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North Holland
Kaludborg
Syros
Costa Brava

Case Studies Exploring Alternative Water Resources across Europe

RECREATE is active in four coastal regions across Europe, each facing growing water stress and already experienced in applying Alternative Water Resources (AWR). These Case Studies, located in North Holland (The Netherlands), Kalundborg (Denmark), Costa Brava (Spain) and Syros (Greece), provide real-world testing grounds to advance water reuse, desalination, rainwater harvesting and other innovative solutions.

 

While all four regions have a background in AWR use, RECREATE is helping them go further, developing integrated strategies, engaging stakeholders and demonstrating scalable approaches for climate-resilient water management.

A More Resilient Water Supply

RECREATE aims to improve the resilience of water supplies and protect natural water resources by supporting the inclusion of AWR in regional and local water management planning. The project also works to build awareness, acceptance and trust in the essential role of AWR in adapting to climate change.

 

With four case studies located in different biogeographical regions – North Holland (The Netherlands), Kalundborg (Denmark), Syros-South Aegean (Greece) and Costa Brava (Spain) – RECREATE addresses a wide range of environmental and governance contexts. These sites explicitly consider human health risks, local regulatory, cultural and socio-economic conditions and a variety of climate stress scenarios.

 

To support evidence-based decision-making, RECREATE is developing an open access knowledge repository on the cost-efficiency, environmental and health impacts of various AWR strategies. This resource will form a central part of a Digital Decision Support Framework, which – alongside climate impact projections, local adaptation strategies and a decision matrix – will be used to co-create adaptive water management pathways.

Case Studies

North Holland
Kaludborg
Syros
Costa Brava

Setting the Foundation for Resilient Water

RECREATE is shaping the future of water resource management by combining local innovation, stakeholder engagement and knowledge sharing. At its core, the project focuses on developing, assessing and demonstrating solutions at the case study level, while also co-creating strategies with local actors and actively disseminating results to support broader adoption.

 

Some of RECREATE's key expected outcomes include:

  • A digital decision support framework to guide adaptive water planning

  • An open access repository of knowledge and data on AWR technologies

  • Management strategies tailored to diverse environmental and governance contexts

  • Cost-benefit analyses demonstrating the value of integrating AWR into existing systems

  • Feasibility studies to support the upscaling and replication of solutions

 

Together, these elements provide a strong foundation for more resilient, efficient and inclusive water systems.

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