ExpectedOutcome:
In line with the European Green Deal’s farm to fork strategy and the zero pollution ambition, the Water Framework Directive, and the data provided by the European Environmental Agency (EEA), successful proposals will contribute to enhancing sustainable water management, based on increased resilience of agriculture to drought and floods, while maintaining the good functioning of the water ecosystem to ensure good status of water bodies.
Projects results are expected to contribute to all of the following expected outcomes:
- The quality and safety of irrigation water, as well as the prevention of contamination of natural habitats, including minimizing groundwater pollution and securing groundwater resources, and minimizing eutrophication of surface waters, are ensured.
- Enhanced understanding of current water, fertilizer and pesticide requirements in the agricultural sector for different systems and regions, in order to prevent surface water and groundwater contamination with pesticides, nutrients from fertilizers and other contaminants.
- Protection of surface water and groundwater quality against harmful impacts of climate change.
- Advanced understanding and prediction of the impacts to water availability and quality of climate change affecting agricultural water consumption patterns, to protect surface water and groundwater quality against harmful impacts of climate change.
- Solutions, pathways and strategies for risk assessment, mitigation and adaptation to agricultural (irrigation) practices in the event of extreme weather pressures (flooding, drought), which consider technical (such as land features/soil types) and socio-economic parameters.
Scope:
Water availability (including permitting, measuring volumes and pricing) and quality is one of the most pressing issues, affecting human health, limiting food production, limiting ecological services, and hindering economic growth.
Extreme climatic events (notably droughts) are leading to increased water stress, affecting the water needs for agriculture and other uses. At the same time, water availability is itself impacted by climate change and this resource is becoming scarce in many places in the EU. The repartition of water to the users is becoming challenging. Agriculture is currently accounting to around one fourth of the total water extraction in the EU,[1] which is leading to tensions and in some cases to conflicts, in particular where illegal abstraction takes place. It is therefore crucial to prepare agriculture to adapt to a new context where water in agriculture is more sustainably and efficiently used, without compromising the water availability for other users or undermining the good status of waterbodies.
Proposals should address the following:
- Produce tools and techniques to support farmers, special planners, policy makers and water managers with scientific and practical knowledge, including advice on appropriated price incentives and water management assistance, optimising agricultural water use, not only water for irrigation but also water used by local people and in other economic sectors, for the benefit of a healthy environment.
- Develop or improve with new scientific knowledge and practice the methodology for monitoring and prediction of water quality and quantity requirements for agricultural use, based on information provided by Earth Observation systems and in situ measurements, using digital technologies such as smart (bio)sensors[2] and artificial intelligence (AI), as well as DNA-based indicators, that integrate monitoring and modelling tools to support decisions in relation to water management.
- Assess and propose relevant adaptation of water infrastructures for irrigation, agricultural practices and land use. Consider nature-based solutions and latest technologies to address emerging needs and challenges like floods, droughts and/or salinization. Proposed measures should increase the resilience of agriculture by lowering the need for irrigation, reducing at the same time the environmental impact associated with irrigation in agriculture (e.g. salinisation and concentration of nutrients and pollutants) and therefore enhancing ecosystem protection and biodiversity preservation.
- Develop scientific and practice advice to reduce water losses in agricultural activities while considering farmer’s water security and quality challenges.
- Technologies to support a significant reduction of the presence of pesticide residues and nutrients in water bodies to levels that are no longer harmful.
Proposals should earmark the necessary resources for cooperation and networking activities. Activities should build upon and link with the work done under relevant Horizon 2020 and Horizon Europe projects including as part of the Horizon 2020 art. 185 PRIMA partnership. Collaboration with the European partnership Water4all – Water security for the Planet should be explored, as needed.
Specific Topic Conditions:
Activities are expected to achieve TRL 3-5 by the end of the project – see General Annex B.
[1]European Environment Agency, “Water and agriculture: towards sustainable solutions”, EEA Report No 17/2020.
[2]See for example the parallel topic HORIZON-CL6-2023-ZEROPOLLUTION-01-6: Biosensors and user-friendly diagnostic tools for environmental services.
