Project duration: 09/2025 – 06/2027
Cyprus faces significant challenges related to water scarcity, holding the highest seasonal Water Exploitation Index (>40%) [1] among all EU Member States. Over the past 50 years, average rainfall has decreased by 50 mm [2], accompanied by unpredictable rainfall patterns and prolonged droughts due to climate change [3]. Unsustainable water consumption and inefficient water harvesting have resulted in over 60% of groundwater bodies being in a poor quantitative state [4]. Rural communities, reliant on dam reservoirs for water supply, are particularly vulnerable, underscoring the urgent need for water-saving agricultural practices.
Desertification is also a critical issue. The EU has highlighted the continuous degradation of Cypriot agricultural land [5], with around 40% of agricultural soils containing less than 1% organic compounds [6], while healthy soil should have over 3%. This degradation necessitates immediate action to combat desertification and restore soil fertility, which can be effectively achieved through the increase of soil organic matter via compost amendment. Furthermore, the lack of education about the unique agricultural benefits of compost application (i.e., soil regeneration, increased water retention capacity, etc.) as well as the potential of other regenerative agriculture techniques to mitigate climate change (such as mulching, no-till, cover cropping, and natural soil amendments) needs to be addressed.
Currently, Cyprus faces a significant gap in compost production, with only 2.2% of municipal solid waste composted in 2022 [7], yielding just 30,000 m³ of compost against an estimated annual need of approximately 6,096,200 m³. Green waste management practices are inadequate; agricultural green waste is often burned, while park and garden waste is improperly disposed of, increasing fire hazards. Additionally, transportation of green waste to urban compost facilities is economically unviable. The high market value of produced compost compared to chemical fertilizers further complicates the transition to sustainable green waste management [8].
The Solution
The project aims to support rural communities in Larnaca region to adopt regenerative soil management techniques that conserve water and mitigate climate change. It will establish a community-owned composting scheme designed under circular economy principles to transform agricultural, household, and community green waste, as well as manure, into high-quality compost.
By providing low-cost, high-quality compost and training, the project also aims to encourage Cypriot farmers to adopt regenerative practices that will improve soil health, increase water retention, reverse desertification, and strengthen agroecosystem stability.
Project’s deliverables
- Circular Composting Scheme: Design and implement a symbiotic composting scheme that efficiently processes local organic waste into compost, promoting sustainability at the community level, through a dedicated compost facility. The facility will be capable of processing 2,000 m³ of green waste and 400 m³ of manure annually into approximately 300 tons of compost, which will be applied across roughly 26 hectares of farmland to improve soil structure and fertility. As a result, compost-amended soils are expected to retain more than 10,000 m³ of rainwater annually, significantly reducing irrigation needs and enhancing climate resilience in semi-arid rural communities.
- Training and Capacity Building: Conduct educational activities for farmers in the targeted communities to promote participation in the composting unit and to teach the fundamentals of regenerative farming techniques that enhance water conservation and contribute to climate change mitigation. By 2027at least 50 farmers will be trained on compost use and regenerative techniques.
- Compost Performance Trials: These will include water retention tests measure the compost’s capacity to hold water and indicate its potential to reduce irrigation needs, growth trials to assess plant performance in compost-amended soils, and bioassay germination and biomass production tests to confirm the compost’s safety and effectiveness.
- Dissemination of project’s progress and achievements.
