Smart irrigation as a sustainability goal for the countryside in the Páramo Medio region

The Leonese community is implementing the first digital solutions to control and optimize water use in one of the areas most dependent on the Barrios de Luna reservoir.

The Páramo Medio Irrigation Community , based in Bercianos del Páramo (León), has begun a new phase of technological modernization within the framework of the Water Cycle Digitalization Project (PERTE), funded by the European Union – NextGenerationEU . With an investment exceeding €570,000 through the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Facility , the initiative will enable the implementation of digital systems that optimize water and energy use, reduce production costs, and strengthen the environmental sustainability of irrigation.

The community, with over 5,600 hectares of farmland across the municipalities of San Pedro Bercianos, Valdevimbre, Villamañán, and Bercianos del Páramo, has historically been a leader in modernization. For more than a decade, the area has used buried sprinkler irrigation, but it is now moving towards a new model: smart irrigation.

The new digital systems funded by PERTE include remote control devices, soil moisture probes, and pressure detectors, capable of providing real-time information on flow rate, pressure, nutrients, and soil moisture. These tools are complemented by rain gauges and weather stations that will provide precise data for developing predictive models of precipitation, temperature, cloud cover, storms, and early pest detection. The project also includes two energy efficiency studies for each pumping station in the community and the installation of a flow and quality monitoring station for the return water.

Thanks to these innovations, irrigators will be able to manage the entire water cycle more precisely, from collection to return to the riverbed, optimizing crop yields and reducing losses due to evaporation or over-irrigation.

A technological response to water scarcity

The Barrios de Luna reservoir, which supplies a large part of the irrigated land in the Páramo Leonés region, is known for its consistently low water levels. In this context, the meticulous management of water resources is essential. The president of the regional government, Julio César Carnero, emphasized that this project “improves the entire water management process in a modernized community like the Páramo Medio.” Digitalization will also allow for better monitoring of water quality, reduced dependence on chemical inputs, and progress toward more responsible and sustainable management. The result will be a more resilient agriculture in the face of climate change, capable of maintaining productivity even under conditions of scarcity.

The entire project execution has been entrusted to iRiego New Generation, a leading company in the digitalization and modernization of irrigation systems. With extensive experience in agricultural innovation projects in Castile and León, the company integrates sensors, data intelligence, and control platforms that transform irrigation management into a fully automated and connected process. Their model embraces Agriculture 4.0, where decision-making is based on objective data and efficiency is measured in every drop of water.

PERTE, a key tool for the future of agriculture

The Strategic Projects for Economic Recovery and Transformation (PERTE) have become one of the Spanish government's major initiatives to modernize key sectors. In the agricultural sector, the PERTE for Digitalization of the Water Cycle promotes the implementation of technologies that save resources, reduce emissions, and improve the competitiveness of the agricultural sector. With a total budget exceeding €3 billion, this program prioritizes water and energy efficiency, the digitalization of hydraulic infrastructure, and environmental sustainability.

For rural communities like those in Páramo Medio, the benefits are twofold: on the one hand, the carbon footprint and energy costs are reduced; on the other, generational renewal and the incorporation of women into the agricultural sector are encouraged, strengthening the social fabric of the rural environment.

The PERTE project in the Páramo Medio region symbolizes the transition from traditional to digital irrigation. The combination of sensors, remote control systems, energy studies, and predictive tools will enable more rational, sustainable, and efficient water management. In an area where every liter counts, digitalization is not just a technological improvement: it is a guarantee for the future of agriculture in León.