Nature-based solutions for water treatment

Nature-based solutions are used for waste- and stormwater treatment, as well as for drinking water production cleaning contaminated groundwater. Usually, the technologies involve a combined action of porous media (soil) based microorganisms and plants in very different assemblies.
Several EU projects (Upwater, Nature and Multisource) dealing with nature-based solutions in Denmark and/or with Danish partners are providing relevant data for the management of emerging contaminants. The event is planned to enable interested parties to anticipate the latest results as well as to plan and use NBS system.

Short present of the three projects

UPWATER: The UPWATER project addresses the widespread issue of groundwater pollution by identifying effective regulatory and legislative preventive measures and by developing cost-efficient methods to measure pollutants, identify their sources and to mitigate the pollution. UPWATER focuses on the validation of these methods in three case studies in different EU climates and aims to develop hydrogeological models for decision-making scenarios, considering multiple stressors and climate change projections. Expected outcomes include the adoption of preventive measures, scaled-up bio-based solutions and updated chemical priority lists. www.upwater.eu

MULTISOURCE: The MULTISOURCE project is demonstrating enhanced natural treatment solutions for a wide range of urban waters. The project includes innovative tools, methods, and business models to support citywide planning plus long-term operation and maintenance of nature-based solutions for water treatment, storage and reuse in urban areas worldwide. The project will enable users to identify multiple sources for local water reuse, promote increased uptake of nature-based solutions and minimise the discharge of inadequately treated water. https://multisource.eu

NATURE: The aim of the NATURE project is to provide scientific evidence about the use of nature-based solutions for water treatment at the catchment scale. These solutions are useful for reducing pollutants in aquatic ecosystems, so they have been implemented to attenuate the ecotoxicological effect of anthropogenically-impacted water. This project is addressing, for the first time, a holistic assessment of several conventional and novel nature-based solutions to reduce the impact of antibiotics, antimicrobial resistance and pathogens, on water quality. www.natureproject.eu/