Poster on display at 2015 National Horizon 2020 Info Day

1. Table 1. Top 15 European Institutes participating in projects relevant to theme of ‘Towards the Next Generation of
Water Systems and Services’ (including one Swedish research institute).
References
EC, 2015a – European Commission – Horizon 2020 Work Programme
2016 – 2017 17. Cross-cutting activities (Focus Areas)
(http://ec.europa.eu/research/participants/data/ref/h2020/wp/2016_201
7/main/h2020-wp1617-focus_en.pdf)
EC, 2015b – European Commission – Moving towards a circular
economy (http://ec.europa.eu/environment/circular-
economy/index_en.htm)
EPA, 2014 - Towards a Resource Efficient Ireland – incorporating
Ireland’s National Waste Prevention Programme 2014-2020
(https://www.epa.ie/pubs/consultation/NWPP_Consult.pdf)
WATER IN THE CONTEXT OF THE CIRCULAR ECONOMY
TOWARDS THE NEXT GENERATION OF WATER SYSTEMS AND SERVICES – LARGE SCALE DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS
John Gallagher & Aonghus McNabola
Department of Civil, Structural & Environmental Engineering, Trinity College Dublin
PROJECT OVERVIEW
Horizon 2020 represents a major source of EU funding and opportunities for Irish researchers (in HEIs, industry and NGOs). One of the main areas of funding within
Horizon 2020 is the “Societal Challenges” programme. This EPA Small Scale Studies project (2015-W-SS-23-SSS 2.2) is focused on opportunities for Irish
researchers for participation in the Climate action, environment, resource efficiency and raw materials societal challenge (Societal Challenge 5). Specifically the
project is concerned with the topic on “Water in the Context of the Circular Economy - towards the next generation of water systems and services – large scale
demonstration projects” (CIRC-02-2016-2017) which will be issued in 2017 (EC, 2015a).
This study maps research excellence and capacity in Ireland and at EU level in the area of “Water in the Context of the Circular Economy - towards the next
generation of water systems and services – large scale demonstration projects”. The outputs of the study will support researchers who wish to participate in consortia
applying for funding under this topic in the forthcoming 2017 call.
MAPPING RESEARCH EXCELLENCE IN EUROPE
A mapping exercise was undertaken to identify the leading research institutes in Europe participating in projects that are relevant
to ‘next generation water systems and services’. These institutes are listed in Table 1 and located in the figure below.
Due to the large number of projects, five key sub-themes were identified to help categorise the opportunities that exist to meet this
challenge: supply and demand; water treatment; wastewater treatment; water quality; system management. This aimed to help
narrow the search for suitable consortium partners for a specific topic.
Rank Research Institute No. Country Lead Partner
1 Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Foerderung der Angewandten Forschung e 15 Germany 6 9
2 Consiglio Nazionale Delle Ricerche* 13 Italy 4 9
3 La Agencia Estatal Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas (CSIC)* 13 Spain 3 10
4 Cranfield University* 12 United Kingdom 0 12
5 Fachhochschule Nordwestschweiz (FHNW) 9 Switzerland 2 7
6 The University of Exeter* 9 United Kingdom 1 8
7 Centro Tecnológico del Agua (CETAQUA) fundación privada 8 Spain 6 2
8 Vlaamse Instelling voor Technologisch Onderzoek (VITO) 8 Belgium 2 6
9 VEOLIA Environnement Recherche et Innovation SNC (VERI)* 7 France 1 6
10 National Technical University of Athens* 7 Greece 0 7
11 Alma Mater Studiorum Universita di Bologna 7 Italy 0 7
12 Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)* 6 France 1 5
13 Eidgenoessische Anstalt fur Wasserversorgung Abwasserreinigung und Gewaesserschutz (EAWAG) 6 Switzerland 1 5
14 Rheinisch-Westfaelische Technische Hochschule (RWTH) Aachen University 6 Germany 1 5
15 IVL Svenska Miljöinstitutet AB 5 Sweden 1 4
* Denotes existing Irish collaboration with this research institute.
