On the occasion of the beginning of the May Fairs in Vilafranca del Penedès, INNOVI organized the traditional Wine Innovation Day, focused this year on the topic "How to deal with the drought: From agronomic practices to irrigation". Highlighting the need to innovate to deal with the consequences of three years of drought.
The day was divided into three parts. The first was devoted to the best practices for taking advantage of the little rainwater available, through the management of the plant and the soil. The second part explored alternatives to establish support irrigation in the vineyards with reclaimed water. Finally, it concluded with a round table with representatives of the sector's entities, who presented their perspectives on the current situation.
Professor Andrés García, IMIDRA researcher and master's degree in soils, opened the day, highlighting the importance of soil management to improve its water retention capacity, recommending plant cover as the optimal technique.
Lluis Giralt from INCAVI presented preliminary results of tests carried out in La Granada, confirming the effectiveness of the plant cover and the soaking technique to improve water infiltration.
Vicenç Canals of the INNOVI Pruning Academy emphasized the importance of green pruning, which reduces the number of branches to ensure a better harvest.
In the sessions on support irrigation with regenerated water, Professor Mujerigo, professor of Environmental Engineering at the UPC and president of ASERSA, compared the situation in Catalonia with California, emphasizing that the actions carried out in that region could be applicable here.
Sonia Garcia, head of the Commonwealth's sanitation service, showed the figures for renewable water from the Penedès-Garraf treatment plants, with an irrigation potential of more than 10,000 hectares.
Anton Boronat from the Department of Climate Action presented existing examples of irrigation with regenerated water in Valls and Reus.
Bàrbara Parra, technician from the Generalitat of Catalonia, explained decree 198/2015 on the agricultural management of effluents from wineries and almàsseries. Carles Gabernet, lawyer from Infraestructures.cat, spoke about the governance of irrigation networks, proposing to the town councils as initiators of the Communities of Irrigation.
Joan Girona, from the IRTA concluded that the quality of the regenerated water is viable for the vineyard, given that the salinity levels are tolerable for this crop.
The day concluded with a round table with the participation of several representative organizations of the sector, such as AE Cava, the Association of Winegrowers of the Penedès, the Catalan Wine Association, the Federation of Agrarian Cooperatives of Catalonia, the Agricultural Institute of Sant Isidre, JARC and Union of Farmers. The participants agreed on the need for irrigation support for the survival of the sector and emphasized the urgency of starting the projects.
Eloi Montcada, cluster manager of INNOVI, presented various initiatives of the organization in relation to adaptation to climate change and water management. So far, six conferences focused on saving water in wineries and soil management have been organized, and more than ten innovation projects have been coordinated with the participation of more than thirty entities. Montcada announced the drafting of a Technical Guide for the retention of rainwater in a natural environment.
The conference, which took place at the VINSEUM, was broadcast live on the YouTube platform, and the content can be retrieved via this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g7cwXz55E8k
8:00 SOIL AND EROSION MODELS by Andrés Garcia, IMIDRA Researcher and Master in Soils
38:57 STUDY OF THE IMPACT OF SOIL MANAGEMENT ON RAINFALL AND EROSION by Lluís Giralt, researcher at INCAVI
56:38 IMPACT OF PRUNING IN THE MANAGEMENT OF WATER STRESS IN THE VINEYARD by Vicenç Canals, Technical Director of the INNOVI Pruning Academy and the Pla de Morei winery
1:16.10 AGRICULTURAL IRRIGATION IN THE FACE OF THE MAJOR MEDITERRANEAN RAINFALL IRREGULARITY by Rafael Mujeriego, Professor of Environmental Engineering at the UPC and president of ASERSA (Spanish Association of Sustainable Water Reutilization)
1:45:10 QUANTITY AND QUALITY OF WATER PURIFIED AND REGENERATED IN PENEDÈS-GARRAF by Sonia García, head of sanitation service of the Penedès Garraf Community.
2:05:14 EXPERIENCES IN USING REGENERATED WATER FOR AGRICULTURAL USE by Anton Boronat, responsible for works and irrigation of the territorial services in Tarragona
1:29:54 DECREE 198/2015 ON AGRICULTURAL MANAGEMENT OF EFFLUENTS PRODUCED IN CELLARS AND WINERIES by Bárbara Parra, technician in Fertilization and waste management at the Generalitat de Catalunya
2:45:34 – PAUSE
3:33:28 – RESUME
3:38:06 CONSTITUTION OF IRRIGATOR COMMUNITIES AND OTHER LEGAL FORMULAS by Carles Gabernet, head of territorial management at infrastructures.cat
4:07:37 QUALITY REQUIREMENTS IN IRRIGATION WATER by Joan Girona, Researcher in the "efficient use of water in agriculture" program at IRTA
4:34:26 ROUND TABLE: sectoral organizations and the fight against drought with the participation of:
Moderator: Eloi Montcada, cluster manager of INNOVI
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