Water for LIFE: securing Europe’s water resilience for the future

Across the EU, water supplies are under increasing strain. With temperatures in some countries again reaching the mid-40s centigrade this summer, the 2025 EU Water Resilience Strategy could not come at a better time.  

The strategy aims to restore and protect water supplies, build a water-smart economy and ensure everyone has access to clean and affordable water. An essential component is the source-to-sea approach, which takes into account the impact of pollution on the entire water system from rivers, lakes and aquifers to beaches, coasts and oceans.   

Belgian projects LIFE NARMENA and LIFE BELINI both aim to reduce pollution — both from farming and industry — whilst improving water quality and encouraging nature and wildlife to thrive. The € 4.2 million LIFE NARMENA project, which runs through to 2027, brings 7 partner organisations together to develop and test nature-based solutions such as bacteria-assisted phytoremediation and constructed wetlands for removing historical metal pollution in river sediment and soils.   

‘Almost 50% of Flemish watercourses are contaminated with heavy metals,’ explains project coordinator Froukje Kuijk. ‘We are seeking to develop and implement sustainable, nature-based remediation methods that are both cost-effective and non-invasive. These remediation techniques are not yet widely used in European watercourses.’   

Demonstration sites have been set up on 3 small rivers which flow through Natura 2000 sites in Flanders which have been contaminated by toxic chemicals including cadmium, chromium, arsenic and chlorine. The project recently completed an ecotoxicity model to support its work on bacteria-assisted phytoremediation and constructed wetlands, which in turn will boost water storage capacity.  

Also in Belgium, the €17.7 million LIFE BELINI project — which closes at the end of 2026 — aims to breathe life back into the heavily polluted and over-used River Scheldt catchment area. So far, the 8-partner project consortium has restored 2.8 km of banks, reopened 1 km of river, constructed 2 km of new footpaths, created 45 ha of new green spaces and 24 ha of new ponds, and built 275 000 m3 of additional water storage.  

‘The population density in this area is one of the highest in Europe, which puts the water system under great stress,’ says project coordinator Lindsay Geerts. ‘The entire area is prone to flooding, the surface and ground water is seriously polluted by industry and intensive agriculture. We aim not only to improve the water quality, but also contribute to improved biodiversity and limit the risk of flooding.’  

Both LIFE NARMENA and LIFE Belini support the 2025 Water Resilience Strategy and are aligned with the Water Framework Directive and the Directives on Habitats, Drinking Water and Birds. They also support the broader aims of the European Green Deal and 2050 Climate-Neutral Strategy.