The Palos de la Frontera Irrigation Community has launched SmartPalos, an ambitious digitalisation project designed to improve the sustainability and efficiency of fertigation through the implementation of advanced technological tools for water control and management on farms.
SmartPalos aims to promote the sustainable and intelligent management of fertigation within CR Palos by deploying digital solutions. The project is being developed thanks to support obtained under Spain’s Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan, through the PERTE for the Digitalisation of the Water Cycle, within the second call for grants aimed at digitalising water user communities for irrigation.
With a total investment of €1,127,545.87 and approved funding of €1,124,430.87, SmartPalos has been created to ensure fair and sustainable management of water resources in a context marked by water stress and the need to protect groundwater from diffuse pollution.
Digital tools for more efficient irrigation
The initiative will allow CR Palos to incorporate digital solutions capable of accurately measuring the volumes of water applied, monitoring soil moisture and controlling nitrate and plant protection product inputs and leaching. This will support more efficient fertigation management and help reduce the environmental impact associated with agricultural activity.
Among the planned actions is the renewal of the water meter network, which will enable precise measurement of water consumption through remote-control systems. Electroválves will also be installed to allow remote interaction with growers’ irrigation outlets, while a telemetry network based on LoRaWAN technology will ensure robust and reliable communication between devices.
Technology for the berry sector
SmartPalos also includes the installation of capacitive probes to monitor moisture in sandy soils, a particularly relevant measure for optimising irrigation scheduling in berry crops in the province of Huelva.
The project will also incorporate an automatic drainage lysimeter, allowing real-time quantification of nutrient balance and leaching of nitrogen and plant protection products.
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The Palos de la Frontera Irrigation Community highlights that the initiative will deliver direct benefits for growers by helping reduce production costs through fertigation that is better adjusted to the real needs of crops.
At the same time, SmartPalos aims to become a technological benchmark for Huelva’s berry sector, serving as a model for other irrigation communities.
Protecting water resources and Doñana
From an environmental perspective, the project will help reduce the risk of eutrophication in nearby protected wetlands and in the Doñana National Park. CR Palos is located above the Almonte-Marismas aquifer, a key water source for these ecosystems.
The irrigation community also stresses that sustainable agricultural production represents an opportunity to reconcile economic development with the conservation of natural resources. In this sense, the project can contribute to stable job creation, the retention of young people in rural areas and the incorporation of women into agricultural activity.
