Periodic Reporting for period 2 - WaterSENSE (Making SENSE of the Water value chain with Copernicus Earth Observation, models and in-situ data)
Période du rapport: 2021-01-01 au 2022-06-30
Making sense of water in Australia is something that the world was forced to do recently, simply by watching the news. We heard about the recent droughts and its related fish kills and allegations of water misuse. Then we all watched in horror as a very dry Australia was burning. Finally, rain brought some relief, but to add insult to injury, the next day’s news reports showed flooding due to massive downpours!
The WaterSENSE project will provide water availability and mapping services for any place in the world at different time and spatial resolutions, based on earth observation data, hydrological models and local field data. The results of these services will be open access to further develop value-adding services.
Novel research in the project will develop scalable information services, based on advanced big-data processing algorithms, to determine variables such as evapotranspiration, irrigation water use, rainfall and soil moisture, as well as machine learning to allow automatic data processing and reduce uncertainty in the hydrological variables determined.
The goal of WaterSENSE is to develop a modular, operational, water-monitoring system built on Copernicus EO data;
• To provide water managers with a toolbox of reliable and actionable information on water availability and water use;
• Starting in Australia, South-Africa and The Netherlands; scalable to anywhere in the world;
and
• To support sustainable water management and transparency across the entire water value chain.
The WaterSENSE project will provide water availability and mapping services for any place in the world at different time and spatial resolutions, based on earth observation data, hydrological models and local field data. The results of these services will be open access to further develop value-adding services.
Novel research in the project will develop scalable information services, based on advanced big-data processing algorithms, to determine variables such as evapotranspiration, irrigation water use, rainfall and soil moisture, as well as machine learning to allow automatic data processing and reduce uncertainty in the hydrological variables determined.
The goal of WaterSENSE is to develop a modular, operational, water-monitoring system built on Copernicus EO data;
• To provide water managers with a toolbox of reliable and actionable information on water availability and water use;
• Starting in Australia, South-Africa and The Netherlands; scalable to anywhere in the world;
and
• To support sustainable water management and transparency across the entire water value chain.
The prototype demonstration platform became available to the demonstration users early 2022. Its design was extensively discussed during the demonstration preparation phase. This builds upon the Stakeholder Engagement and User Needs Analysis that has been running since the start of the project. Regular sessions with our demonstration users took place throughout this period to improve our service applications and review the data products. The WaterSENSE consortium made a long awaited visit to Australia in March 2022. Workshops were held with each of the demonstration partners and further industry representatives to showcase the WaterSENSE project and services in development.
This WaterSENSE Toolbox is built around the modular HydroNET platform. The central platform is connected to external data sources, and other platforms such as the modelling platform AQUASAFE from Hidromod, as well as CreoDIAS. User dashboards were designed and data to quantify water availability and water use were made available through the HydroNET portal and shared with the demonstration users.
The algorithms developed to quantify water availability and water use were improved further after their initial release in the first year. Algorithms were adapted to the Australian context. New data sources were added, including Copernicus data, and integrated in the EO based production pipelines. Some of the results were published in peer-reviewed journals. New algorithms were also developed for the Environmental Flows Management Services.
The Preliminary Business Plan has been improved after its first release in year one, better reflecting the link between user needs, market context and business potential. This also includes an initial draft individual Business Plan for the WUMAS Service. This is used as the template for sector specific business plans, on which work has continued. In addition, our communication and dissemination activities increased significantly over time.
This WaterSENSE Toolbox is built around the modular HydroNET platform. The central platform is connected to external data sources, and other platforms such as the modelling platform AQUASAFE from Hidromod, as well as CreoDIAS. User dashboards were designed and data to quantify water availability and water use were made available through the HydroNET portal and shared with the demonstration users.
The algorithms developed to quantify water availability and water use were improved further after their initial release in the first year. Algorithms were adapted to the Australian context. New data sources were added, including Copernicus data, and integrated in the EO based production pipelines. Some of the results were published in peer-reviewed journals. New algorithms were also developed for the Environmental Flows Management Services.
The Preliminary Business Plan has been improved after its first release in year one, better reflecting the link between user needs, market context and business potential. This also includes an initial draft individual Business Plan for the WUMAS Service. This is used as the template for sector specific business plans, on which work has continued. In addition, our communication and dissemination activities increased significantly over time.
A number of state-of-the-art prototype algorithms have been developed: an algorithm to quantify water levels and volumes in small farm dams; an algorithm to observe soil moisture using the Copernicus satellite data; an algorithm to determine the amount of irrigation water used using satellite data; and an algorithm that combines ground-based precipitation radar and rain gauge data to get the best rainfall product for the region. Development has continued to improve the results by adaptation to the Australia context, results were published and a state-of-the-art algorithm for environmental flow management was added to the list.
The release of the HydroNET platform, running our WaterSENSE Toolbox, made a state-of-the-art water management control room available for our demonstration users. These applications will provide water managers timely information with the proper tools and data to make the sometimes tough decisions in areas needing climate resilient solutions.
The release of the HydroNET platform, running our WaterSENSE Toolbox, made a state-of-the-art water management control room available for our demonstration users. These applications will provide water managers timely information with the proper tools and data to make the sometimes tough decisions in areas needing climate resilient solutions.