Regional nitrogen and phosphorus load reduction approach within safe ecological boundaries
Summary
Horizon Europe is the European Union (EU) funding programme for the period 2021 – 2027, which targets the sectors of research and innovation. The programme’s budget is around € 95.5 billion, of which € 5.4 billion is from NextGenerationEU to stimulate recovery and strengthen the EU’s resilience in the future, and € 4.5 billion is additional aid.
Programme Name
Horizon Europe (2021-2027)
Programme Description
Horizon Europe is the European Union (EU) funding programme for the period 2021 – 2027, which targets the sectors of research and innovation. The programme’s budget is around € 95.5 billion, of which € 5.4 billion is from NextGenerationEU to stimulate recovery and strengthen the EU’s resilience in the future, and € 4.5 billion is additional aid.
Regional nitrogen and phosphorus load reduction approach within safe ecological boundaries
Detailed Call Description
Proposals will:
Develop a robust and transparent methodology to identify safe ecological limit values (e.g. concentration in media) of N/P applicable at regional scale to ensure good status for ecosystems in air/water/soil, inside and outside the local scale and apply the methodology to regions/river basins of the consortium. The local territorial specificity will be taken into account, in terms of territorial extension, land use, orography, distribution of basins and fresh water bodies, coastline, lagoons, etc. Indicators of N/P limit values should align to the monitoring capacity of N/P patterns in the environment.
Review scientific knowledge of the contribution of N/P flows to climate change, including their impacts on carbon sink capacity of soils, of any other impact of N/P life cycle in the environment, of short-term and long-term dynamics of P in the soil matrix and its regional variation across the EU;
Develop and/or improve an existing methodology to assess N/P emissions (flows) from all economic activities that may exist in the region/river basin (i.e. agriculture, aquaculture, forestry, industrial sectors, including food/drink sector, water supply, water/waste management, bioenergy, fossil-based energy production, mining activities, transport, etc.) including unintentional losses and their impacts on air/water/soil environmental quality. Data from existing initiatives, consolidated reporting from national authorities, elaboration from EEA, Eionet, ESTAT, etc. and existing modelling capacity, either locally available or based on a twinning process across regions/clusters shall be considered in order to facilitate harmonisation of the approaches;
Develop and/or improve an existing methodology to identify the N/P load reduction targets for all regions/river basins of the consortium to stay within local N/P limit values;
Apply existing/develop new methodologies to model pathways to reduce N/P emissions to meet load reduction targets and at the same time prevent pollution in air, water and soil, contribute to climate change mitigation, protect biodiversity and avoid pollution swapping. Pathways may include but are not limited to: i) integrated land/marine and bioeconomy; ii) limiting livestock stocking density; iii) integrated agricultural practices, including agro-ecology, aiming at limiting N/P flows and any other environmental impacts; iv) nature-based solutions; v) integrated industrial innovation towards circularity, industrial symbiosis and innovative resources use to improve efficiency and reduce N/P emissions from industrial sectors and any other environmental impact;
Identify inter-sectorial governance models and design policy implementation tools at regional level.
Financing percentage by EU or other bodies / Level of Subsidy or Loan
100%
EU contribution per project: €2,00 million
Eligibility For Participation Notes
If projects use satellite-based Earth observation, positioning, navigation and/or related timing data and services, beneficiaries must make use of Copernicus and/or Galileo/EGNOS.
Programme Category
EU Competitive Programmes
Total Budget
€ 6,00 million
Thematic Categories
Environment and Climate Change
Fisheries/ Aquaculture and Maritime Policy
Industry
Research, Technological Development and Innovation
Rural development
Eligibility for Participation
Central Government
Local Authorities
Other Beneficiaries
Researchers/Research Centers/Institutions
Call Opening Date
22/06/2021
Call Closing Date
06/10/2021
National Contact Point(s)
Research and Innovation Foundation 29a Andrea Michalakopoulou Street, 1075 Nicosia
T.Th. 23422, 1683 Nicosia
+357 22205000
Email: support@research.org.cy
