Twenty measures for water management in the Pinios watershed, which will lead to the reduction of water consumption, the protection of soil resources, the reduction of crop production costs, even under ominous climate change scenarios, were presented yesterday in Larissa.
These measures, which, in fact, have been adopted and included in the 2nd Revision of the Pinios River Basin Management Plan, as high-priority technical measures, are the result of a two-year participatory process involving representatives of all sectors, within the framework of the European REXUS project, which aims the effective management of the Water-Energy-Food-Ecosystems (WEFE) Nexus and the adaptation to climate change in the Pinios watershed. The twenty meter bundle was presented in detail at an event held yesterday at GEOTEE of Central Greece, in Larissa, under the coordination of the Soil Water Resources Institute of the Hellenic Agricultural Organization – DIMITRA, which is leading the project in Greece must be adopted by the competent bodies for their implementation.
At the same time, it was emphasized that their implementation also depends on the individual initiative, at the level of producers, with the support of the state.
As part of the project, mathematical simulations were performed by a research team, which includes 19 scientific partners from seven European countries. The participants analyzed the challenges faced by the Pinios basin, formulated quantified objectives and jointly arrived at a series of realistic measures aimed at addressing the environmental and economic challenges of the region and related to: the management and optimization of the use of water resources (water sector), in the optimization of energy efficiency (energy sector), in the sustainability of agriculture through agro-ecological methods (agri-food sector) and in flood protection through pro-environmental measures (environment sector).
At the event, in Larissa, the future scenarios of positive effects from their implementation were analyzed, while the participants co-shaped the road map for their implementation. This is the final technical meeting of the project with the participation of the interested parties of the program representing all sectors of the WEFE Nexus (Water, Agriculture, Environment and Energy) and all administrative levels (TOEB, GOEB, YPEN, YPAAT, cooperatives, businesses etc.).
THE TWENTY METERS
The twenty measures presented are as follows:
1. Improvement of water transport and distribution systems (closed irrigation networks, undergrounding of networks, identification-repair of faults).
2. Development of riparian forests.
3. Implementation of modern (high efficiency) irrigation systems (eg subsurface irrigation, drip, micro-sprinkling, etc.).
4. Energy production (thermal/electrical) from the processing of urban waste and biomass of agricultural origin.
5. Arrangement, regular cleaning or restoration of watercourses.
6. Mountain hydrology projects and rainwater collection systems (strengthening underground water potential-flood protection).
7. Utilization of surface runoff through the small-scale construction of new and maintenance of existing surface storage projects (dams, reservoirs, reservoirs).
8. Development of a water condition monitoring and consumption control system (monitoring the quality and quantity of surface and underground water, monitoring consumption, telemetric management of water withdrawals, monitoring consumption, prepayment of irrigation water, satellite monitoring of irrigation water use, network leaks and unauthorized withdrawals).
9. Completion of large-scale unfinished/abandoned single/multi-purpose projects (saving/power generation/diversion) – “ripening” and/or updating studies.
10. Reforestation projects.
11. Rational use of agrochemicals (fertilizers and pesticides) – Transition to agroecological/sustainable weed and biomass management practices and selection of sustainable production methods – Biological pest control.
12. Construction of dual-purpose reservoirs (water storage-electricity generation).
13. Establishment of groups of producers and cooperatives for the single use of machines in suitable sized plots, verticalization of production with limitation of intermediaries.
14. Rational Irrigation Management – Application of irrigation scheduling (including deficit).
15. Development and adoption of new technologies in the use of RES for greater efficiency.
16. Irrigation water pricing, institutionalization of financial counter-incentives for over-consumption (e.g. tiered charge).
17. Creation and maintenance of neutral zones (bufferzones) around water receivers (avoid soil leaching, leakage of inputs).
18. Systematic information, guidance and training of farmers/public and agencies.
19. Preparation of land use suitability maps for crops.
20. Upgrading and maintenance of energy distribution and transmission networks.
