The Rheticus Circular Water project is set within the context of challenges related to the sustainable management of water resources, with particular emphasis on the reuse of wastewater in agriculture and the adoption of circular economy models. Optimal water resource management is based on the assessment of the water balance, a key reference element for the bodies responsible for this task; these variables can be estimated through the use of data and services derived from satellite-based remote sensing imagery.

Rheticus Circular Water falls within the framework of the Italian Space Agency’s (ASI) “I4DP_MARKET (Innovation for Downstream Preparation for Market)” Programme, contributing to the development of “space applications and services supporting smart cities, also with reference to increasing resilience and adaptation to the effects of ongoing climate change (intelligent water resource management, resilient cities, weather monitoring and alert services, sustainable urban environments)”.

The project aims to design, develop, and prepare for the commercialisation of application services within the integrated water cycle, focused on the reuse of wastewater within a circular economy framework.

Specifically, the proposed services include:

• Optimisation of the revamping of wastewater polishing plants, by correlating the quantity of water produced by the plants and made available for irrigation with the irrigation demand of the areas surrounding the plants;
• Optimisation of the operation of wastewater treatment plants through the estimation of the potential water requirements of crops in the areas surrounding the plants.

End users of the project: MM SpA, Consorzio per la Bonifica della Capitanata.

The project, with a duration of 18 months, has been awarded to the consortium formed by Planetek Italia (lead partner) and Gruppo Giovanni Putignano & Figli S.r.l., in collaboration with the Department of Soil, Plant and Food Sciences (DiSSPA) of the University of Bari Aldo Moro and CIHEAM Bari – Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Bari.

Within the project, Planetek will be responsible, in addition to management and coordination, for aspects related to service design, implementation of functionalities, development and adaptation of the Rheticus platform, and the execution of pilot services.