Achieving Better Implementation of EU Policies by Restoring the Sponge Function
Political momentum for NbS is growing, with policymakers increasingly recognising the need to enhance the natural sponge function of European landscapes, including in the 2025 European Water Resilience Strategy.
This policy brief, jointly prepared by SpongeBoost, SpongeScapes and SpongeWorks, explores how restoring the natural sponge function of Europe’s landscapes can strengthen water and climate resilience. It highlights how healthier soils, wetlands, floodplains and other natural water-retention systems can help reduce flood and drought risks while delivering benefits for water quality, biodiversity and climate adaptation.
The brief focuses particularly on how sponge measures can be better embedded in existing EU policies, planning processes and funding mechanisms, identifying concrete opportunities across water, agriculture, nature restoration, climate and regional development. Its recommendations point to the importance of coordinated, catchment-scale action and stronger integration of sponge measures into upcoming EU and national policy processes.
A practical policy guide for turning the potential of sponge landscapes into coordinated action across Europe.