On Tuesday, 7 October, Gestagua held an open participatory workshop at the College of Civil Engineers of Madrid, Spain. This activity was one of five meetings organised by the I-ReWater consortium in the SUDOE interregional area, with the aim of gathering input from attendees and incorporating it into the future Transnational Strategy for the Use of Regenerated Water.
The session opened with the inaugural lecture by Miguel Ángel Carrillo, president of the College of Civil Engineers of Madrid, and continued with presentations by María Agustina López (Directorate-General for Water of MITECO), Isabel León (CEDEX) and Abel Solera (Polytechnic University of Valencia), who addressed legislation, risk management and the potential of reclaimed water. The I-ReWater project was also presented by its coordinator, Javier J. Cancela (University of Santiago de Compostela), and Pablo Estévez Torrado, head of R&D&I at Gestagua and partner at I-ReWater.
This was followed by a presentation on the successful use of reclaimed water from desalination for agricultural and urban services in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. This was followed by a round table discussion focusing on experiences and knowledge regarding the use of reclaimed water for agricultural irrigation and urban uses. Representatives from the Lugo City Council, EMALSA (Empresa Mixta de Aguas de Las Palmas), Canal Isabel II, the University of Córdoba and Fenacore (National Federation of Irrigation Communities of Spain) took part in the discussion.
The day concluded with a presentation by Ángel Fernández López, CEO of Gestagua, and a networking cocktail reception.
The ideas and reflections gathered during these meetings were evaluated and incorporated into the Strategy, one of the main outcomes of the I-ReWater project, together with the creation of the Regenerated Water Resources in Agriculture HUB.
