Welcome to the ninth edition of the UPWATER newsletter — your update for the first half of 2025! The past months have been filled with significant progress, inspiring collaborations, and impactful results that we are proud to share with you.

In this edition, you’ll find highlights of our latest activities, updates on our ongoing work, announcements of upcoming events and insights into the pioneering work of two project partners. Plus, we’re sharing news from our partners and the ZeroPollution4Water Cluster. Dive in and stay informed!

11-14 March: UPWATER participated at AquaTech Amsterdam, highlighting the progress and results of the Athens Case Study with a poster and presentation at the InnovationHUB Mini Theater.

12-14 March: UPWATER presented the Ceramic Passive Sampler (CPS) during the Transfiere congress 2025 in Málaga, the European Forum for Science, Technology, and Innovation. A TV report covering the event, including an interview with one of our project partners (in Spanish, starting from 23:05), can be watched here.

11 April: UPWATER officially inaugurated the pilot site at the Moncada Wastewater Treatment Plant in the Besòs river area, just outside Barcelona!

24 April: UPWATER hosted the joint webinar "Lessons learned from Nature-based solutions, from lab to pilot scale to wider implementation", organised together with the EU-funded project LIFE BIODAPH2O. 

1 May: At the EGU Genral Assembly, UPWATER presented a poster on coupled hydrological modelling of PFBS movement into the subsurface, showcasing how different hydrological models are being integrated to better understand PFBS transport in the Kifissos basin, Athens.

6 and 16 May: Two participatory workshops were celebrated, for the Barcelona and for the Athens Case study. More information can be found in the 'what are we working on' section.

In the UPWATER project, several monitoring campaigns and technology evaluations have been performed in the past few weeks. In Spain, the final groundwater sampling campaigns have confirmed that the concentration of Contaminants of Emerging Concern (CECs) is influenced by various factors: proximity to wastewater discharge points, the main river stream, depth, and possible leaks from sewage pipelines. Notably, metal concentrations tend to be higher downstream of the Besòs River. Meanwhile, the Danish site has detected a wide range of pesticide concentrations
(0.1–12 µg/L), and in Athens, our team identified a hotspot for PFAS in groundwater.

The UPWATER team installing passive
samplers in the Besòs pilot plant

A Viral Passive Sampler installed
at the inlet of the Besòs pilot

On the technological side, we are seeing the effectiveness (and limitations) of nature-based solutions (NBS). The Danish biobased system showed strong pollutant attenuation during the summer months, with significantly reduced performance during the cold winter. During summer, the Spanish NBS successfully removed (on average) over 80% of emerging pollutants at a hydraulic loading rate of 400 mm/day. However, in colder months, the rate had to be reduced to maintain the same efficiency. Passive sampling methods like Ceramic Passive Samplers (CPS) are proving reliable; in Denmark, pesticide monitoring results aligned closely with those from traditional grab sampling, showing that CPS can be an effective and efficient tool.

Currently, we are finalizing the groundwater monitoring in Denmark and Greece. We are conducting tracer studies, deploying CPS and other devices, and performing isotopic analyses. These efforts will feed into a full evaluation of all three pilot technologies. In the coming months, new insights from these activities will support the next phase of risk assessment and scaling strategies.

In parallel, the participatory dimension of UPWATER is in full swing. The second workshops in the Besòs and Athens areas (held on May 6 and 16, respectively) brought together local stakeholders. The workshops were held to present and receive feedback on the Governance and Policy Options (GPOs) suggested by the UPWATER team for each case study and their evaluation criteria in a Multicriteria Decision Analysis (MCDA). In the second part of the work-shops the stakeholders were asked to rank the relative importance of different criteria to one another in pairwise comparisons. 

Solutions of the governance & policy options (GPOs)
in the Athens Case Study

The stakeholder feedback and ranking provided crucial input which is now being analyzed and will be taken into account in the MCDA process. Preparations for the third participatory workshop, scheduled for September 2025, have started. 

One major step forward regarding UPWATER's upscaling strategies is the inclusion of Managed Aquifer Recharge (MAR) as a key component of the upscaled solutions, linking surface-level interventions with subsurface aquifer health.

Interested to stay up-to-date? Follow UPWATER on LinkedIn!

