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In this issue N°149 (http://www.emwis.net/thematicdirs/eflash/flash149)
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HEADLINE

1- Mediterranean Water Community in mourning, Walter Mazzitii, honorary president of EMWIS died

In Brief

9-  Endorsement of the Strategic Action Programme for the Drin Basin

10- FAO Water Accounting webinars series - 2nd session

11- VISCA DSS Announces Potential Spring Frost in the Spanish Demo Site (Raimat): Vineyards Ready to Fight Negative Impacts!

12- EdiCitNet: Extended City Team Meeting in Letchworth

13- HYDROUSA: Solar Desalination works on Tinos Island are Going According to Plan!

14- Circular City: Conclusions from the Meeting and Workshop Held in Istanbul, Turkey Last March

15- Upcoming EU-funded FASTER e-learning platform: improve your knowledge in land and water management

16- Fiware4Water: Co-development of a smart water application

17- France: Coronavirus found in Paris sewage points to early warning system

18- France: The water information system (WIS) pointed out as exemplary

19- Egypt: Thunderstorms bring widespread flooding to Egypt, killing 5

20- Germany’s Most Important River Is Drying Out

21- Malta set on green revolution

22- Spain: Recent rainfall gives farmers in Spain’s Andalucia welcome relief as water restrictions lifted

23- Morocco: Drought-stricken country raises 12 billion dollars for water

24- Morocco: ONEE launches water project in Ouarzazate as supplies increase slightly

25- Tunisia: SONEDE CEO talks about financial deficit

NOMINATIONS & VACANCIES

PUBLICATIONS

CALL FOR TENDERS AND PROPOSALS

CALL FOR PAPERS

TRAINING AND COURSES

EVENTS

CONTACT US / COMMENTS

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HEADLINE
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1- The Mediterranean water community is very sad, we lost a great man, Walter Mazzitti passed away last weekend. He guided EMWIS for so many years, from the launch of the initiative in Naples in December 1997, as President of the Steering Committee until 2002 and then again from 2008 to 2014, then he was appointed Honorary President. From 2007 to 2009, he was also president of MENBO, the Mediterranean Network of Basin Organizations. So many years and so many memories! A man of honor and conviction, he defended the place of water at the highest political level in his country, Italy, at the Mediterranean scale within the Euromed Partnership and the Union for the Mediterranean, as well as in the framework of Middle East peace process. We all owe him a lot. Further information on EMWIS website

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IN BRIEF (Full news)
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2- The first Steering Committee meeting for the organisation of the 4th Mediterranean Water Forum was held as a web conference on the 21st of April. The event jointly organised by the UfM, IME and the Malta Energy and Water Agency was attended by all Steering Committee members (Arab Water Council, CEDARE, CMI, EMWIS, GWP-Med, Europe INBO, IEMED, MIO-ECSDE, MENBO, WWC and Bleu Plan as observer). The organisation of the Forum in Malta, 11-13 November 2020, back to back with the Euro-INBO conference was confirmed. The conference will be organised along 5 thematic sessions (1. Mediterranean hub of water solutions; 2. Non conventional Water Resources; 3. Integrated and sustainable water management; 4. water financing; 5. Sharing solutions with the international community) on 11 and 12 November while 13 November will be dedicated to technical visits. A technical exhibition of solutions will also be held in parallel to the conference. Further information on EMWIS website

3- The COVID-19 pandemic is prompting questions for the water supply and sanitation sector globally and with a special focus on the Mediterranean, already under stress due to the water scarcity caused by the climate crisis. The UfM and the Institut Méditerranéen de l’Eau (IME) met online on  8 April 2020 for the first brainstorming session on the water, sanitation and COVID19, along with 25 partners and experts from Lebanon, Spain, France, Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia. This is the first of a series of meetings to exchange views on the water emergency response to the pandemic as well as to give policy recommendations on how to move forward.  The UfM concluded that two distinct phases in any water response to the COVID-19 crisis are needed:  First, the emergency response phase: Access to safe water is paramount to successfully fight the coronavirus. Ensure that water and sanitation systems in the Mediterranean continue to operate at high standards in order to provide safe water is key. Healthy workers, assured supplies of chemicals and other essential products, and adequate maintenance of the water and sanitation systems are also essential. Second, the recovery phase: The broader water sector will be called to play a key part in the economic recovery of UfM Member States. Water (in a winder sense, including coastal waters) is a key component of the productive systems – from agriculture, to energy production, to industrial production, to transport, to tourism. Many jobs are related to and dependent on effective and efficient water service delivery.  Further information on EMWIS website

