is to take waste materials from grasslands, turn them into high-quality biogenic activated carbon, and use them to make water management more sustainable.)
A Pioneer in Circular Bioeconomy
Dr. Kätzl conducts his research at the Department of Grassland Science and Renewable Resources and the Competence Center for Climate Protection and Climate Adaptation (CliMA) at the University of Kassel. Based at the university’s Witzenhausen campus, he leads the Bio4Act research group, a project funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF). This project explores the creation of biogenic activated carbons and platform chemicals from residual biomass with the aim of implementing a sustainable circular bioeconomy.
Picture:
BIOCOM | Oliver Päßler
