2026 – Tiny Pollutants, Big Problems!

The Ineson Lecture will be held at Burlington House, London on 19 November 2026.

The International Association of Hydrogeologists British National Chapter, together with the Hydrogeological Group, are pleased to announce the 2026 Ineson Lecture on the theme of “Tiny Pollutants, Big Problems”!

The meeting will focus on emerging contaminants including PFAS, microplastics, and more. The Ineson Lecture will be delivered by Viviana Re from the University of Pisa, with a range of supporting speakers from water companies, regulators, and academics.

Ineson lecture abstract:

For decades, hydrogeologists have sought to make the invisible visible: to reveal the hidden dynamics of groundwater through tracers, observations and increasingly sophisticated analytical techniques. Yet, as our ability to see deeper, smaller and at lower concentrations has improved, so has the complexity of what we discover.

Micro- and nanoplastics, pharmaceuticals and other contaminants of emerging concern are increasingly being detected in groundwater worldwide, challenging previous assumptions and opening new questions: What does their presence actually tell us about groundwater systems? Can these substances be understood only as pollutants, or can they also provide information about sources, transport and processes occurring underground? And how should their potential risks be interpreted when our capacity to detect them is advancing faster than our understanding of their significance?

At the same time, their detection creates new expectations. Society and water managers increasingly call for clear answers about the meaning, risks and implications of finding these substances in groundwater, even when the scientific evidence remains uncertain and difficult to interpret.

This lecture will explore these challenges through examples from emerging contaminants and microplastics, moving from detection and interpretation to their broader implications for groundwater management and society. It will argue that the future challenge is not simply to make more of the invisible visible, but to understand what we see and to translate increasingly complex scientific evidence into meaningful knowledge and action for society.

📢 Call for poster abstracts is NOW OPEN! Poster abstracts are invited on recent research or projects related to the meeting theme.

If you would like to contribute a poster to this event, please email Joe Shipperbottom (joe@envireauwater.co.uk) with a title and short summary (up to 250 words) of the proposed topic by Friday 30 October 2026.

More details to follow soon! 📩