Analysis and implementation of a predictive model for sustainable water management

The key elements of the EU regulatory framework in water resources management are the Water Framework Directive (Directive 2000/60/EC) and the CAP. The former defines good ecological status on the basis of quantitative aspects related to surface water bodies, i.e. hydro-morphological elements (e.g. flow regime). The goal of the Directive is to achieve good quantitative status of all groundwater bodies by 2015, and at the latest by 2027, where justified exemptions apply. This means that water abstractions should not cause a lowering of groundwater levels such as to lead to a deterioration of groundwater status, thus the failure to achieve the objectives. Regarding the CAP, among its nine strategic objectives for 2023-2027 is the sustainable management of natural resources (including water). The fifth objective, called Efficient soil management, aims to promote sustainable development through the efficient management of water for irrigation use, as well as water management also at the territorial scale to mitigate soil erosion. All of these aspects have involved the integration of community policies, materializing in the eco-conditionality that relates to compulsory management criteria (Cgo) and the maintenance of land in good agronomic and environmental conditions (Bcaa), and to payments for the provision of environmental public goods and services, financed by agri-environmental measures. At such a time in history, the issue of sustainable water resource management is directly related to the variable of water stress on lands where it is crucial to pay attention to the water withdrawals that have been made.