European project MUHA - MUltiHAzard framework for water related risks management

To improve the capacity of forecasting, prevention and mitigation of natural and anthropogenic risks in water supply systems and strengthen cooperation between managing bodies and civil protection systems at national, European and international level are the key objectives of the European Project MUHA (MUltiHAzard framework for water related risks management). The European Project that sees the participation of the Civil Protection Department as a partner, started in March 2020 and will end on August 2022.

Lead partner of the Project is the National Research Council (CNR), specifically the Institute for Water Research (IRSA) and the Research Institute for Hydrogeological Protection (IRPI).

Pollution, flooding, drought, and damage to critical infrastructure due to earthquakes are the four risks affecting supply systems covered by the project.

The Project is structured in three phases. The first consists in the identification of current emergency procedures and possible criticalities. The second deals with the development of new methodologies and procedures in selected case studies through pilot actions. The third phase focuses on the development of guidelines for Water Security Plans. Pilot actions have been classified into four groups:

• Drought;
• Flooding;
• Earthquake;
• Accidental Pollution;

A congruous harmonization between Water Security Plans, developed by Water Service Managers, and civil protection mechanisms at transnational level is the key objective of the project. A set of guidelines documents will be developed in order to set a uniform approach towards the best management of Water Supply Systems (WSS) in relation to the above mentioned risks. This approach will be applied in six pilot sites, where the management and operation of water supply services are related to the type of risk considered, resilience measures tested and related improvement strategies. The case studies were selected assuming that all of them are exposed to at least three of the four anticipated risks.

The project partners' diverse experience allows for a multidisciplinary approach to water supply security, which, in turn, ensures its cross-sector applicability.

The target groups that will maximally benefit from the results of the MUHA project are sector entities, including both water service agencies and civil protection agencies, public or private managers responsible for local or regional water supply, and national, regional, and local public authorities involved in the management of water resources under routine and emergency conditions.

 MUHA is expected to produce action plans, methods and tools dedicated to improving the Water Safety Plans for the Adriatic-Ionian area, that by 2023 must be integrated into EU existing policies.