Nature-based solutions in Granollers: circular economy for cities and communities
The city of Granollers (Barcelona) is located in a geographical area that suffers from frequent draughts. The Granollers city council is a local authority with a high level of environmental commitment and has, as one of its municipal strategies, to prevent that the city lives under water- stressed conditions. Several policies and actions have been implemented to fight against water scarcity in dry periods, but one of the best solutions has been the creation of a water reuse network.
This local water reuse project began like a conventional restoration process of a degraded periurban area, but today it has become a multifunctional initiative. Varied benefits have been delivered for almost 20 years: ecosystemic services from a NBS wetland and a social corridor from city centre to the recovered periurban area. In the framework of the project CEMOWAS2, some scientific reports and demonstrative projects are complementing and overseeing this green infrastructure project of the Granollers city.
CEMOWAS2 is a project financed by the Interreg Sudoe Programme, with 8 partners from Portugal, Spain and France, aiming to include a circular economy vision on the management of organic waste and the urban cycle of water, within southwestern European regions. Lisbon has been embracing this vision by tracking the food chain in the city and studying the perception of reuse of recycled water within the population. It has also been promoting demonstrative actions related with watering green public areas using recycled water and educational initiatives towards the closing of the organic waste cycle in schools.
- Xavier Romero, Granollers City Council
- Diana Henriques, Lisboa e-Nova Agencia de Energia e Ambiente de Lisboa
- Nazaré Couto, CENSE, NOVA School of Science and Technology, NOVA University Lisbon