Action C.1: Performance indicators monitoring
The environmental performance of the PNFR technology will be corroborated in terms of both the reuse/recycling of the treated effluents within the processes of the fruit packaging plant (water savings), as well as the carbon footprint from the operation of the pilot unit. To this purpose ZAGORIN will collect accurate data during the monitoring of waste reduction, water saving and better use of water resources.
In addition, all parameters affecting the carbon footprint of the pilot unit will be determined and be assembled into an appropriate algorithm. These parameters consist of 2 groups:
- The direct (operational) parameters, e.g. electricity consumption etc.
- The indirect parameters (management) parameters, e.g. fresh water saving, wastewater concentrate final management, etc.
Action Progress: The LIFE KPI Webtool will be used for monitoring of the project indicators, where the beneficiaries BPI and NCSRD will upload all, relevant to the indicators, data. In this way, the outcomes at project level will be compared to the relevant situation at EU level, in those cases where such data will be available. Except from the Carbon Footprint, the water savings are evaluated by performance indicators such as the “Waste Reduction”, “Water Saving” and “Reduced water consumption”.
Action C.2 Socioeconomic impact of the project
The overall goal of the Socio-Economic Impacts Assessment is to monitor the socioeconomic impact of the project at meso- and macro- level (in addition to the economic performance of the innovative solution as a single unit compared to already-existing solutions). The beneficiaries will consider the economic effects of this innovation when a) is applied in a systemic way to the fruits and vegetables processing (FVP) industry and b) is scaled at regional level considering also other possible applications. This analysis will not be limited to the economic benefits for the FVP industry, but will also include the benefits for the overall society, for example those derived by a reduction in water pollution and addressing water scarcity at local level with the related consequences in terms of health-related costs, prosperity of water availability depending activities (tourism and primary production at the regional level), regional attractiveness, improved quality of life for their inhabitants, etc.
Action Progress: The implementation of Action C2 (Socioeconomic impact of the project) started in December 2019 and will last until October 2021. Action C2 includes important activities aimed at assessing the mid- and long-term socio-economic impact of LIFE PureAgroH2O (in addition to the cost-effectiveness of the innovative solution compared to other available technologies) with main axes:
• Approaching and developing communication with stakeholders
• Analyzing the attitudes, preferences and opinions of stakeholders to propose strategies based on their real needs.
The ultimate goal is to ensure the highest possible adoption of LIFE PureAgroH20 innovative technology, enabling the design of solutions that are consistent with stakeholders’ pursuits.
In this context, the following individual actions have been / are being implemented in the current period
• Communication with stakeholders, in particular with representatives of the agri-industry, in the context of the “Conference on Innovative Waste Water Treatment and Water Recycling Technologies for the Food Industry” held in Athens (17/1/2020), with the participation of more than 150 stakeholders involved in agribusiness, research organizations, authorities, environmental organizations and other bodies (https://www.lifepureagroh2o.com/1st-conference/).
• In-person meetings with representatives of agribusinesses and retailers (semi-structured interviews – qualitative research) in order to diagnose their needs, preferences and views concerning sustainable water management in their businesses.
• Focus group meeting with five agri-industry representatives and experts (qualitative research).
• Search, recording and evaluation of examples of water reuse or of sustainable water management – in general – in agribusiness, within scientific publications, results of research projects and other relevant sources.
• Evaluation of the policy framework on the sustainable use of water in agro-industry.
• Questionnaire design.
Deliverable C2.1: Socio-economic impact assessment methodology
The main objective of the Socio-Economic Impact Assessment is to monitor the impact of the LIFE PureAgroH2O project on a medium- and macro-level (in addition to the cost-effectiveness of the innovative solution individually, compared to the technologies available). This analysis should not and will not be constrained to the economic benefits of the new technology, however, the social benefits of reducing – avoiding water pollution and addressing water scarcity at local level, as well as the consequent effects on cost effectiveness will be particularly considered.
Particular cost-drivers of interest will involve those related to health, development of activities that depend on water availability (tourism, rural-primary production), improvement of the quality of life of local communities etc. In order to achieve this goal, the approach for the socioeconomic assessment builds upon two axes: ‘Approach and development of communication with stakeholders’ and ‘Analysis of the attitudes, preferences and views of stakeholders and promotion of the adoption of the new technology’.
Key audiences and stakeholders have already been identified, but this initial list will be supplemented with information derived during the implementation of the Action. The methodological framework comprises four steps (Literature review and on-desk analysis; Qualitative analysis of the needs and attitudes of stakeholders; Assessment of attitudes and perceptions of agribusiness actors (quantitative analysis); Elaboration and assessment of real-life scenarios of technology implementation).
The analysis will combine established tools to collect primary qualitative and quantitative data (e.g. in-person interviews, focus groups, literature review) which will be analyzed by means of statistical methods. The expected key outcome is a set of scenarios of technology adoption, which will lead to the design of specific strategies to approach market segments and precede solutions tailor-made for various potential end-users.
For more information, please contact Dr E. Markellou (e.markellou@bpi.gr).