During the meeting, the main European projects in which the Federation participates were discussed, as well as new funding and collaboration opportunities. The FMRM, which represents the 45 municipalities of the Region of Murcia, plays a key role in representing local interests at the regional, national, and European levels.
The meeting involved the exchange of information on initiatives related to sustainable development, social cohesion, innovation in public administration and adaptation to climate change, areas in which the Federation maintains an active participation through various European programs.
Municipal priorities were also analyzed within the European context, highlighting the importance of strengthening local administrative capacity, promoting digitalization, and fostering inclusive policies that improve the quality of life for citizens.
This visit reinforces the FMRM's commitment to Europe and its role as a key interlocutor in conveying the needs of the municipalities of the Region of Murcia to European institutions, promoting strategic alliances and the exchange of knowledge.
The Federation of Municipalities of the Region of Murcia actively participated in the co-creation session organized by the GREENNOMED Living Lab, an event that brought together various R&D&I projects, notably the European initiative NPower (Horizon Europe). As a policy partner within the NPower consortium, the Federation of Municipalities plays a key role in defining regional governance strategies for the sustainable management of nutrients.
During the day, the FMRM participated in the session, which focused on "Regulatory Barriers and Facilitators for Phosphorus Recovery for Agricultural Use." This activity is directly linked to the federation's role, which is to develop and demonstrate a set of innovative governance measures to overcome current administrative and legal obstacles.
The session included a guided tour of the NPower pilot project located at the Cabezo Beaza Wastewater Treatment Plant in Cartagena. This project is designed for the recovery of phosphorus salts from urban wastewater. This technology allows for the transformation of waste into recovered fertilizers, promoting circularity and reducing dependence on non-renewable resources.
With this participation, the FMRM reinforces its commitment to the transition towards a circular economy, facilitating the transfer of knowledge between academia, industry and public administration to protect the health of Mediterranean soils and ecosystems.
The Federation of Municipalities of the Region of Murcia (FMRM) participated in the closing session of the RemedioOS-2 project , entitled "Salt Flats and Oysters: A Natural Alliance ," held at the headquarters of the Spanish Institute of Oceanography (IEO-CSIC). This meeting served to present the results of this initiative dedicated to the recovery of the flat oyster in the Mar Menor and to discuss sustainable uses of the natural spaces in our region.
The event featured the participation of prominent experts and authorities, such as Marina Albentosa, Researcher at IEO-CSIC and head of the project, Félix Romero, director of the Biodiversity Foundation, Daniel Caballero, head of Coasts of the Region of Murcia and Pedro Javier Sánchez Aznar, mayor of San Pedro del Pinatar.
During the event, the achievements of RemedioOS-2 were highlighted, emphasizing the vital role of these bivalves as natural allies for the health of our coastal ecosystems.
Synergies for nutrient management: Connection with the NPower project
The FMRM has placed particular emphasis on the strategic connection between RemedioOS-2 and the European NPower project. While RemedioOS-2 uses the filtration capacity of oysters to remove nutrients from the water, the NPower project works precisely to balance nitrogen and phosphorus flows on a regional scale to prevent eutrophication.
The biological action of oysters aligns with NPower's objectives of identifying best management practices and recovery technologies to reduce environmental impact in sectors such as aquaculture. These two projects strengthen the Region of Murcia's capacity to mitigate emissions in water and soil, promoting effective and circular environmental management.
Innovation and the future: The path to the Blue Economy with MED-Hubs.
The FMRM also highlighted the potential of RemedioOS-2 to generate new blue economy opportunities , directly linking it to the MED-Hubs initiative . This European project, in which the FMRM also participates, aims to accelerate innovation in key maritime sectors such as sustainable fishing and aquaculture technologies.
The possibility of developing restorative aquaculture models for low trophic level species, as explored in RemedioOS-2, opens avenues for collaboration with MED-Hubs. By involving coastal communities, SMEs, and fishers, the aim is not only ecological restoration but also local economic resilience and the creation of scalable solutions that can be replicated in other regions of the Mediterranean.
By attending this closing ceremony, the FMRM reaffirms its commitment to supporting projects that, through innovation and interregional collaboration , protect our natural heritage while promoting responsible and sustainable economic growth for all municipalities in the Region of Murcia.
