European projects

MULTISOURCE

ModULar Tools for Integrating enhanced natural treatment SOlutions in URban water CyclEs

MULTISOURCE provides the knowledge, tools and business models that will enable stakeholders to conduct fit-to-purpose, large-scale planning in their city. In doing so, the project promotes circularity and sustainable development in the urban water sector and enables the widespread uptake of NBS for water treatment, storage, and reuse in urban areas worldwide.

MULTISOURCE monitors 7 distinct NBS pilots across Europe, and works with four municipal and metropolitan public authorities (Lyon, Girona, Milan, Oslo are project partners) to develop a set of tools, increased evidence, as well as business models. Finally, MULTISOURCE also focuses on the applicability of its solutions to cities beyond Europe, with its consortium partners from Viet Nam, Brazil and the United States, as well as an International Advisory Board.

Main aim is to:

  • demonstrate the pollutant removal and risk abatement capacities of enhanced natural treatment systems, as well as the ecosystem benefits and values they provide
  • enable stakeholders in developed and developing countries, including local municipality and metropolitan areas government staff, to reduce pressure on existing infrastructure and freshwater resources by using MULTISOURCE tools to plan, finance, and implement NBSWT in their region
  • accelerate the uptake of nature-based solutions in urban water management worldwide;
  • normalize social equality as an integral target of green infrastructure and smart urban development
  • enhance cross-sectoral international collaboration among governmental staff (both practitioners and policy makers), educators, researchers, and the general public

Overall objective is to facilitate the systematic, citywide planning of nature-based solutions for urban water treatment, storage and reuse.

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Project coordinator
Institut national de recherche pour l’agriculture, l’alimentation et l’environnement (INRAE)

Project partner
Aarhus University (AU)
Ajuntament de Girona (GIRONA)
Forum for Equitable Development (Forum za enakopraven razvoj, društvo) (FER)
Helmholtz-Zentrum fuer Umweltforschung GmbH (UFZ)
Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology (HCMUT)
ICLEI Europasekretariat GmbH (ICLEI)
Fundacio Institut Catala de Recerca de l’Aigua (ICRA)
INRAE Transfert S.A.S (IT)
Institut National des Sciences Appliquées de Lyon (INSA)
IRIDRA srl
Metropole de Lyon (GLYON)
Città Metropolitana di Milano (CMM)
Montana State University – Bozeman (MSU)
Norwegian Institute for Water Research (NIVA)
Oslo Kommune (OSLO)
Rietland bvba (RIETLAND)
Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina (UFSC)
Water Europe (WE) 

Project status
Start 06/2021, End 05/2025
Call: H2020-SC5-2018-2019-2020
Topic: SC5-27-2020
Type of action: Research & Innovation Action
GA number: 101003527
Total costs: € 4,999,631.25
EU contribution: € 4,999,631.25
Funded by HORIZON 2020