Stuart Simpson

Dr. Stuart Simpson serves as a Senior Principal Research Scientist in CSIRO Environment and leads the Healthy Communities & Ecosystems group within the Industry Environments program. He also holds an Adjunct Professor position at the University of New South Wales since 2019. His work focuses on developing threat surveillance and risk forecasting systems to protect Australian communities from environmental shocks and manage waste streams.

Dr. Simpson's research interests center on water and sediment quality assessment, with particular expertise in the quantification of chemical contaminants, their speciation, bioavailability, and ecotoxicological effects. His work spans environmental analytical chemistry, sediment ecotoxicology, and the development of frameworks for assessing environmental impacts. He has made significant contributions to Australia's sediment quality guidelines and pioneered wastewater surveillance systems for pathogen detection.

His recent publications demonstrate a strong focus on environmental surveillance systems, particularly using wastewater to monitor pathogens like SARS-CoV-2, antimicrobial resistance genes, and other contaminants. His work bridges environmental science, public health, and risk assessment, with applications in both freshwater and marine ecosystems.

• 2006 Land and Water Australia Eureka Prize for Water Research
• 2006 CSIRO Medal for Research Achievement
• 2015 CSIRO Newton Turner Award
• 2020 CSIRO Land and Water, Science Excellence Award for 'Wastewater testing for early community detection of COVID-19 Team'
• 2021 Finalist - Sir Ian McLennan Impact Medal for 'COVID sewage EcoSurveillance'
• 2022 Finalist - Sir Ian McLennan Impact Medal for 'SARS-CoV-2 wastewater surveillance'

Dr. Simpson leads three major research teams: EcoSurveillance Systems, Green Resource Recovery, and Waste Beneficiation & Storage. His work has significant implications for environmental protection, public health surveillance, and sustainable resource management. He has contributed to numerous national guidance documents including Australia's Sediment Quality Guidelines and National Assessment Guidelines for Dredging.