Project Databases
The database of 285 projects was generated by searching a range of
European funding programmes including:
• Horizon 2020
• Framework Programme (FP7)
• Competitiveness and Innovation Framework Programme (CIP)
• European Research Council (ERC)
• Life & Life+
• Interreg
Keywords
A number of primary keywords were
identified that encompass the call:
• Treatment
• Management
• Supply
• Quality
• Drinking
• consumption
EXPECTED IMPACTS &
The call has identified the following key areas for consortia to consider when developing a proposal:
SUPPLY AND DEMAND
No. of projects: 49
Top 3 Organisations:
1. La Agencia Estatal Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas (CSIC), Spain
2. Alma Mater Studiorum Universita di Bologna, Italy
3. Consiglio Nazionale Delle Ricerche, Italy
WATER TREATMENT
No. of projects: 79
Top 3 Organisations:
1. Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Foerderung der Angewandten Forschung e,
Germany
2. Acondicionamiento Tarrasense Associacion, Spain
3. Fundacion CTM Centre Tecnologic, Spain
WASTEWATER TREATMENT
No. of projects: 89
Top 3 Organisations:
1. Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Italy
2. Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Foerderung der Angewandten Forschung e, Germany
3. Centro Tecnológico del Agua (CETAQUA) fundación privada, Spain
WATER QUALITY
No. of projects: 28
Top 3 Organisations:
1. T.E. Laboratories Limited, Ireland
2. La Agencia Estatal Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas (CSIC),
Spain
3. Vlaamse Instelling voor Technologisch Onderzoek (VITO), Belgium
SYSTEM MANAGEMENT
No. of projects: 81
Top 3 Organisations:
1. The University of Exeter, United Kingdom
2. Cranfirled University, United Kingdom
3. Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Foerderung der Angewandten Forschung e, Germany
DEVELOPING A PROJECT CONSORTIA AND PROPOSAL
Define your
project concept,
what your
organisation
offers in terms of
a potential project
Examine the topic
database for
potential partners
to complement
your research
Identify NCP
(National Contact
Point) and NSN
(National Support
Network)
Contact and meet
potential partners
to develop a
consortia and
proposal
Partners should
include: research
institutes; industry;
SMEs;
demonstration
partners
Prepare and
submit a proposal
for the ‘next
generation water
systems and
services’
• Significant reduction of the current water and energy consumption at regional and/or river basin scale by closing
the cycles of material, water and energy, using alternative water sources and supporting the transition towards
smart water services
• Interconnectivity between the water system and other economic and social sectors
• Increased public involvement in water management
• Increased citizen satisfaction with water services
• Replication of new business models in other areas and replication of models for synergies between appropriate
funding instruments at regional, national or European level closing of the infrastructure and investment gap in the
water service sector
• creation of new markets in the short and medium term
• providing evidence-based knowledge regarding the enabling framework conditions (such as the regulatory or
policy framework) that facilitate a broader transition to a circular economy in the EU.
Research Partners
Engineering, Business, Economics, Environmental and
Social Sciences
Technology Partners
New Treatment or Resource Recovery Technologies,
Network Optimisation Tools & Data Management
Demonstrations Partners
Water Companies, Large Industrial Consumers,
Communities & Irrigation Networks
What is it’s importance?
“Resource efficiency offers a clear win-win scenario, improved
performance in reducing wastage also delivers real savings. It
is a critical component of the ‘circular economy’ whereby we
reduce our dependency on finite raw materials without
compromising economic development” (EPA, 2014)
What can it achieve?
“… improving water systems by considering the whole water-use production
chain and by identifying solutions that enhance both the economic and
environmental performance of the system… contributing to the challenges of a
depletion of raw materials (e.g. through the recovery of resources from waste
water) and climate change (reducing energy needs or producing energy) and
should be demonstrated at large scale.” (EC, 2015a)
What is circular economy?
“… re-using, repairing, refurbishing and
recycling existing materials and
products. What used to be regarded as
‘waste’ can be turned into a resource…
look beyond waste and to close the loop
of the circular economy” (EC, 2015b)