Professor Krzysztof Lejcuś was born in Wrocław, where in 1999 he graduated from the University of Wrocław with a master's degree in environmental protection. He received his doctoral degree in the field of environmental sciences at the Agricultural Academy in Wroclaw in 2002 based on his dissertation entitled “The influence of the Dobromierz retention reservoir on the occurrence of biogenic substances in the waters of the Strzegomka River.” In 2017, at the University of Environmental and Life Sciences (UPWr), he received the degree of habilitated doctor on the basis of his dissertation "Development and validation of water sorbing geocomposites as an element supporting plant vegetation on slopes of earth structures." He was employed as an associate professor from 2019 to 2024, and was appointed Director of the Institute of Environmental Engineering in 2021.
Professor Lejcuś’s scientific activity focuses on the problem of water shortages and the possibilities of rational management of water resources. The result of this work is a water absorbing geocomposite developed under his supervision. The developed technology breaks down the barrier to the effective use of polymeric superabsorbents in the soil, which until now have been introduced directly into the soil, failing to produce the expected results. This technology reduces water consumption by up to 50 percent, contributes to increasing the biomass of cultivated plants and improving the development of their root system. The developed geocomposite can be used in the cultivation of berry plants, urban greenery, green roof structures, or on embankment slopes, which increases their safety. Thanks to the developed solution, plants are more resistant to drought and water consumption can be significantly reduced in their cultivation. The research results have received recognition in prestigious scientific journals. They have also been proven by numerous implementations.
The water absorbing geocomposite developed under the project “Water absorbing geocomposites - innovative technologies to support plant vegetation” was patented in Poland, 14 EU countries, and then commercialized in 2012. This was the first commercialization of the results of R&D research carried out under POIG. The geocomposite is still being sold.
For his work, Prof. Lejcuś was awarded in 2015 with the Minister of Science and Higher Education's award for outstanding inventive achievements in the international arena. In 2020, Prof. Krzysztof Lejcuś was granted the Polish Smart Development Award in the “scientist of the future - applied research” category.
Prof. Lejcuś and his team continued their research on the geocomposite within the Hydrobox 2.0 project. The research resulted in the development of a new, fully biodegradable version of the geocomposite. Thanks to the materials used (including waste), it decomposes in the soil. In this way, it provides plants not only with water, but also with essential nutrients, and the whole design is in line with the objectives of the circular economy. It has resulted in very large biomass increases and, as before, reduced water usage.
The technology developed by Professor Lejcuś is currently being advanced in the SYMBIOREM project under the EU Horizon Europe program. The work carried out in the project allows to check the possibility of using biodegradable water absorbing geocomposites for phytoremediation of degraded areas.
Water absorbing geocomposites are not the only activity of Professor Lejcuś that finds use in industry and economy. The results of the project "Application of ultra-fine clay-based binders for waterproofing membranes production," in which Prof. Lejcuś also participated, were put into practice in the use of filtration coefficients of injection slurries and methods of validating the suitability of selected technologies for the production of anti-filtration membranes. Moreover, as the main expert, he participated in the project “Geology of Odra River valley from the Polish-Czech border till the mouth of the river in the aspect of floods risk of the adjacent regions,” which was carried out at the request of the Ministry of Environment.
Another area of Professor Lejcuś’s activity is sustainable rainwater management. In 2017 and 2019, Professor Lejcuś headed a team that developed two catalogs of good practices for the City Office of Wrocław: principles for the sustainable management of rainwater from road surfaces and principles for the sustainable management of rainwater in the built-up area. In 2021, the catalogs were updated. Both catalogs are widely used by officials, designers and residents not only in Wrocław, but also in other parts of the country.
In 2022, after the Oder disaster, Professor Lejcuś was appointed by the marshals of the Oder River voivodeships as coordinator of the Oder team. He is a co-author of the developed concept of the Oder River ecosystem restoration program.
Professor Lejcuś has been dealing with water-related issues for over 20 years. He was an expert in the team responsible for developing a water monitoring system in Poland, in the part concerning determining the physicochemical status of uniform parts of surface waters. In 2024, he was appointed to the State Water Council for the 2024-27 term. He is the co-founder of two new fields of study: bioeconomy and adaptations to climate change.
Prof. Lejcuś is the author of more than 100 articles, scientific reports and studies for the economy. He was the supervisor of two doctoral dissertations, and is currently the supervisor of a doctoral thesis carried out in English. Over the years, his work has combined technical and environmental approaches in solving issues related to water and human impact on the environment.
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