We are excited to announce the next Pioneer Portraits, articles showcasing the inspiring individuals behind the UPWATER project. This series highlights the roles, motivations, and contributions of our team members, bringing a personal touch to the innovative work happening in the project. Discover these two Portraits, by clicking on the names below!

19th International Conference on Chemistry and the Environment (ICCE)
8-12 June 2025 | Belgrade, Serbia
UPWATER will be featured at ICCE 2025. Researchers from Aarhus University and IDAEA-CSIC will present new results on ceramic passive samplers and localised micropollutant metabolism in wastewater, highlighting UPWATER’s contribution to advancing sustainable water treatment solutions.

Third IAGC International Conference 
16-21 June 2025 | Cagliari, Italy
UPWATER will present SOUPY at the third IAGC International Conference. SOUPY is a new Python-based tool for groundwater source apportionment, used to identify recharge sources in the Besòs delta aquifer in Barcelona, an essential step for improving groundwater quality and resilience during drought.

Euroanalysis congress 
31 August - 4 September 2025 | Barcelona, Spain
UPWATER will participate at the Euroanalysis 2025 in Barcelona, a forum to share knowledge and experience, a think tank and a place to promote Analytical Chemistry networking. This year's motto: Analytics 5.0: answering societal challenges.

Smart City World Expo
4-6 November 2025 | Barcelona, Spain
Just like last year, UPWATER will participate during the world's biggest and most influential event on urban innovation, including a global summit dedicated to promoting and developing the potential of the Blue Economy. 

Today in the spotlight: Cristina Mejías Molina, PhD student at the University of Barcelona.

Left: Cristina installing Viral Passive Samplers in the Besòs pilot plant.

Cristina: "I am currently completing my PhD in Environmental Virology at the Laboratory of Viral Contaminants in Water and Food under the supervision of Dr Marta Rusiñol and Dr Silvia Bofill. As part of the UPWATER project, my research focuses on detecting and characterising waterborne viruses in
the Besòs aquifer using viral passive samplers (VPS). I am also evaluating the effectiveness of VPS in reducing the presence of viruses in the constructed wetlands of the Montcada i Reixac wastewater treatment plant.

Throughout my thesis, I have been developing sensitive viral detection and characterisation techniques, such as digital PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction) and targeted massive sequencing, as well as sustainable disinfection strategies using graphene-based sponges.

The laboratory has extensive experience in tracking viral contaminants in diverse water bodies. We are currently exploring the potential of VPS, which was originally designed to monitor chemical pollutants, as a low-cost, easy-to-use tool for viral surveillance in both groundwater and reclaimed water. These samplers offer continuous, time-integrated monitoring without the need for power sources or large sample volumes, making them particularly valuable for enhancing water safety in areas with limited resources.

I hope that all the work carried out within the UPWATER project helps to highlight the value of passive samplers as effective tools for monitoring viruses in both groundwater and reclaimed water, and that it ultimately contributes to the safe management of water resources."

Right: Cristina working with the VPS during
a sampling campaign in Barcelona.

Side Event during EU Green Week:
On June 20 (10.00-12.00 CEST), the ZP4W Cluster is hosting a side event that is part of the EU Green Week 2025! During this session, you'll dive into the 32 real-world case studies of the Cluster, that unlock practical solutions for achieving zero pollution in Europe’s drinking and groundwater systems. The agenda and registration link are coming soon. Stay updated via the ZP4WC website:

About the ZP4W Cluster:
The ZP4W Cluster is an initiative that origi-nated from the coalition of seven different water projects, all funded from two Horizon Europe 2022 calls. The cluster aims at crea-ting further collaboration and synergy between the sister projects, developing co-operation actions with other projects running and future projects and other initiatives, such as co-funded and co-programmed partnerships.

Until the end of March 2025, new projects could join the ZP4W Cluster. After the evaluation phase (April), the Cluster is now notifying succesful applicants. Until July, the onboarding process will take place, integrating the new projects into the existing structure and operations. New members are assigned to relevant working groups focused on specific water management themes. Stay tuned to find which projects will collaborate in the ZP4W Cluster!

Interested to stay informed about the ZP4W Cluster? We keep you updated about the cluster activities via the ZeroPollution4Water website and the LinkedIn page of the cluster!

UPwater is an EU Horizon project. It focusses on Understanding groundwater Pollution to protect
and enhance WATERquality. Read more about the project and our project partners on our website.