PCP WISE was proudly represented at the Amsterdam Space Symposium by Hans Van Leeuwen from STOWA, who delivered a presentation on novel approaches to local water management in urban and rural settings.
Local water management is increasingly critical across Europe – not only for immediate climate adaptation to extreme events such as flooding and wildfires, but also for long-term impacts on food production, drinking water resources, biodiversity, and infrastructure. Within this context, water quantity and quality are deeply interconnected, and advanced monitoring techniques are becoming essential.
Hans Van Leeuwen highlighted how emerging technologies – including earth observation (EO), twinning modeling, and AI/ML – are complementing traditional field sampling and modeling to provide comprehensive aquatic ecological and chemical water quality indicators. These approaches are crucial for enabling cross-border interoperability in line with the European Water Framework Directive, fostering European cooperation, standardisation, and data sharing.
PCP WISE is operationalising water information systems to assess local water balance conditions in rural and urban environments. By understanding local spatio-temporal water dynamics, stakeholders can better assess related water quality conditions. Importantly, this information is co-defined by public buyers, knowledge institutions, and market entities, ensuring solutions are tailored to sectorial needs – water management, agriculture, urban planning, and nature conservation alike. The Knowledge Network Water in the Netherlands exemplifies this “triple helix” collaboration, combining research, market innovation, and public sector requirements for actionable water management insights.
Hans Van Leeuwen’s presentation was part of the session “Global Data and Local Solutions for Co-designing Space-based Capabilities for Local Water Quality Challenges”, organised by the Netherlands Space Agency, alongside contributions from Rijkswaterstaat (Dutch Directorate General for Public Works and Water Management), Fugro and WaterInsight. The session emphasised the importance of downstream knowledge integration, where public demand steers supplier innovation, enabling future operational space-based monitoring systems to meet local water management needs effectively.
The participation of PCP WISE at the Amsterdam Space Symposium underscores the project’s commitment to leveraging space-based capabilities to address pressing local water challenges, demonstrating Europe’s leadership in innovative, collaborative water management solutions.
Photo credits: Ruud Grim (Netherlands Space Agency).