The Federation of Municipalities held its Working Committee on Agriculture, Water, and the Environment meeting with the presence of its president, the mayor of Santomera, Víctor Martínez, and the CARM's Minister for Water, Agriculture, Livestock, and Fisheries, Sara Rubira.
The meeting addressed the order to process the new general action program for areas vulnerable to nitrate pollution in the Region of Murcia, and the specific action program for the Vulnerable Zone of Campo de Cartagena.
Around thirty representatives from the region's various municipalities, including mayors, councilors, and technical experts, attended to stay informed about this order, which particularly impacts agricultural areas.
The regional ministry is holding meetings with the region's various socioeconomic stakeholders and has collaborated with the Federation of Municipalities to engage with local communities, especially those most vulnerable to nitrate pollution. The Federation of Municipalities is deeply concerned about this issue and is working through the NPower project, a new European initiative aimed at reducing nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) pollution while optimizing nutrient flows. We develop practical solutions that promote effective environmental management and a circular nutrient economy in Europe's diverse ecosystems. Together with the Regional Clusters in Ireland, Belgium, and Finland, the Spanish N-Power Cluster (Murcia) will act as a knowledge center to guide and validate N-Power activities.
NPower, a project led by Cetenma and funded by the Horizon Europe Programme, has kicked off in Cartagena with the attendance of all members of the 24 partner organisations from 5 European countries and Switzerland, including the Federation of Municipalities of the Region of Murcia.
The launch conference of the European project “NPOWER: Balancing Nitrogen and Phosphorus flows by budgeting at regional scale”, coordinated by CETENMA and funded by the European Commission under the HORIZON EUROPE programme, has been held. In it, 24 partners from five European countries and Switzerland have presented the project and the activities that will be carried out over the next four years of joint work between its participants: experts and key actors in relation to the challenges presented by the management of nutrients in air, water and soil in the bioeconomy in urban, rural and coastal areas.
It is an innovative European initiative to combat nitrogen and phosphorus pollution, which, although good for plants, are harmful to seas, rivers and lakes in excess. It is focused on four regions: Spain, Belgium, Finland and Ireland, developing six recovery technologies that can transform nitrogen and phosphorus waste into eight different types of fertilizers.
This project focuses not only on reducing nitrogen and phosphorus pollution in rivers, lakes, and seas—and, in the case of this region, primarily affecting the Mar Menor lagoon—but also on creating something valuable from this waste. This could be considered a prime example of a circular economy, rather than a linear take-make-dispose model , as we are closing the loop, recovering resources, and minimizing waste.
The FMRM has an important role in NPower, because it will try to involve the political class, as well as regional, national and European public workers. The organisation that includes the 45 Murcian municipalities will be responsible for the organisation of four workshops where the measures that can be taken to achieve the project's objective will be discussed, as well as the holding of a final conference in Brussels to present the results obtained, and the measures that will allow progress to be made in reducing the levels of nitrites and phosphates in our rivers, lakes and seas, especially in the Mar Menor.
With this project, the Federation of Municipalities has now funded 7 projects by the European Union since it embarked on this type of initiative in 2019, with 5 currently active.
FMRM President Víctor Manuel López Abenza says that “participating in this project is one of the great challenges for the coming years, which will further enhance the role of public administration in making decisions that affect the care of our environment.”
Manuel Pato, director of the European Projects area of the Federation of Municipalities, present at the event organised by Cetenma, explained that “this project will contribute to ensuring that innovation and knowledge influence local and regional political instruments, in order to achieve sustainable towns and cities in harmony with nature and citizens, and that is the reason that excites us in this environmental commitment”.
Manage consent
We use our own and third-party cookies to facilitate your navigation on the website, to understand how you interact with us and to collect statistical data. Please read our cookie policy to learn more about the cookies we use, their purpose and how to configure or reject them, if you so wish.
Functional
Always active
The storage or technical access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of allowing the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication through an electronic communications network. .
Preferences
Storage or technical access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences not requested by the subscriber or user.
Global Data
The storage or technical access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes.The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone can not usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
Technical storage or access is necessary to create user profiles to serve advertising, or to track the user across a website or multiple websites for similar marketing purposes.
