Protecting biodiversity, shaping the future: from the seabed to the digital twin with NeMeA Sistemi’s PASS project
From the Cabras Lagoon to northern Sardinia, NeMeA contributes to a technological ecosystem that combines marine robotics, digital twins and artificial intelligence to gain insights into the environment and support spatial planning.
Planning for a place’s future also means understanding how its ecosystems are changing. Observing what is happening on the surface, understanding the seabed, analysing environmental parameters; each piece of data adds a piece to the jigsaw, but it is by linking them together that we build a more complete picture.
It is from this need that it takes shape PASS, the research and development project that harnesses advanced technologies to support biodiversity, with activities taking place at pilot sites in the Cabras Lagoon, in the Oristano area, and in the Olbia area and northern Sardinia.
NeMeA Sistemi is taking part in the initiative as a technology partner, helping to develop solutions for collect, integrate and interpret environmental data. The reference is theOne Health approach, which recognises the link between the health of the environment, animals and people. This perspective encourages us to view the local area as a network of relationships and to design tools capable of reflecting its complexity.
From the seabed to a new understanding of the ecosystem
The work begins with observation. In the PASS project, the HYDRA® USV marine drone, equipped with sonar and LiDAR, is used for seabed mapping. The integration of the Sub-Bottom Profiler It broadens the scope of investigation, making it possible to study sediments beneath the seabed as well.
These measurements are supplemented by fixed sensors for the real-time monitoring of currents and environmental parameters. A variety of data, collected using complementary tools, which help to describe both the characteristics of the sites and the changes taking place within them.
The next step is to organise this data in such a way that it can be explored and linked together. This is the role of the Laguna Digital Twin, a a three-dimensional digital twin of the lagoon designed to simulate scenarios and study how the ecosystem might evolve.
The virtual model thus becomes a tool for analysis: it enables us to assess how the environment might respond to different conditions and provides useful insights for risk prevention and mitigation. Knowledge of the territory takes on a dynamic dimension, allowing us to combine observation of the present with an exploration of what might happen.
Connecting data, guiding decisions
Holding this technological ecosystem together is an architecture that integrates satellite data and information from IoT devices within a Data Lake. A shared repository that forms the basis for further processing.
It is on this basis that Artificial Intelligence comes into play, through the development of predictive models and indicators designed to recognise signs of potential problems and generate early warnings. The aim is to make the information gathered more useful to those responsible for monitoring site conditions, assessing risks and planning interventions.
Marine robotics, sensors, digital twins and AI therefore derive value from their integration. Each technology contributes to a specific aspect of the work: collecting data, modelling the ecosystem, analysing changes within it, and making the results available to those responsible for managing the area.
The pilot sites in Sardinia serve as a testing ground for this approach. The project aims to develop a scalable operational model capable of supporting public bodies and stakeholders involved in the protection and enhancement of natural resources in other contexts as well.
For NeMeA, PASS represents an opportunity to apply expertise and technology to a real-world challenge: gaining a better understanding of natural environments in order to support their conservation. Because planning for a region’s future begins with the ability to recognise what is changing.
