Illinois Water Resources Center

Happy World Earth Day! 🌍
April 22nd isn't just a date , it's a reminder that every small action counts. From carrying a reusable bottle to picking up trash on your walk, the planet notices.

Swipe through for 5 simple things you can do TODAY to make a difference.

How are YOU celebrating Earth Day? Drop it in the comments! 💬

Call for Funding Deadline Extended: Emerging Frontiers in the Water–Cancer Nexus

The Illinois Water Resources Center (IWRC) and Cancer Center at Illinois are supporting innovative, cross-disciplinary research exploring how water quality and contaminants influence cancer risk, detection, and treatment while advancing technologies that protect public health and ecosystems.

Through this initiative, collaborative teams will:
• Investigate how waterborne contaminants and emerging pollutants influence cancer incidence and progression
• Develop technologies to detect carcinogens and biomarkers in aquatic systems
• Engineer sustainable water solutions that reduce health risks and strengthen ecosystem resilience
• Train the next generation of scientists and engineers tackling water–health challenges

📅 Key Deadlines

Full Proposal Due: Mar 31, 2026, 5PM CST

🔗 Links:
Call for Proposal: https://uofi.app.box.com/s/nu84m57t4gfgw3srky8rw4pjqck4c8y9
Proposal Checklist: https://uofi.app.box.com/s/s409r5nrs1oj7z95jfr6fgcncaqsvztg
Budget Template: https://uofi.app.box.com/s/ht6r0d2uwawi8ru7fnhzd56wqkptcxyf
Budget Justification Template: https://uofi.app.box.com/s/85ox7m5u3ak3lppjcoh3yzbbyv578xdj
Full Proposal Submission: https://forms.illinois.edu/sec/186790005

📩 Contact: [email protected] | [email protected]

Bridging water science and cancer research to unlock new discoveries.

The Illinois Water Resources Center (IWRC) and Cancer Center at Illinois are supporting innovative, cross-disciplinary research exploring how water quality and contaminants influence cancer risk, detection, and treatment while advancing technologies that protect public health and ecosystems.

Through this initiative, collaborative teams will:
• Investigate how waterborne contaminants and emerging pollutants influence cancer incidence and progression
• Develop technologies to detect carcinogens and biomarkers in aquatic systems
• Engineer sustainable water solutions that reduce health risks and strengthen ecosystem resilience
• Train the next generation of scientists and engineers tackling water–health challenges

📅 Key Deadlines
Notification of Intent (encouraged): Feb 17, 2026
Full Proposal Due: Mar 2, 2026

🔗 Links:
Call for Proposals:https://uofi.app.box.com/s/nu84m57t4gfgw3srky8rw4pjqck4c8y9
Proposal Checklist: https://uofi.app.box.com/s/s409r5nrs1oj7z95jfr6fgcncaqsvztg
Budget Template: https://uofi.app.box.com/s/ht6r0d2uwawi8ru7fnhzd56wqkptcxyf
Budget Justification Template: https://uofi.app.box.com/s/85ox7m5u3ak3lppjcoh3yzbbyv578xdj
NOI Form: https://forms.illinois.edu/sec/36850193
Full Proposal Submission: https://forms.illinois.edu/sec/186790005

📩 Contact: [email protected] | [email protected]

Webinar Alert! Our Algal Bloom Action Team is thrilled to host Dr. Paul C. Hanson, Distinguished Research Professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Center for Limnology, for an exciting session on advancing water quality modeling with knowledge-guided machine learning (KGML).

Dr. Hanson will share how fusing ecological expertise with modern AI can sharpen lake water quality predictions, reveal missing processes in our models, and improve how we understand and manage algal blooms in a changing climate. Learn how KGML is transforming hydrodynamic and nutrient models and opening new doors for interdisciplinary collaboration.

🗓️ Mark your calendars: December 3, 2025
⏰ Time: 11 am CDT / 9 am PT
🔗 Join the event via Zoom: https://illinois.zoom.us/j/87087123904?pwd=Kg8S0WsZXtk1ZcdkpauybQ9EAZpPHR.1

PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) contamination remains one of the most persistent challenges in protecting safe drinking water. Even after PFAS are removed using activated carbon, we still face a major question: How do we safely treat the PFAS-laden carbon so it doesn’t return to the environment?
A new study led by Andres Prada and colleagues at the Prairie Research Institute offers a promising answer. The team demonstrated a sealed mechanochemical treatment using ball milling that can destroy PFAS directly on contaminated activated carbon.

