Water Quality and Health: Two researchers of KL Krems honoured
Two researchers from the Department of Water Quality & Health at Karl Landsteiner University (KL Krems) and the Interuniversity Cooperation Centre for Water and Health (ICC Water & Health) have been honoured in recent weeks for their research work: Sophia Steinbacher-Haid received the 2026 Reinhard Liepolt Prize for Danube Research, whilst Dominik-Andreas Kugler was honoured with the SUEZ Innovation Award.
Reinhard Liepolt Prize for Sophia Steinbacher-Haid
Dr Sophia Steinbacher-Haid, Dipl.-Ing., a former PhD student at the Karl Landsteiner University, has been awarded the Reinhard Liepolt Prize for Danube Research 2026. The prize is awarded by the Austrian Committee for Danube Research of the International Association for Danube Research (ÖK-IAD) for outstanding scientific work that contributes to the understanding and sustainable development of the Danube region.
The award ceremony took place on 29 June 2026 at the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Climate and Environmental Protection, Regions and Water Management in Vienna. The occasion was the gala event ‘Danube Research – Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow’, marking the 50th anniversary of the ÖK-IAD and the 70th anniversary of the International Association for Danube Research.
Steinbacher-Haid’s doctoral thesis was honoured ‘Evaluation and Application of Molecular Diagnostic Methods for Microbial Water Quality Analysis’. The thesis was supervised by Univ.-Prof. PD Mag. Dr. rer. nat. Andreas H. Farnleitner, MSc.Tox., Head of the Water Quality & Health Department at the Karl Landsteiner Private University, at the Institute of Process Engineering, Environmental Engineering and Technical Biosciences at the Vienna University of Technology (TU Wien), and as part of the ICC Water & Health.
A key focus of the dissertation was the investigation of the potential impacts of inland waterway shipping on the water quality of major rivers. By combining microbiological water quality analyses with extensive data on vessel movements, Steinbacher-Haid developed a novel approach to assess the potential impact of shipping on faecal contamination of the Danube. The results were published both in an international scientific journal and in a national report.
Further information on the Reinhard Liepolt Prize
SUEZ Innovation Award for Dominik-Andreas Kugler
Dominik-Andreas Kugler, MSc received a further award at the SUEZ Health & Environment Meeting, which took place on the Côte d’Azur from 22 to 24 June 2026. The international event brought together experts from academia, industry and public health to discuss current challenges relating to water quality, water reuse and health within the context of the One Health approach.
Among the invited early-career researchers were four researchers from the Karl Landsteiner University and the ICC Water & Health: Theresa Hohl, Angelika Bauer, Mats Leifels and Dominik-Andreas Kugler. They presented their latest work on antibiotic resistance in wastewater, the stability of drinking water distribution systems, the organisation of scientific research, and the real-time monitoring of nanoscale viral particles in water.
Dominik-Andreas Kugler was awarded the SUEZ Innovation Award for his research. His work opens up new possibilities for the rapid detection of viruses and nanoparticles in water and can help to make drinking water and water reuse systems even safer in the future.
The award-winning work exemplifies the One Health approach, which considers the health of humans, animals and the environment as a whole and links this to sustainable water management. In light of climate change and increasing pressures on water resources, this interdisciplinary research approach is becoming increasingly important.
The Karl Landsteiner University and the ICC Water & Health warmly congratulate Sophia Steinbacher-Haid and Dominik-Andreas Kugler on their awards.
