MULTISOURCE Report reveals key findings from 7 different Nature-based solutions pilots

The MULTISOURCE Deliverable 1.2 “Monitoring Final Report” summarising the main results from monitoring activities across seven different nature-based solutions pilots is now publicly available.

The report highlights key results, findings, achievements and challenges from the seven pilots implemented as part of the MULTISOURCE project, which aimed to test and demonstrate innovative technical solutions for treating a variety of urban water types. The report also offers a snapshot of significant scientific outputs, with detailed descriptions available in separate follow up literature.

• All pilots were monitored for at least one full year, with most extending to two years, covering different seasons and local conditions. Besides the classical parameters and pollutants, monitoring efforts included organic micropollutants, microplastics and pathogens. The results indicate good performance in terms of pollutant reduction, rainwater, and stormwater control, with the systems meeting local regulations for their primary design criteria. The MULTISOURCE project also explored the capacity of these systems to provide water for reuse, enhance treatment capacity, and monitor additional benefits.
• Challenges faced during the project included adapting to local infrastructure constraints, ensuring continuous operation, and addressing specific operating conditions. Despite these challenges, the pilots demonstrated resilience and adaptability, providing valuable lessons for future implementation of nature-based solutions in urban water management.
•  The monitoring work was carried out as planned and enabled detailed assessments and optimization of the pilot systems. The results are pilot-specific, and should not be used to directly compare pilots. The datasets collected include a wide range of pollutants and indicators for each system. These datasets are being prepared for public access on Zenodo’s project community page, along with various published outputs of the project.

This report marks a significant step in understanding and optimising nature-based solutions for sustainable water management, contributing to the wider goal of environmental sustainability. You can find the full report here.