PROJECT DESCRIPTION
BACKGROUND
Water scarcity and droughts are becoming ever more frequent and widespread in the European Union, threatening food security and sustainability, with the potential to cause instability in the region. Agriculture uses 70% of the global water supply and up to 80% in Southern Europe, making it particularly vulnerable to climate change. Agriculture is the largest contributor to water usage in the EU, using 31% of total water, and irrigation is expected to increase with global warming. Precision farming technology, which uses sensors and crop and soil models, is expected to help combat water scarcity by enabling farmers to optimise irrigation scheduling and to reduce fuel costs, CO2 emissions, and the use of pesticides. Currently, adoption of this technology is low in the EU compared to the USA, Australia, and New Zealand. New Zealand, for example, has enforced mandatory use of soil moisture sensors in irrigation systems, and similar measures may be necessary in the EU to ensure food safety and sustainability.
OBJECTIVES
The LIFE Future of Farming project will help minimise the EU's vulnerability to drought and water scarcity, by providing the agricultural sector with optimised precision farming technology. This will enable farmers to adapt and future-proof their business models, with increased profitability and sustainable farming practices. The project will deploy 450 sensors and involve 300 farmers in using the optimised irrigation technology in six countries (Spain, Italy, Portugal, France, Romania and Greece) that account for more than 90% of agricultural water consumption in the EU. This is expected to result in higher water efficiency: the project’s ambition is to save Europe-wide 3.5 thousand million m3 of irrigation water by 2028.
This smart water management technology will help farmers adapt to the effects of climate change, in line with the EU Strategy on Adaptation to Climate Change. It will also contribute to the goals of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) and the Water Framework Directive (WFD). The CAP addresses water scarcity and promotes sustainable water use in agriculture, including the key objective of fostering efficient management of natural resources such as water, soil and air. The WFD includes provisions for managing water scarcity and droughts, including through water efficiency measures.
After the project's two-year core activity, the aim is to further encourage the adoption of irrigation management technology among farmers in the EU, with local partners monitoring and reporting annually on the results.
RESULTS
Expected results:
- The optimised irrigation technology demonstration by a large group of farmers, with comparative data collected from both participating farmers and a “control” group of farmers.
- Demonstration days organised for the wider farming community and public knowledge institutions, government agencies and other authorities.
- All participating stakeholders involved in validating and endorsing the proposed technology, in sharing knowledge, and developing policies to further encourage the adoption of water-saving solutions.
- A database and model for capturing the quantitative benefits of the technology, using the installed sensors and an established baseline.