4- The EU is taking new measures to reduce the risk of shortages of water for irrigating crops. The Council  adopted in April 2020 by written procedure a regulation which will facilitate the use of treated urban waste water (reclaimed water) for agricultural irrigation. The rules will help Europe adapt to the consequences of climate change. The regulation, which is fully in line with the circular economy, will improve the availability of water and encourage its efficient use. Ensuring that enough water is available for the irrigation of fields, in particular during heatwaves and severe droughts, can help prevent crop shortfall and food shortages. Given that geographic and climatic conditions vary greatly across member states, a member state may decide that it is not appropriate to use reclaimed water for agricultural irrigation in part or all of its territory. This decision means that the Council has adopted its position at first reading. The regulation now needs to be adopted by the European Parliament at second reading before it can be published in the Official Journal. Further information on EMWIS website
 

 5- The natural coastal defenses provided by mangrove forests reduce annual flooding significantly in critical hotspots around the world. Without mangroves, flood damages would increase by more than $65 billion annually, and 15 million more people would be flooded, according to a new study published March 10 in Scientific Reports. "Mangroves provide incredibly effective natural defenses, reducing flood risk and damages," said Pelayo Menéndez, a postdoctoral fellow in the Institute of Marine Sciences at UC Santa Cruz and first author of the paper. Climate change is increasing the risk of coastal flooding through its effects on sea level rise and the intensity of hurricanes. According to the study's authors, conservation and restoration of natural defenses such as mangroves offers cost-effective ways to mitigate and adapt to these changes. Further information on EMWIS website

6-  20 April 2020. The Mediterranean is in an alarming situation, warming 20% faster than the world average, according to the first-ever scientific report on the impact of climate and environmental change in the Mediterranean, developed by MedECC with the UfM support. It is estimated that about 15 mega port cities are at risk of flooding, unless further adaptation is undertaken. Maritime transport is one of the most important blue economy sectors in the Mediterranean, both in terms of growth and employment. Yet, it accounts for 10% of marine pollution and 3% of air-polluting emissions. On top of that, about 8 million tons of plastic waste enters the ocean every year and one-time use plastics are making a massive come-back during this COVID-19 crisis. To face all these challenges, the UfM, with its co-presidency, conducted a virtual consultation through the participative platform, Med Blue Economy Platform, during March 2020. Further information on EMWIS website 

7- The fourth edition of Water Heroes Contests and World Water Day youth workshops was held online with more than 60 participants and over nearly 6 hours. The aim of this e-conference was to stimulate inter-generational learning between young Mediterranean water practitioners and senior experts, notably through the CMI Call for Papers on Water and Climate Change, while further involving and supporting the CMI-supported Mediterranean Youth for Water Network (MedYWat) and enhancing collaboration with key regional players on the water and climate change theme. Further information is found on CMI website

8- The European Commission has adopted a proposal for a 3 billion EUR macro-financial assistance (MFA) package to ten enlargement and neighbourhood partners to help them to limit the economic fallout of the coronavirus pandemic. The proposal comes on top of the ‘Team Europe' strategy, the EU's robust and targeted response to support partner countries' efforts in tackling the coronavirus pandemic. It represents an important demonstration of the EU's solidarity with these countries at a time of unprecedented crisis. The proposal, following a preliminary assessment of financing needs, provides for the MFA funds to be distributed as follows: the Republic of Albania (180 million EUR), Bosnia and Herzegovina (250 million EUR), Georgia (150 million EUR), the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan (200 million EUR), Kosovo (100 million EUR), the Republic of Moldova (100 million EUR), Montenegro (60 million EUR), the Republic of North Macedonia (160 million EUR), the Republic of Tunisia (600 million EUR) and Ukraine (1.2 billion EUR). Further information on EMWIS website

9- On Friday 24 April, Albania, Greece, Kosovo, Montenegro and North Macedonia endorsed the Strategic Action Programme for the sustainable management of the Drin river basin, with over 100 agreed actions to tackle common challenges and promote sustainable development in the region. Ministers and high-level representatives from all 5 riparians of the Drin Basin  meet virtually on Friday 24 April to endorse the Strategic Action Programme developed with the support of the GEF / UNDP / GWP-Med / UNECE Drin Programme, setting out more than 100 agreed actions to enable sustainable water management in the Drin Basin, directly benefiting its 1.6 million inhabitants. The SAP endorsement, under the current conditions of the COVID-19 crisis, sends a strong message that improved water resources management, which also yields benefits for public health and livelihoods, remains a priority and will continue to be pursued at the transboundary level. Further information on EMWIS website

10- The UN-FAO MENA regional office is supporting the development of water accounting is supporting the development of a community of practice interested to get to develop a common understanding on the relevance of water accounting to inform policy making and investment planning to ensure water scarcity management in agriculture. It includes a digital platform for exchanging experiences and webinars organised in English and French. The first series were organised in 2019 and the part 2 has just started. Further information on EMWIS website

11- VISCA project has launched the narratives of monthly stories focusing on climate events predicted by VISCA DSS on the project’s demo sites and how farmers are dealing with it. In April 2020, VISCA DSS was predicting lower temperature events in Costers del Segre in the southwest slope of Raimat hills, where the Spanish demonstration site is located. This fall in temperature would lead to Spring Frost event causing some loss of shoots after budbreak. To avoid this loss, the activation of frost protection protocols was set on, a week in advance, on 26th March 2020. This information was obtained via the weather information widget of the DSS, and precisely the short & mid-term forecasts. In order to reduce this effect, preventive irrigation was applied to the vineyards in this site. Read the full story on VISCA website.

12- How do we showcase the Garden City of the Future? This is one of the central questions that a local team of city representatives, food activists and design researchers explored during February’s two-day working meeting in Letchworth, UK in the Framework of EdiCitNet project. The local team discussed visions for (food-)productive urban landscapes in the world’s first Garden City. An extensive visit of different Garden City estates, food growing and food provision sites, allotments and green infrastructure elements  made visible the beauty and open space characteristics of the city as well as its unique potential (and need) for local food production and other food system activities. Afterwards, the group met for strategic discussions in the city planning offices. Read the full story on EdiCitNet website.

13- HYDROUSA project is developing innovative, nature-based water management solutions for different types of water under the concept of circular economy. Clear water loops are demonstrated, recovering added value products, while integrating and interacting with the local market. These technologies and services, named as HYDROs, are demonstrated at six demonstration sites at full scale in three Mediterranean islands (Lesvos, Mykonos and Tinos). HYDRO5, located in Tinos, is based on a nature-inspired low-cost solar desalination system which produces clean water via evaporation and condensation as well as edible salt where the produced water is used to grow tropical fruits in a greenhouse. Despite the ongoing situation of COVID-19, the progress on HYDRO5 work is going according to the plan. Further information regarding this specific HYDRO can be found on HYDROUSA website.

