B-WaterSmart: water-smart solutions in Flanders

Climate change, drought and water scarcity call for circular water solutions. The partners in the Living Lab Flanders are developing, at a local-scale level, technical demonstrations of such solutions, which are based for instance on alternative sources and the reuse of wastewater for drinking water production. The management of heavy rainfall and of water reuse for irrigation are also among the activities of this ‘lab’, in which De Watergroep, Aquafin, the Research Station for Vegetable Production, VITO, the City of Mechelen and KWR are among the participants.

Six Living Labs for circular water and better water management

The Living Lab is being conducted under the banner of the B-WaterSmart project, which is part of the European Horizon 2020 research programme. B-WaterSmart aims at developing water-smart solutions in six living labs that contribute to a transformation to an economy and a society that deals with water intelligently. Different stakeholders in the water sector thus work together on the prevention of water shortages and pollution, the strengthening of climate resilience, the effective management of water-related risks, the recovery of water and valuable materials, and the use of smart data for the efficient and safe allocation of water. The B-WaterSmart project intends to improve water management in local coastal areas through collaboration, the sharing of best practices, and by setting up a market for tools and technologies.