This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 642224
The EU Nitrates directive requires member states to monitor the water status, to design Nitrate Vulnerable Zones (NVZs), as well as to develop action programmes and Codes of Good Agricultural Practices. In their last report, the Commission declared its concerns about the action programs effectiveness. Actually, nitrates leaching from farms to groundwater is a very complex process, which hinders the evaluation of specific measures regarding agricultural practices. The FREEWAT tools, however, can be used to evaluate the reliability of actions programs. Amaltea case study will be conducted in a NVZ of Navarra, Spain. We will estimate nitrates and water contribution to groundwater from each farm, considering CAP data. ModFlow simulations will be conducted in FREEWAT, estimating nitrates concentration and comparing simulation results with the existing monitoring network. Finally, evaluations of the existing Navarra’s action program will be performed, suggesting improvements. It means a business opportunity to Amaltea, since we could conduct similar tasks all over Europe.
