Introduction to the CALLISTO platform for water quality monitoring

Water scarcity and deterioration of raw water qualities are an increasing concern for the future drinking water supply. Due to intensive industrial or agricultural activities and the increasing occurrence of extreme summers, the intake water quality can deteriorate yielding risks of eutrophication events with algae blooms in the storage basins. This impacts the operations of water production centres (WPCs) with possible clogging of screens, filters and media, higher maintenance costs, as well as taste, odour and other quality problems in the drinking water. Therefore, restrictions to water intake into storage basins might be necessary during the summer period, with negative consequences on resources availability for drinking water production.

Water production centres carry out regular water quality monitoring to detect and understand changes in chemical, biological and physical parameters in order to maintain or improve the quality of the produced drinking water. The knowledge of driving factors in changing water quality is of pivotal importance in the multi-barrier approach for source water protection planning. Innovative solutions have been experimented with, but are yet inconclusive in effectiveness. Remote sensing techniques and in-situ data processing methods require further development and improvement.

CALLISTO aims to exploit satellite data, Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) observations, in-situ hyperspectral data and water quality measurements to allow virtual presence at the WPC, offering an improved and continuous water quality monitoring. CALLISTO will also exploit Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies to process air quality data close to WPCs and to estimate potential implications to water quality.

Implementation: De Watergroep, RBINS and SMAT will evaluate the project’s results in water quality monitoring and design improved water quality monitoring strategies.