Water

Of the University's various locations, the University Campus is by far the most water-demanding, covering an area of about 77 hectares and accounting for nearly 90 per cent of total consumption. Water within the campus is used for multiple purposes, including irrigation, toilet facilities in all buildings (including sports facilities), food preparation in indoor canteens, cleaning operations, laboratory activities in various departments, fire-fighting services and the operation of evaporative cooling towers in summer.

With regard to drinking water only, the local integrated water service provider delivers to a single point equipped with a meter within the Campus. Water is then distributed to all users through two main pipelines.

A monitoring campaign was undertaken from January 2017 with the aim of rationalising and reducing water consumption on campus. Initially, this was done on a daily basis, and from September 2017, it was done on an hourly basis by reading the meter at the delivery point.

Continuous instrumental monitoring is essential for immediately identifying periods of abnormally high water consumption, which can indicate leaks in the circuit or improper use of the resource. This allows for rapid intervention. This has led to a substantial reduction in consumption of around 40 per cent between 2017 and 2018, as shown in the graph below.

Monitoring consumption has also provided the knowledge necessary to negotiate a more convenient tariff with the water service manager, ensuring significant savings for the university.

In addition to existing measures, short-term actions include modernising parts of the water distribution network and installing new meters to actively record, analyse and manage water use. The aim is to monitor water consumption at the level of individual buildings and develop strategies to reduce it further.

In the medium term, efforts will not be limited to infrastructure improvements alone. Great emphasis will also need to be placed on raising awareness of the need for more sustainable water usage among the entire university community.

In the long term, the following is planned:

• conduct comprehensive monitoring of water consumption on campus and at all other university sites, not limited to drinking water alone.
• increase the use of non-potable water, such as for toilet flushing, where possible.
• adopt strategies to store and reuse stormwater for irrigation and other uses that do not require high-quality water.

Water Resource Management Plan for the 2025–2027 Three-Year Period

The University of Parma’s sustainable water management plan is aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals of the 2030 Agenda. In response to increased water consumption between 2022 and 2024, the university's 2025–2030 strategic plan includes targeted actions to reduce environmental impact, which will be monitored using specific indicators. The plan promotes an integrated approach combining efficient technologies, rainwater reuse, leak prevention and raising awareness within the university community. The plan also serves as a reference tool for evaluating the university's performance in international sustainability rankings.

Water resource management plan_2025-2027_year 2025