Novel nanoporous hybrid organic-inorganic silica with covalently bound iminodiethanol chelating groups inside the channel pores has been synthesized by template-directed co-condensation of tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) and organo-trimethoxysilane (CH3O)3SiR [IDES, R = (HOCH2CH2)2NCH2CH(OH)CH2O(CH2)3], and is shown to be very efficient in recovery of germanium and antimony oxides from water.