Roads and highways are crossing the north-west-European (NWE) territory abundantly. They usually drain the runoff water from rainfall events swiftly to canals/rivers, whereas local stakeholders would urgently need this surplus water. Rural_Roadwater_Rescue (RRR) demonstrated an actionable strategy how to save, treat (clean) and locally distribute water through transformation of existing roads/highways.
Climate change is causing an imbalance between the water runoff from rivers and precipitation and the urgent needs of various users. In short periods, extreme weather events cause water surpluses, while increasingly long dry periods lead to water shortages. Existing storage systems are insufficient to cope with this.
The RRR project's strategy involved an integrated, cross-sector methodology involving multiple stakeholders.
The project explored, how roads and highways can be transformed from mono- to multifunctional: They can be technically converted into temporary reservoirs for runoff water (next to/under the road), while at the same time complying with legal requirements for infrastructure and water quality in the respective regions. The next step was to show, how water distribution can be organized in cooperation with local stakeholders (farmers, households, public services/institutions, industry, etc.) and integrated into local spatial planning processes depending on the different local demand profiles of the target groups in the various areas they pass through.
The TZW's role in the RRR project was primarily to involve German institutions, including authorities, agencies, ministries, and SMEs in the water sector in discussions in the various workshops, as well as to gather information from the German associated partners REK, Autobahn and MUST and to compile legal frameworks for specific water uses in Germany. With the TZW's expertise in German and EU legislation on drinking water and water reuse, water quality and water treatment, as well as the legal background, future use cases in Germany were selected together with the German associated partners.
The RRR partners developed strategic guidelines covering the legal framework, practical solutions, community involvement, and an action plan for implementation. The project has established a long-term, transnational, cross-sectoral, multidisciplinary cooperation network. RRR thus serves as an important basis and starting point for the broader introduction of extensive investments, replicable transformation initiatives, and pilot strategies for the reuse of roadwater in the future.