14- The Nature Based Solutions for Cities, the Cost Action Circular City (CA17133) community, which aims to build an interdisciplinary platform for connecting city planners, architects, system designers, circular economists, engineers and researchers from social and natural sciences that develop systems allowing cities to cope with the current challenges, held its Management Committee and Thematic Workshops on 4-6 March 2020 in Istanbul, Turkey. 55 participants from 27 countries were present where they discussed several topics including training schools, sessions/workshops on Circular City at different conference, and COST meetings. Considering the current situation of COVID-19, some dates of these training schools and conferences will be postponed or cancelled. You can follow the Action on Social Media channels, i.e. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube, all accessible from Circular City website

15- As part of its objectives of improving research on adaptation to climate change in land and water management, but also support the actors and the growing community of interested people in these topics, FASTER is working on the implementation of an E-learning platform. Participants to the courses are not necessarily required to be specialists on adaptation to climate change in land and water management, but might need to acquire a sound overview of land and water management related issues across their country. The target includes FAS technicians, higher education students, young researchers and technicians, representatives of the agriculture industry and other types of stakeholders at INRGREF, IRESA and partner stakeholders. The platform aims to provide the learners with a broad variety of courses, covering various topics to improve their knowledge in land and water management with specialized courses, but also offering classes from experts in innovative governance, excellence tools, capacity building and many more. Further information on EMWIS website

16- The Centre for Water Systems (CWS) at the University of Exeter and the South West Water (SWW) are working closely in the EU H2020 Fiware4Water project to explore opportunities for future digital water solutions.  One such project is the co-development of a smart water app to empower SWW customers towards water efficiency and reducing bills. SWW intends to become the first Water Company in the UK using FIWARE to exploit the capabilities of smart meters for feedback to the customers and increasing water saving awareness. Through Fiware4Water, CWS will develop a mobile app, backed by the smart meter data and FIWARE technology, to engage with domestic customers. The users will be able to track their daily water consumption, compare their usage with the average of other similar size of households and explore options to improve water efficiency. Further information on EMWIS website
 

17- By sampling sewage across greater Paris for more than 1 month, researchers have detected a rise and fall in novel coronavirus concentrations that correspond to the shape of the COVID-19 outbreak in the region, where a lock-down suppressed spread of the disease. Although several research groups have reported detecting coronavirus in wastewater, the researchers say the new study is the first to show that the technique can pick up a sharp rise in viral concentrations in sewage before cases explode in the clinic. That points to its potential as a cheap, noninvasive tool to warn against outbreaks, they say. Further information on EMWIS website

18- In its latest report, the Court of Auditors highlight that the French Office for Biodiversity (OFB) "has developed high-level expertise in the area of ​​digital transformation". The Water Information System (WIS) is cited as an exemplary project. As part of its missions, the OFB makes available and promotes data on biodiversity. More than 50 million data sets on water, aquatic environments, public water and sanitation services are collected each year into the water information system (WIS, since 1993) and published on www.eaufrance.fr. The Court of Auditors welcomed this work in its last report published at the end of February 2020. It highlights its position as a federating system between the data of the multiple producers with a guarantee of consistency, quality and interoperability. It emphasizes that the "WIS" carries an API service (Application Program Interface) allowing the automatic exchange of data and calculations on a scale which has hardly any equivalent in other ministerial sector: it alone comprises 7 APIs out of the 29 great devices of this type within the French administration. "Further information on EMWIS website

19- Thunderstorms packing heavy rains and lightning caused widespread flooding across Egypt on Thursday 12 March, killing at least five people and injuring five others, officials said as authorities shuttered schools, government offices and an airport. A child died and five people were injured when floods demolished their houses in a rural area in the southern province of Qena, where lightning ignited several fires. Also in Qena, a motorist was killed when winds blew his car into a canal. Further information on EMWIS website

20- Germany’s spring showers haven’t materialized this year, and that’s drying out the country’s most important river, the Rhine, prompting concerns that key industrial goods might have trouble making it to their destination. Typically one of the wettest months, Europe’s biggest economy has received just 5% of its normal April rainfall so far, according to Germany’s federal weather service. It’s on course to be the driest month since records began in 1881. In addition to yellowing vegetation that’s usually a lush green in this season, the dry spell has depressed water levels on the Rhine River, a conduit for barges delivering everything from steel to oil and coal to Germany’s factories. The river is now at its lowest level for the end of April since 2011. “If we don’t get more normal rain in May, then we’re looking at another year of serious drought conditions,” said Andreas Friedrich of Germany’s federal weather service. Further information on EMWIS website

