Environment: Italy, over 40% lost to leaks in the water supply system

Italy is the country in Europe with the highest water exploitation index, 9.2 billion cubic metres, of which 30.5% occurring in the hydrographic district of the river Po with a 42% leakage rate of the total flow fed into the network^[1]. At the same time, our country has the largest withdrawal of mineral water in the Old Continent, a figure increasing steadily, combined with high hydrogeological vulnerability, as the recent emergency events have shown.

This is part of the data reported in the latest issue of Energy, Environment and Innovation, ENEA science magazine which analyzes the "issues, the technological innovation projects and the role scientific research can play in reducing water stress, promoting a sustainable use of water, strengthening monitoring capability of territory and critical infrastructures, increasing resilience and safeguarding man and the environment", as pointed out by ENEA President Gilberto Dialuce.

The Magazine “Water Emergency. Water resource among new risks, strategies for protection and use” highlights that water supply is increasingly at risk not only in Italy but globally, due to overconsumption, with three billion people suffering shortages and scarcity: a situation that could intensify causing migrations and conflicts. Indeed, according to UN estimates, urban population experiencing water shortages is predicted to increase by 80%, going from 930 million in 2016 to between 1.7 and 2.4 billion in 2050.

Among the topics addressed, water as an increasingly rare and precious resource to be preserved and protected; drought and desertification as a growing social and economic threat; hydrogeological risk and soil impoverishment due to climate change, with its impacts on man and the environment.

The issue opens with an article by Roberto Morabito, Head of the ENEA Sustainability of Production and Territorial Systems Department who stresses the importance of implementing approaches for a sustainable and circular use and management of water in urban industrial and productive contexts, developing initiatives and tools to promote a transition to sustainable production and consumption patterns.

The European Environment Agency shares the same view, with expert Nihat Zal pointing out how water stress -not perceived as a Europe-wide problem until the early 2000s- is increasingly frequent and expanding.

Researchers at the JRC - Joint Research Center of the European Commission presented their activities in support of European policies and regulations that promote the circularity of water resource to be recovered while Nicola La Maddalena, Vice Manager of the International Center for Advanced Mediterranean Agronomic Studies (CIHEAM), reviewed the technical and management measures needed to deal with the emergency.

We need to join forces to tackle these challenges, as stated by Benedetta Brioschi and Nicolò Serpella of The European House - Ambrosetti who, through the "Valore Acqua per l'Italia" community, work for a permanent multi-stakeholder discussion platform. Regulatory aspects, critical issues and scenarios are at the center of the contribution by Enrico Rolle of the Sustainable Development Foundation and Fabio Trezzini of the 183 Group who analyze the aspects to focus on in the coming years to implement the most recent community regulations.

As stated in an interview by Giordano Colarullo, General Manager of Utilitalia, the challenge today is accelerating the closure of the infrastructure gap, with a close attention on governance, while Andrea Guerrini, member of the Board of the Regulatory Authority for Energy, Networks and Environment (ARERA) and president of the European Association of Water Regulators (WAREG), a 360-degree approach is needed, focused on the connections among different sectors and institutional commitment at various levels.

Research can contribute significantly to the global water challenge by providing innovations, solutions and scientifically sound information for a paradigm shift in consumption patterns, as ENEA researchers demonstrate in the 15 project’s focuses and fact sheets in the magazine, containing solutions to address the water crisis.