‘Think Sea - think NIOZ’
NIOZ, the Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research is the Dutch national marine science institute
and amongst the most renowned internationally. Approximately 330 scientists, lab assistants,
technicians, ship’s crew and auxiliary staff collaborate in world-leading marine research. NIOZ
acquires and disseminates scientific knowledge on the world’s oceans and seas. Our multidisciplinary
research is carried out in 6 scientific departments, which are divided over two facilities: NIOZ Yerseke
in the south and NIOZ Texel in the north of the Netherlands. This position will be located in Yerseke,
at commuting distance of cities like Antwerpen, Breda and Middelburg.
Building with Nature NWO programme
Building with Nature is a NWO research programme that aims to provide and strengthen
multidisciplinary scientific knowledge for innovative infrastructure projects which make use of
natural structures and processes. NIOZ studies ecological-physical interactions in two projects within
this programme, EMERGO – Eco-morphological functioning and management of tidal flats and BE
SAFE – Bio-Engineering for Safety using vegetated foreshores. For both projects NIOZ offers a PhD
position, that will be part of larger multidisciplinary teams.
Phd position: Project “EMERGO”
Estuaries and coastal regions frequently include large areas of intertidal mud and sand flats. Tidal
flats sustain important coastal food webs and provide essential ecosystem services such as coastal
protection and provision of food. Tidal flats are worldwide under pressure from various humaninduced disturbances, that range from global (e.g. sea level rise), over system-scale (e.g. dredging,
tidal barrages, sediment starvation by damming) to local (e.g. reclamation, local dredging). This has
an impact on their geomorphological stability and biological characteristics. New strategies are
needed to conserve or restore tidal flats, but it is not always clear at what scale the measures should
be taken, nor how they balance with other societal needs. Where large-scale solutions are not
feasible, local mitigation can be done in different ways, ranging from ‘soft’ solutions like sand
nourishments to ‘hard’ solutions like concrete coastal reinforcement. Understanding the ecomorphological response of tidal flats to external and internal forcing and human disturbances at
different scales is a main focus of the Spatial Ecology Department in Yerseke.
The Spatial Ecology department is looking for a
PhD-student (ecologist / physical geographer)
Ecological patterns and processes on tidal flats, from understanding to management
Vacancy number: 2014-013 (Project “Emergo”)
Job description:
Tidal flats have high ecological and societal values, sustaining important coastal food webs. These
habitats are often characterized by a high biomass of benthic species, and are critically important for
migratory waterbirds. Changes in tidal flat morphology, caused by human interferences, have an
impact on the distribution and abundance of benthic species. Due to biophysical feedback
mechanisms this, in turn, affects tidal flat morphology. In this (sub)project we focus on the ecological
characteristics of tidal flats and how they are related to (changes in) tidal flat morphology, and how
mitigation measures to combat tidal flat erosion influence the ecological characteristics. Firstly, the
importance of tidal flat morphological characteristics for the occurrence and distribution of benthic
organisms will be elucidated. This will be based on the inventory/classification of various tidal flats in
Oosterschelde and Westerschelde (together with physically oriented PhD TUDelft), complemented
with dedicated field campaigns. Then two types of mitigating measures will be studied for their
ecological effects. We will evaluate the area of influence and possible scale dependent interactions
caused by natural and artificial oyster reefs from an ecological perspective, looking at
facilitation/inhibition of organisms in the surrounding of the reefs. For nourishments, you will study
in detail the effect of the starting conditions (slope, shape, exposure time, sediment, etc.) on the
recolonization of benthic organisms in space and time and compare this to the observed natural
gradients. You will make use of ongoing pilot projects, complimented with field measurements and
experiments using state-of-the-art instruments and equipment. Overall, you will provide
fundamental insights in how benthic communities on tidal flats interact with morphological
processes and your results will be integrated into guidelines and tools for designing and
implementing mitigating measures. The fundamental insights will be translated towards application
by intensive collaboration in a large research team. You will closely collaborate with the TUDelft PhD
and the postdoc (NIOZ). During the project, there will be contact with end-users from government,
non-governmental organizations and industry.
Requirements:
We are looking for a highly motivated candidate with an MSc degree in either (marine) ecology OR
physical geography (with a strong interest in ecology). The candidate should have a keen interest in
doing cutting-edge fundamental research, which can be translated in applicable knowledge.
Candidates should be capable to plan and organize their own work, organize and carry out fieldwork
in the Westerschelde and Oosterschelde and meet deadlines imposed by the project. Excellent
communication skills and an open collaborative attitude are essential for the success of this project.
Advanced computer skills are an advantage for the modeling part of the project. Good English oral
and writing skills are demanded. The candidate should finalize the project by completing a PhD thesis
and publish results in peer-reviewed journals.
Conditions of employment:
We offer a fulltime position for 4 years, a pension scheme, a yearly 8% vacation allowance, year-end
bonus and flexible employment conditions. Advanced training opportunities are available. Conditions
are based on the Collective Labour Agreement of Research Centers. The position will be located in
Yerseke, located at commuting distance of cities like Antwerpen, Breda and Middelburg. Cost of
relocation and help with housing is provided by NIOZ.
Further information:
Additional information on this vacancy can be obtained from:
Dr. T. Ysebaert, senior scientist (tom.ysebaert@nioz.nl)
Prof. Dr. P.M.J. Herman, promotor (peter.herman@nioz.nl)
Additional information about the procedure can be obtained from Sigrid Moerbeek, HR advisor,
tel.+ 31-222-369330, email: sigrid.moerbeek@nioz.nl Further information on NIOZ can be found on
the internet: www.nioz.nl
Applications:
Applicants should send a cover letter with motivation, CV, names and email addresses of two
referees, to NIOZ Yerseke, P.O. Box 140, 440 AC Yerseke, the Netherlands, or preferably per e-mail
to: receptie-ceme.yerseke@nioz.nl Please quote the vacancy number 2014-013 in your application.
Closing date: Applications can be submitted until 15th March, 2014