Opportunities and challenges of interoperable Data sharing in the field of Circular water

The digital transformation of the water sector presents a potential for addressing critical challenges posed by climate change and the growing need for sustainable practices. Central to this transformation is data, which underscores the necessity for robust frameworks and tools that enable efficient sharing, interoperability, and smart decision-making. Our work highlights the important aspects of digitalization in the water sector, including the evolvability of data models and APIs, dataset discoverability, scalability in data publishing, and the ability to perform cross-domain queries through semantic interoperability. Tackling these challenges is key to unlocking the potential of digital transformation in fostering a resilient and sustainable water economy.

Despite significant advancements in the digital transformation of domains such as air quality, energy, mobility, and traffic, the water sector—particularly in circular water management—remains underserved. Existing initiatives, such as the UK National Digital Twin program and Digital Flanders' DUET project, demonstrate the utility of dataspaces, ontologies, and dynamic knowledge graphs but have yet to be extended adequately to address the specific needs of the circular water economy. Current digital landscapes in the water domain lack adaptive, future-proof pathways capable of integrating diverse data sources into a cohesive framework. To bridge this gap, a holistic approach is required, transitioning from isolated systems to interconnected and dynamic scenarios.

We propose a framework tailored to the specific challenges of the circular water sector. The framework aims to collect, standardize, and integrate the unstructured data generated by various initiatives, thereby fostering interoperability. Unified models and an open dataspace will be central to this framework, enabling seamless interaction between stakeholders. Achieving this vision necessitates collective efforts from data producers and consumers to establish standardized semantics, terms, and definitions, resulting in a unified representation of the water domain.

By facilitating standardized data collection and integration, the proposed framework will enable the creation of adaptive ontologies and dynamic knowledge graphs, which are crucial for modeling the complexity of the water domain. The Open Dataspace will serve as an ecosystem for data sharing across sectors, such as water and energy, enhancing cross-domain interoperability and expanding the utility of shared data assets. These efforts will ensure compliance with laws and regulations, providing equitable treatment to all stakeholders while supporting decision-making processes at various levels.

The implementation of this framework will pave the way for resilient and sustainable water management systems, promoting an interconnected digital ecosystem that can address the unique challenges of water reuse and sustainability. Our study underscores the transformative potential of digital tools and standards in fostering a sustainable water economy and provides a roadmap for future research and development in the circular water sector.