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Project Topic
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In the Mediterranean, freshwater availability is put under increasing pressure by global warming, land use changes, and water abstraction. Moreover, deteriorating water and soil quality put agricultural productivity and safe water supply for the population at further risk and urgently demand sustainable solutions. PureCircles wants to realize such solutions at four Mediterranean study sites (2 in Europe and 2 in the Maghreb) by integrating water technology with agrotechnical setups and management strategies. For the first time, we will demonstrate the power and effectiveness of a combination of agrophotovoltaics, hydroponics, smart irrigation and innovative water storage and treatment technology, all of which are intelligently linked and regulated through Artificial Intelligence (AI). Sophisticated, but robust technology (e.g., flexible greenhouse photovoltaics (PV), water-harvesting field PV-arrays, energy-efficient RO/NF treatment, AI-assisted farm management) will meet nature-based and sustainable water treatment solutions (hydroponics, microbial bioremediation) and shall be assembled and activated dependent on need and framing conditions (financial resources, availability and quality of water, crop choice, weather forecast, etc.). The work plan proposed will provide and validate concepts and tools to buffer water availability between extreme weather events, reduce the net water extraction, unburden natural water bodies from nitrates, pesticides, salts and other pollutants, and at the same time, advance agroecological production sustainability. Our multidisciplinary consortium of academic, management and industry partners brings together long-standing scientific expertise and broad experience from other projects. Building up on this and being reinforced by a reliable network of stakeholders, we want to develop site-specific solutions that are sustainable beyond the project duration. For this, all study sites will adopt the “Living Lab” approach, which is crucial for stakeholder-centered innovation, co-creation, sustainable implementation and long-lasting success beyond project duration. We will encourage entrepreneurial spirit and establish co-creation spaces (virtual and real ones) to motivate all stakeholders to get involved actively. Special emphasis will be put on the integration of the young generation and local women, which will be aided by our existing connections to women entrepreneurial initiatives in the Maghreb region and innovation networks in Europe. To aid widespread implementation, technical developments and tailoring will be discussed and optimized together with our expert stakeholders. Moreover, all solutions developed (and their systemic combinations) will be evaluated by life cycle (LCA) and sustainability analyses, as well as with regard to socioeconomic implications and cost-benefit ratios. Finally, modelling and decision support tools for the catchment areas of our study sites will be developed to validate the envisaged effects of the PureCircles concept with regard to water pollution, salinization, and availability. Our study sites and technical solutions shall become reference sites for the Mediterranean region and respective KPI, recommendations and best practice examples widely adopted by farmer cooperatives and regulating-authorities on municipal, regional and national level to leverage the great potential of the concept proposed. As reliable partners for political and societal stakeholders we will support the implementation of National and European Action plans and pave the way for a more sustainable and competitive agriculture in marginal Mediterranean regions.
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