Natural hazard risk analysis in the framework of water safety plans.

The available literature on natural hazard risk analysis focused on the implementation of water safety plans (WSPs) is surprisingly quite poor, despite the significant increase in the number and severity of disasters and adverse effects on drinking water supply systems generated by natural hazards. At the same time, WSPs that conveniently account for natural hazards with a comprehensive approach 'from source to tap' are still scarce as they typically occur at larger spatial scales and adequate prevention, mitigation and adaptation require efficient inter-institutional collaborations. The aim of this paper is to highlight the main bottlenecks for water utilities to include natural hazards in the development of their WSPs. The research adopted a stakeholders-oriented approach, involving a considerable number of water utilities (168), water sectoral agencies (15) and institutions (68) across the Adriatic-Ionian Region through a stepwise process that generated joint SWOT analysis, the development of a decision support system (DSS) focused on WSPs procedures and tabletop exercises. The final outcomes generated strategic documents (REWAS - Adrion Road map for resilient water supply) that highlighted the necessity for efficient cross-sectoral and inter-institutional cooperation in the development of well-founded and robust WSPs to address natural hazard risk analysis for water supply systems (DWSS).

Carbon footprint of products and services: The case of a winery in Greece.

The phenomenon of global warming occurs when air pollutants such as carbon dioxide (CO2) and other GreenHouse Gases (GHGs) are collected into the atmosphere and absorb solar radiation which, according to the natural process, should normally escape into the space, trapping heat and thus causing the planet temperature to rise. One of the available tools of the international scientific community to measure the impact of human activity on the environment, is to record and quantify the carbon footprint, in other words, the total greenhouse gas emissions of a product (or service) throughout its life cycle. The present paper focuses on the above issues and presents the methodology and the outcome of a real case study, aiming to lead to useful conclusions. In this framework a study has been made in order to calculate and analyze the carbon footprint of a wine making company that is based in northern Greece. One of the most important conclusions of this work is the overwhelming share (54 %) that Scope 3 has to the total Carbon Footprint, compared to Scope 1 (25 %) and Scope 2 (21 %), as it is vividly shown in the above Graphical Abstract. While the operation of a wine making company is divided in two main steams, Vineyard and Winery, it is concluded, that the Emissions of the Vineyard participate by 32 % in the total Emissions, while the Emissions of the Winery by 68 % respectively. Significant point of the case study is the total Absorptions that had been calculated to cover almost the 52 % of the total Emissions.

Water resources vulnerability assessment in the Adriatic Sea region: the case of Corfu Island.

Cross-border water resources management and protection is a complicated task to achieve, lacking a common methodological framework. Especially in the Adriatic region, water used for drinking water supply purposes pass from many different countries, turning its management into a hard task to achieve. During the DRINKADRIA project, a common methodological framework has been developed, for efficient and effective cross-border water supply and resources management, taking into consideration different resources types (surface and groundwater) emphasizing in drinking water supply intake. The common methodology for water resources management is based on four pillars: climate characteristics and climate change, water resources availability, quality, and security. The present paper assesses both present and future vulnerability of water resources in the Adriatic region, with special focus on Corfu Island, Greece. The results showed that climate change is expected to impact negatively on water resources availability while at the same time, water demand is expected to increase. Water quality problems will be intensified especially due to land use changes and salt water intrusion. The analysis identified areas where water resources are more vulnerable, allowing decision makers develop management strategies.