On Monday 23 March, UNESCO World Water Day was marked in Trieste by a public event dedicated to a precious yet little-known resource: the freshwater reserves hidden beneath the seabed.
The stakeholder meeting, organized by National Institute of Oceanography and Applied Geophysics – OGS , the University of Trieste (UNITS), and the Polo Tecnologico Alto Adriatico, in collaboration with the Autonomous Region of Friuli Venezia Giulia (FVG), brought together researchers, institutions, and stakeholders to explore new frontiers in sustainable water resource management.
The focus was the activities and results of the Project RESources in Coastal groundwater Under hydroclimatic Extremes (RESCUE), funded by Water 4 All and co-funded by the European Union.
Approximately 50 participants attended the event, which was advertised in local media through a press release.
Above left: the event was moderated by Maria Cristina Pedicchio, President of APRE – Agency for the Promotion of European Research, with opening words from Paola Del Negro, Director General of OGS, and Ketty Segatti of the Region of Friuli Venezia Giulia. Above right: the five presentations: Freshwater Under the Sea – Angelo Camerlenghi, OGS; The Northern Adriatic – Cristina Corradin, OGS; What to Do with This Water – Luca Zini, University of Trieste; Whose Water Does This Water Belong to – Emma Mazzotta, OGS; and Marine Groundwater: History and Society – Corinna Guerra, Ca’ Foscari University
After a short series of scientific presentations, a roundtable discussion brought together experts from the environmental, economic, and institutional worlds to discuss the opportunities and challenges associated with the sustainable use of these resources.
Above right: the round table discussion moderated by Franco Scolari, Director General of Polo Tecnologico Alto Adriatico and featuring Paolo De Alti, Director of the Water Resources Management Service of the FVG Region; Maurizio Spoto, Head of the Miramare Marine Protected Area; Michele Pipan, UNITS – Coordinator of the RESCUE Project; Franco Clementin, President of the CIA Italian Farmers of Friuli Venezia Giulia; and Rodolfo Tlustos, Plastidite, Confindustria Alto Adriatico.
The morning concluded with the launch of a project community, designed to strengthen the dialogue between research, institutions, and the local community. Stay tuned for more info soon on the project community. Below: Diego Santaliana of Polo Tecnologico Alto Adriatico.
The three year-long RESCUE Project, which began in March 2024 and ends in 2027, aims to build knowledge on offshore and deep onshore low salinity aquifers in European coastal areas, to evaluate novel freshwater resources, and help secure a steady supply of water to both population and industry, in times of hydroclimatic extremes.
Led by UNITS and with a consortium that includesOGS, Ruden AS, University of Derby (UoD) and University of Malta (UM), RESCUE’s objective is to help establish the foundations for the evaluation of new resources for local and regional policy makers, while the global applicability of the outputs will allow upscaling to Europe-wide or other large areas worldwide, where water is needed.
