Italian Development Cooperation and ENEA together for sustainable use of water and energy in agricultural development waiting for EXPO 2015

The Italian Development Cooperation and ENEA afford together the challenges of a sustainable use of water and energy resources for agricultural development in preparation of  EXPO 2015.

The nexus approach expresses the interconnections  between food, water and energy, representing  the most advanced method to link the economic, social and environmental dimension in the sustainable development.

During a  joint technical seminar that took place at the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MAECI) under the auspices of the Directorate for Development Cooperation (DGCS), these subjects were debated in preparation of a new appointment at the EXPO 2015 in Milan foreseen for May 21. In Milan the debate will involve also representatives of the European Commission and of the United Nations Organization. “In order to meet the growing demand of these interlinked resources, an integrated and multidisciplinary vision is needed.  ENEA - underlines Federico Testa,  ENEA Commissioner – shares this vision and is ready to cooperate with other relevant institutions, first of all with the Italian Development Cooperation.”

“ ENEA - continues Testa – is promoting and sharing innovative technologies with the local communities, in the framework of cooperation projects that are focused on the global sustainability. We are already involved in many of these projects, and we are willing to enhance our efforts in this direction.”

The meeting was opened by Federico Testa e Giampaolo Cantini, Director General of the Development Cooperation of the Ministry; the speakers were introduced by  Gabriele Zanini, Head of the Technical Unit for Models, Methods and Technologies for Environmental Assessments, in ENEA; they were Emanuela Colombo, Professor at the Energy Department of Milan Polytechnic  Nicola Lamaddalena, Director of the Department “Water and Soil Management” of the International Centre for Advanced Mediterranean Agronomic Studies (CIHEAM), Olivier Dubois, Coordinator of the Energy Program at FAO and Enrico Giovannini, President of the UN Commission “Data revolution for sustainable development”.

During the meeting, the most recent approaches on the debated themes offered a shared view on the necessity of adopting  resource efficiency  models, based on energy efficiency on one side, on renewable energy sources on the other, and of course on the optimization of the water use. ENEA and the DG of the Development Cooperation have signed a common Framework Agreement  that increases the values of their joint activities in these fields.

In the final document of the Rio + 20 Conference, water, energy and land have been identified as priority areas: the efficient use of these natural resources, which contribute to food production, was recognized as a first step towards  eradication of poverty and the promotion of sustainable economic and social development.

Already today, nearly one billion people lack access to safe drinking water, one billion people suffer from hunger and two and a half billion people have no access to modern forms of energy. Intensive crops and livestock consume large amounts of water. Of all freshwater withdrawn for human use, industrial and household uses account for 20 and 10 per cent respectively, while agriculture consumes on average around 70 per cent and much more in some locations. On the other hand, the food sector currently accounts for around 30 per cent of the world’s total energy consumption. These challenges will intensify in the future. As the world population rises to an expect 9 billion by 2050, the OECD Environmental Outlook to 2050 projects that global demand for energy and water will increase by 80% and 55% by 2050 respectively. To meet increased demand, FAO projects that global agricultural production in 2050 will be 60 per cent higher than in 2005.