- Three
distinct processes
- 70%
Possibility to meet 70% of area's industrial water demand
- 2023-2028
Implementation timeline
Solutions
The Cardimed project aims to strengthen climate resilience across the Mediterranean by implementing solutions integrating digital infrastructure and nature-based solutions. One of the project demonstrations is in Oinofyta, Greece, an industrial hub with a concentration of chemical, metallurgy and food processing factories. This has resulted in severe contamination of the nearby river. This demonstration implements a nature-based system for the treatment and reuse of different water sources to meet the industry’s operational needs.
Demand-driven industrial water symbiosis system (DDIWSS)
The management system being implemented focuses on the recovery, treatment and reuse of rainwater, peri-urban run-off and industrial waste water. This system operates through three distinct processes. Each of these processes is tailored to a distinct water stream, and each of them uses a dedicated form of nature-based solution (NBS).
- Process 1: The first NBS in the system is a ‘hybrid xeriscape bioswale system’. This harvest peri-urban run-off and storm water. The harvested water is then reused to irrigate an urban garden of native plant species in the area.
- Process 2: A biofiltration column, connected to an underground rainwater harvesting tank, was installed for the treatment of rainwater. The column contains a multilayered filtration medium, including sand, gravel and zeolite. The top of the column contains a vegetated layer, promoting the growth of a biofilm. This biofilm contributes to pollution removal using absorption.
- Process 3: The final NBS is a subsurface flow constructed wetland. This wetland functions as a biofiltration system that treats waste water produced by local industry. The effluent can then be reused within industrial processes.
Co-benefits
Economic
The DDIWSS reduces the industry’s dependence on fresh water by recovering and reusing rainwater, peri-urban run-off and treated industrial waste water that would otherwise not be used. By using these alternative, treated water sources for industrial activities like cooling and storage, the system can meet more than 70% of the area’s industrial water demand. By reducing reliance on external water sources, some procurement costs may be avoided while increasing resilience to water scarcity. The use of low-maintenance NBS supports resource efficiency, while avoiding costly upkeep interventions.
Social
Oinofyta is a very water-stressed region. The demonstrator contributes to healthier and more resilient local communities by reducing pressure on local water resources and improving water quality in an area affected by industrial pollution. Additionally, harvested storm water is reused to irrigate a native plant garden. This creates greener spaces, enhancing the local landscape and demonstrating sustainable water management practices. It is anticipated that these measures may encourage the wider adoption of NBS by industry and other local stakeholders.
Environmental
The DDIWSS improves local environmental quality by capturing and treating three different water streams for reuse. Interventions like bioswales, biofiltration columns and constructed wetlands remove pollutants such as heavy metals. They also help reduce stormwater run-off, which in turn may reduce the further spread of pollutants. Additionally, by reducing pressures on local water sources, freshwater abstraction may be reduced. Together, these NBS help protect surrounding water bodies, support biodiversity through native vegetation and wetland habitats and strengthen climate resilience by promoting sustainable and circular water use.
Replicability
Scaling up the resilience of water-stressed industrial areas by treating alternative water sources in other regions
Best suited for
This model is best suited for industrial areas facing water scarcity, industrial pollution, and high industrial water demand issues, in particular industrial parks and manufacturing zones in places seeking to reduce freshwater abstraction. It is particularly applicable to locations where multiple alternative water sources, in this case stormwater, rainwater, and industrial wastewater, can be recovered, treated, and reused through NBS.
Stakeholders' role
This model requires close collaboration between actors such as industrial operators, local and regional authorities, water utilities, environmental agencies, research organisations, and local communities. Industrial partners provide operational knowledge and host the treatment systems, while public authorities facilitate permitting, planning, and regulatory compliance. Research organisations support monitoring and optimisation, and stakeholders are engaged throughout planning, implementation, and evaluation to ensure the solutions respond to local environmental, technical, and governance conditions. This multi-stakeholder approach is a core element of the CARDIMED methodology.
Built-in scalable tools
Replication is supported by CARDIMED's digital framework, which harmonises environmental data collection, monitoring, and impact assessment across demonstration sites. The project also provides documents such as a catalogue of nature-based solutions, demonstrator action plans, stakeholder engagement methodologies, Water-Energy-Food-Ecosystem Nexus modelling tools, and replication roadmaps to help adapt solutions to different regional contexts. These tools enable evidence-based planning, facilitate transferability, and support the scaling of successful interventions, through the CARDIMED collaborative network, the EU Mission Adaptation Community of Practice and potentially broadly beyond those.
Funding pathways
The pilot case was developed through the Horizon Europe-funded CARDIMED project, as part of the EU Mission on Adaptation to Climate Change.
