Will the Alps continue to be Europe's inexhaustible water reservoir? The Waterwise project is collecting an unprecedented amount of data from all Alpine peaks to better understand the vulnerability of headwater catchments.
According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the melting of Alpine glaciers threatens the water supply of mountain communities and the millions of people living downstream. Europe's largest mountain range is estimated to be warming at nearly double the global average rate.
The Contamines-Montjoie Nature Reserve, located near the French side of Mont Blanc, is one of the pilot sites of the transnational Waterwise project, which aims to model the evolution of Alpine water resources under different climate scenarios and the various pressures that will affect these ecosystems in the future.
Fundamentally, the project aims to bridge the gap between scientists and local communities to build sustainable water strategies together.
"We only protect what we know. This project aims to increase knowledge and, consequently, strengthen protection," says Geoffrey Garcel, a reserve warden, who hiked to Plan Jovet, where two lakes lie near a now-vanished glacier. Like many headwater catchments, this is a difficult-to-access area where collecting data on water conditions can be complex.
Waterwise aims to gather a large body of already available information and collect missing data through field surveys and the installation of lightweight sensors called "smart rocks," placed within watercourses. The collected data includes information on water quantity, ecological status, and temperature. This information is cross-referenced with socio-economic data related to, for example, agriculture, energy production, and tourism.
For instance, the Contamines-Montjoie Reserve is crossed each year by thousands of hikers along the famous "Tour du Mont Blanc." In summer, herds of cows graze along mountain streams. The French energy company EDF diverts part of the water to power a hydroelectric plant in the nearby valley. These pressures have led the reserve to adopt adaptation measures in recent years.
The data collected through Waterwise will also be used to feed a freely accessible "digital toolbox," which will allow policymakers and stakeholders in Alpine communities to jointly discuss adaptation measures needed to ensure the resilience of their territories. Leveraging the knowledge of mountain stakeholders is another important aspect of Waterwise.
With a total budget of €2.69 million, the Waterwise project is co-financed with €1.61 million from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). It brings together 12 partners from France, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, and Slovenia.