21- The Ministry for the Environment, Climate Change and Planning is going ahead with its initiative to improve the environment in residential and business areas in Malta. As a first phase of this drive, several local councils will be implementing greening projects in their localities with funding from the Ministry. To this end, memorandums of understanding were signed in April 2020 with the Qala, Sliema, Gudja, Żebbuġ, and Ħamrun local councils. According to a Ministry statement, the local councils themselves will pick targets such as streets, squares and other public spaces that are devoid of greenery. They will also select the kind of plants to be put in place there – either indigenous or foreign species that grow well in Malta’s dry climate. Further information on EMWIS website

22- Farmers in Axarquia, Spain, have been given welcome relief after recent heavy rainfall in the area has allowed current irrigation restrictions to be lifted. Limits on the amount of water that could be taken from the La Vinuela reservoir were imposed at the beginning of the hydrological year in last October after the reservoir reached critical drought levels. In December 2019, the reservoir reached just 55.6 cubic hectometres, below 30% of the lakes capacity. This led to the Guaro Plan being implemented, a legislation that meant any farmers within certain areas would see their water allowances cut by 25% to preserve the levels in the lake. The reservoir in La Vinuela also feeds much of the Costa del Sol for its drinking water as well as agricultural supplies. With the lack of tourism during the Easter period and many bars and restaurants closed since March, water levels have been allowed to rise steadily. Accompanied with recent rainfall during April, this has raised the water level to 65.3 cubic hectometres and out of the danger zone for now. This has allowed the Ministry of Agriculture to lift restrictions placed on the region’s farmers meaning that the region’s valuable crops such as avocados will get much-needed irrigation before the dry season. Further information on EMWIS website

23- A recent report by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) predicts a lean year for water resources in Morocco. Faced with the threat, the Moroccan government is releasing $12 billion, or more than 118 billion Moroccan dirhams, for water projects in the country. Further information on EMWIS website

24- While Morocco, like other countries on the African continent, is engaged in the fight against the spread of the coronavirus (Covid-19), the government – through the National Office of Electricity and Drinking Water (ONEE) – has launched a major drinking water project in Ouarzazate, a city located in the centre of Morocco. The project, which aims to strengthen the drinking water supply of this city of more than 700,000 inhabitants, will be completed in a few months. Further information on EMWIS website

25- The National Society for the Exploitation and Distribution of Water (SONEDE) suffers from a financial deficit to cover its costs. The cost recovery rate reached 65.4% in 2019, compared to 100.4% in 2000. SONEDE CEO Mesbah Helali explained that the deterioration of the company's financial situation is due to the increase in the number of its subscribers which went from 1,548 million in 2000 to 2,985 million in 2019, can be read in a statement issued  by the Ministry of Agriculture, Hydraulic Resources and Fisheries after a working session held on the financial situation of SONEDE. This is also due, according to him, to the difference between the cost and the average sale price which widened during the period of 2007/2009, reaching 415 millimes / m3 and to the price freeze of l in recent years.
Among the causes of this deficit, Helali also mentions the increase in the production cost of water supply, in particular desalinated water, recalling that ten desalination stations were installed between 2017 and 2018. He added that SONEDE assumed additional charges following the successive increase in the price of electricity which reached 62%. Further information on EMWIS website

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NOMINATIONS and VACANCIES
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26- The Sahara and Sahel Observatory is launching a call for applications for the recruitment of an administrative assistant for the Environment Program. Job title: Associate Environmental Expert to the Environment Program Job location: Tunis (Tunisia) Contract duration: 06 months (renewable) Start date: 06/01/2020. Further information on EMWIS website

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PUBLICATIONS
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27- UN World Water Development Report (WWDR 2020): Water and Climate Change. The 2020 edition of the UN World Water Development Report (WWDR 2020) titled ‘Water and Climate Change’ will be launched during the celebrations of World Water Day in Geneva on 23 March 2020. The Report focuses on the challenges, opportunities and potential responses to climate change, in terms of adaptation, mitigation and improved resilience that can be addressed through improving water management. Combining climate change adaptation and mitigation, through water, is a win-win proposal, improving the provision of water supply and sanitation services and combating both the causes and impacts of climate change, including disaster risk reduction. Further information on EMWIS website

