On 19th June, the REWAISE project team attended a workshop in Brussels, organized by the CIRSEAU cluster. This event brought together project officers from the five sister-projects under the H2020 framework, aimed at building a water-smart economy and society.
The workshop “Building a water-smart economy: How circular economy solutions contribute to ensuring water resilience and security?” provided a platform for REWAISE and other projects to share insights and progress. REWAISE, represented by Frank Rogalla, highlighted REWAISE ongoing efforts in Almeria, Spain – Europe’s driest region- focusing on water reuse and resource recovery. The project’s innovative approaches, including the development of AnMBR systems that recover water rich in nutrients while producing biogas, were discussed as key solutions to the challenges of water scarcity and energy efficiency.
The Research Executive Agency (REA) opened the workshop and emphasised Europe’s vulnerability to water scarcity and the need for water resilience solutions. Following a welcome from the CIRSEAU cluster coordinator, who provided an overview of the cluster’s activities, particularly focusing on policy and long-term impact.
The CIRSEAU cluster workshop featured several case study presentations:
- B-WATERSMART Project: A case study from Mechelen, Flanders, that demonstrates the use of urban stormwater for agricultural purposes, showing potential benefits such as increased water availability and decreased groundwater pressure.
- ULTIMATE Project: Focused on water reuse in the Kalundborg Industrial Symbiosis in Denmark, highlighting the importance of developing water-smart industrial symbiosis.
- REWAISE Project: Presented the Almeria case study in Spain, which focuses on water reuse and resource recovery in one of Europe’s driest regions. The project promotes a paradigm shift towards a carbon-neutral water cycle.
- WIDER UPTAKE Project: Discusses urban wastewater reuse for irrigation in Prague, addressing the challenges of water scarcity and promoting sustainable water management.
- WATER MINING Project: Explores circular desalination in Cyprus, aiming to enhance water resilience and reduce dependency on imported resources.
All attendees participated in group break-out sessions, exploring how these projects could be leveraged to strengthen Europe’s water economy. Discussions focused on project outcomes, formulating collective conclusions, and identifying actionable steps towards a resilient water future.
Additionally, the afternoon sessions provided insights on boosting the uptake of innovative solutions within the water and circular economy sectors, followed by a panel discussion with policy officers covering topics such as water resilience, the circular economy, and the importance of cross-sector collaboration.