By taking advantage of the high sorption capacity of activated carbon, the researchers were able to destroy nearly 100× more perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) in less than one-third of the time reported in previous mechanochemistry studies. This approach provides a potential alternative to landfilling or incineration, which can still release PFAS through leachate or air emissions.

This work was supported by the Illinois Water Resources Center and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).
Congratulations to the full team: Andres Prada, Jaemin Kim, Linduo Zhao, Fangyu Li, Lee Green, and John W. Scott, with support from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, the Prairie Research Institute, and the Illinois Sustainable Technology Center.

We’re proud to support research that advances safer and more sustainable PFAS treatment solutions.

http://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlelanding/2025/mr/d5mr00111k

Webinar Alert! Our Algal Bloom Action Team is thrilled to host Dr. Hans W. Paerl, a leading expert from the UNC Institute of Marine Sciences, for a deep dive into a critical environmental challenge: mitigating harmful cyanobacterial blooms amid increasing climate extremes.

Dr. Paerl will share vital insights on how our chaotic global climate is impacting our water bodies and fueling these harmful blooms. Learn about effective mitigation strategies and what we can do to protect our precious water resources.

🗓️ Mark your calendars: October 21, 2025
⏰ Time: 11 AM CDT / 9 AM PT
Join the event via the Zoom link: https://illinois.zoom.us/j/83142480669?pwd=ywEqHbyNrs00EG1jgcVuQxR0nzmKek.1
Passcode: 649198

In Case You Missed It: ABAT Webinar – Minnesota’s Blooming Problem
On August 6th, the Algal Bloom Action Team hosted a webinar featuring Cody Sheik, microbial ecologist, who discussed how his team is tracking and managing cyanobacterial harmful algal blooms (cHABs) in Minnesota.

▶️ Watch the full recording here: https://youtu.be/YSs4tw045p8?si=D72yhzBco62A4xs2

🔗 Explore more ABAT webinars in the playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLVTmFFu20my0Z-EwjIBxPJLHAxhAK7hd8

In Case You Missed It: ABAT Webinar – Minnesota’s Blooming Problem

On August 6th, the Algal Bloom Action Team hosted a webinar featuring Cody Sheik, microbial ecologist, who discussed how his team is tracking and managing cyanobacterial harmful algal blooms (cHABs) in Minnesota.

▶️ Watch the full recording here: https://youtu.be/YSs4tw045p8?si=D72yhzBco62A4xs2

🔗 Explore more ABAT webinars in the playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLVTmFFu20my0Z-EwjIBxPJLHAxhAK7hd8

The Illinois Water Resources Center (IWRC), in cooperation with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), has released its annual Requests for Proposals (RFPs) under the National Competitive Grants Program (104[g]). This year’s 104(g) program includes opportunities in three key areas: General, PFAS (Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances), and Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS).

Projects can be 1–3 years in duration, with a 1:1 non-federal cost share required. Principal Investigators must coordinate with the IWRC prior to submission and are encouraged to complete a Notification of Intent.

Deadline
Full proposals are due by Wednesday, September 17, 2025, at 12:00 PM CST. Proposals should be submitted by email to Amy Weckle ([email protected]).

Informational Webinar
The IWRC is hosting an informational webinar to support interested researchers:
Date: Thursday, August 21, 2025
Time: 1:00 PM CST
Platform: Microsoft Teams
Meeting ID: 292 921 560 379 2
Passcode: hh7Cb9Up

More details on funding opportunities are available here: https://iwrc.illinois.edu/resources/funding-opportunities/

When Warm Weather Turns Dangerous 💧

During the summer months, algal blooms in lakes and ponds become more common, and sometimes they can make drinking water unsafe. Recently, Mattoon, Illinois, faced a harmful algal bloom that contaminated the region’s water supply, forcing residents to rely on bottled water for weeks.

In this episode of The 21st Show from Illinois Public Media, Christine Herman interviews Dave Clark, Public Works Director & City Engineer for the City of Mattoon, and Amy Weckle, Assistant Director of the Illinois Water Resources Center & Co-lead of the Algal Bloom Action Team.

Learn:
Why harmful algal blooms happen
How they impact people, pets, and wildlife
What communities can do to prevent them

Listen here: https://youtu.be/w9wayehUqsw