28-  Updated WHO/UNICEF Water, Sanitation, Hygiene and Waste Management for COVID-19 guidance note now available: This guidance note is the second edition and supplements existing infection prevention and control documents by referring to and summarizing the latest evidence on COVID-19 in water and sanitation supplies and highlights WHO guidance on water, sanitation, hand hygiene and health care waste which is relevant for viruses (including coronaviruses). It is written in particular for water and sanitation practitioners and providers. Further information on EMWIS website

29- A Water Smart Society for a Successful post COVID19 recovery plan published by Water Europe (WE). Further information on EMWIS website

30- The impact of COVID-19 on the Water-Scarce Arab region, published by ECSWA. Further information on EMWIS website

31- Acque Sotterranee - Italian Journal of Groundwater is one of the oldest European journal dealing with groundwater. Papers on today widespread subjects, such as groundwater remediation and ground source heat pumps, were already published back in 1984. Since June 2012 Acque Sotterranee is also named Italian Journal of Groundwater (AS/IT JGW), with a new editorial form, publishing peer-reviewed scientific and technical papers in English or Italian. SEMIDE is member of the journal's Editorial Board. The journal deals with the multiple aspects of groundwater resources, from drilling technologies to contamination, groundwater/surface water interaction, hydrogeochemistry, numerical modelling, etc. A special attention is devoted to the Italian regional and socio-economic context, as well as to the Mediterranean countries ad more in general to the EU area and its border countries. Its goal is to link together the academic world, professionals, authorities, private and public companies by presenting up to date scientific and technical papers. Notwithstanding, contributions of authors from other continents have a key role in the spread of common experiences. Further information about the journal and  papers submission here

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CALL FOR PAPERS
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33- 3rd Mediterranean Forum for PhD Students and Young Researchers : The Mediterranean Forum - MEDFORUM - is a bi-annual meeting point launched by CIHEAM in 2016 for PhD students and young researchers from the Mediterranean area. For 2021, MEDFORUM is jointly organized by CIHEAM and ICARDA with the support of Agropolis Foundation. MEDFORUM 2021 is a special edition conference which will take part under the 7th Farming System Design (FSD) Symposium on 21-24 March 2021 in Tunisia. The objectives of the forum are in line with those set by the FSD under the general theme of climate change and with focus on "Designing Climate Smart Agricultural Systems for a Sustainable Transition in the Agri-food Systems of the Dry Areas". Deadline for submission: 30 June 2020. Further information on EMWIS website

34- The Water ChangeMaker Awards 2020- Building climate resilience by changing water decisions: The Water ChangeMaker Awards is an initiative of more than 20 partner organizations, convened by the Global Water Partnership (GWP), that will highlight how smart decisions are made to use and safeguard water, and how to protect communities from water-related hazards, such as floods and droughts and pollution-related challenges in the midst of climate change. Submit your ChangeMaker journey between 6 April 2020 and 7 June 2020. Further information on EMWIS website

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TRAINING
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35- The Wize Alliance organises two webinars to give a deeper understanding of the Wize technology. These two webinars will cover the same topics, the first one will be in English and the second one in French. This session is open for anyone wanting to learn more about Wize. It will cover the protocol, the architecture, Wize networks and operators, Wize providers and the difference between Wize and its competitors. Next session: June 16th at 10 a.m. (GMT+2) in French. Further information on EMWIS website

36- Distance and digital training: IOWater by your side. In this period of telework and partial unemployment due to confinement, IOWater remains by your side to train your teams. IOWater offers a wide range of distance and digital training to meet your needs. In the form of tutorials or courses integrating animations, videos and interactive documents for example, IOWater can develop tailor-made content specially adapted to your expectations, on the themes of your choice. Further information on EMWIS website

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Events / changes due to COVID19
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