Project Overview

AQUEDUCT – Context

The project “Accounting for the water interconnectedness within Mediterranean catchments under water shortage crisis and global changes” (AQUEDUCT) aims to provide tools and knowledge to account for the interconnectedness of water between local levels (such as crop field and forest stand) and global levels (such as landscape, catchment, and irrigated district).

Regional Context

Societal & scientific contexts:

The Mediterranean region has been facing:
  • water scarcity due to the combined effects of increasing water demands (ecological and human activity sectors)
  • decrease in water resources associated with climate change.
  • Among human activities, up to 70 to 80% of blue water withdrawals are allocated to irrigate crops.
  • Evapotranspiration of green water from natural and forested ecosystems
Water Interconnectedness

Water management is interconnected

local and upstream decisions ripple through the system, requiring coordinated planning
  • Local actions have wide-reaching effects: Water scarcity solutions at the local level impact both local water demand and the supply of blue water to strategic upstream resources like dams or aquifers.
  • Upstream decisions influence local availability: Policies and restrictions imposed at the catchment level directly affect water access and use for local irrigation, farms, and crop fields.
  • Interconnected systems require coordination: Effective water management demands integrated planning, as decisions at any level create ripple effects throughout the entire catchment.
Adaptation Strategies

Solutions to support farmers :

first solution is to enhance structurally the management of water demand and use by crop and forest covers on long term

The second adaptation solution is to increasing water supply:
  • Expanding strategic dam capacity to store more water.
  • Implementing water harvesting techniques, such as building local small reservoirs, enabling farmers to access water for small-scale irrigation.