Improving water management in Andalusian agriculture has become a priority given the increasingly frequent periods of drought that the region faces. In response to this challenge, the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Water, and Rural Development, through the Institute of Agricultural and Fisheries Research and Training (IFAPA), has submitted the GestIAgua project to the call for proposals from the Ministry of University, Research, and Innovation for the development of innovative solutions to address drought, within the Andalusian Drought Plan.
GestIAgua, which has been selected and has been allocated a budget of 350,000 euros for two years, emerges as a response to the demand from the Andalusian agricultural sector for solutions that optimize the available water resources in a context of drought and reduced irrigation supplies. It will develop innovative advisory tools based on experimentation, sensor technology, and artificial intelligence.
The project will offer specific solutions for rainfed and irrigated olive groves, nut crops (almond, walnut, and pistachio), orange trees, vineyards, subtropical crops (avocado and mango), and berries (strawberry, raspberry, and blueberry), with the ultimate goal of optimizing irrigation application and soil management.
This initiative is structured into three modules, with a focus on the Aqua platform providing real-time open data from Sensorized Pilot Plots (PPS) distributed throughout Andalusia using field sensors, remote sensing techniques, and information from the Andalusian Agroclimatic Information Network.
The second module will focus on developing advisory tools and decision support systems centered on irrigation scheduling and soil management using artificial intelligence techniques; while the third module will involve disseminating the knowledge generated in the project to the sector through innovative communication strategies, seminars, and workshops.
Open and easily accessible platform
The Aqua platform will provide a service for storing and visualizing information at different scales in an entirely open and easily accessible manner to facilitate efficient use of water resources.
At a primary level, it will integrate information from the European Space Agency’s satellites like Sentinel and crop characterization systems using images from NASA’s Landsat satellites. At a secondary level, it will integrate high-resolution spatial information using drones.
Additionally, it will incorporate data from the Andalusian Agroclimatic Information Network and information measured by a network of state-of-the-art sensors. To achieve this, about a hundred supervised pilot plots (PSS) will be used, located in IFAPA centers and collaborative farms distributed throughout Andalusia.
The goal is to establish a sustainable platform beyond the project that integrates all available information related to water management in Andalusia, with standardized protocols supervised by IFAPA to serve as a foundation for employing artificial intelligence in Mediterranean agriculture.
Three support tools
In the described pilot plots an optimized irrigation scheduling and soil management will be conducted based on the farm’s characteristics, available irrigation supply, and information stored in the Aqua platform. Based on this, three types of decision support tools will be developed.
These will be crop-specific tools based on information from the pilot plots; specific tools based on digital twins development including daily sensor data; as well as crop-specific tools using soil water balance.
Finally, in the third module, the program for transferring and disseminating the project results will involve direct participation from the sector and focus on computer applications; working spaces with sector companies, farmers, and technicians; technical and farmer workshops; as well as the tools generated in the project.
Timeline of Activities
The project will conclude on December 31, 2026, with the expectation that the Aqua platform will be operational before this summer, the pilot plot network will be operational after the summer, and the first decision support tools will begin before the 2026 irrigation season. Finally, the transfer program will commence in the summer of 2025 and continue until the project’s completion.
The project partners, including IFAPA, IAS-CSIC, and the Genil-Cabra Irrigation Community, have already begun coordination meetings to select pilot plots, sensors, and communication networks for implementation.