News

Last week, 25-27 October, the EU-Horizon SpongeScapes project kick-off meeting took place in Delft, the Netherlands.

 For three intensive days, colleagues from the 10 different partner organisations participated in workshops, a field visit and insightful discussions to enhance the sponge function of soil, groundwater and surface water systems. 

Sponge function of landscapes refers to the ability of natural or managed ecosystems to absorb, store and slowly release water, thereby mitigating floods and droughts.

The growing challenge of drought

Drought is a growing concern in the Upper Biebrza River Basin in Poland. It is affecting the entire region: both agricultural and wetland ecosystems. Water levels in rivers throughout the catchment have been very low for a long time. In particular, on the Biebrza River at the Sztabin gauge - which closes the Upper Biebrza catchment - the water level has reached a record low of 92 cm on 25 September 2024.  

The SpongeScapes project has released its first major deliverable: 
"Critical review of existing knowledge on sponge functions for different climatic zones, soils and land uses in Europe." 

This comprehensive review offers a much-needed synthesis of the scientific literature and practical knowledge surrounding sponge measures. It covers how these measures perform across different environmental contexts — and just as importantly, where knowledge is still missing. 

8 key knowledge gaps identified 

Re-starting biodiversity monitoring for the Kavouropotamos stream in 2024 

As nature-based solutions gain momentum across Europe, a new study from SpongeScapes Italian partners from the University of Padova  broadens the lens on how we evaluate  sponge measures (Natural Water Retention Measures -NWRMs - in their article)— going beyond flood mitigation and groundwater recharge to also consider, among others, social and economic dimensions.

A More Complete Framework for Evaluation

The study proposes a structured approach to classify both positive (benefits and co-benefits) and negative (trade-offs) impacts of sponge measures, for example: