Knowledge and innovative solutions in agriculture for water availability and quality

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,[[European Environment Agency, “Water and agriculture: towards sustainable solutions”, EEA Report No 17/2020.]] 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[[ See for example the parallel topic HORIZON-CL6-2023-ZEROPOLLUTION-01-6: Biosensors and user-friendly diagnostic tools for environmental services.]] 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.