This call focused on better understanding and better integrating aquatic ecosystem services into water resources governance and management. This takes place in the context of local and global changes, with the aim of making aquatic ecosystems and their services more resilient to different pressures. Ecosystem services can include activities such as food production, protection against floods, nutrient cycles and recreation.
Hydrologist Ype van der Velde receivest the funding for his project Enhanced understanding of carbon and groundwater dynamics in European peatlands and their related ecosystem services (ECO-WADE).
Wetlands, particularly peatlands, hold a central position at the intersection of groundwater, surface water, and terrestrial landscapes. To enhance climate adaptation and mitigation, the aquatic ecosystem services provided by peatlands play a central role in the climate policies at EU and national scales. In these policies, the measure of rewetting degraded peatlands under land use is explicitly mentioned. Peatland hydrology, especially emphasizing the role of groundwater related processes, is recognized as the key driver of vital ecosystem services peatlands provide.
However, basic understanding of how hydrology impacts peatland functioning at the European scale, as well as detailed mapping products on groundwater and land use are currently lacking.
To address these knowledge gaps, ECO- WADE focuses on three key ecosystem services provided by peatlands: Water Purification, Water Regulation, Climate Regulation. Van der Velde will investigate the connections between hydrology and the three selected ecosystem services via case studies across four countries
About Water4All
Water4All is a European partnership focusing on research and development related to water security. This is the second call from this partnership. For this call, 30 countries collaborated from inside and outside the EU. A total of 23 projects were submitted for funding. For the full overview of the projects and this call, visit the Water4aAl website.
About European Partnerships
The European co-funded partnerships are part of Horizon Europe, the European programme for research and innovation (2021-2027). The partnerships focus on complex societal challenges and aim at real impact. The calls resulting from the European partnerships lead to thematic research.
In total, Dutch participation involves over 1.25 million euros. Of this, 1.14 million euros was jointly funded by the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management, Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Food Security and Nature, NWO and 115.000 euro by the European Commission.