Starting today, January 20, the pond in Griftpark transforms into a living light artwork. The Living Water - POND installation consists of three floating spheres that individually display colored light after sunset to show how healthy the water is. The spheres get their power from microorganisms in the water and translate water quality into a symphony of light. At the same time, the installation collects data for water quality research.
Passersby can view this data live and literally get a glimpse of the hidden world beneath the water surface. POND is a living lamp, powered by electricity generated by bacteria in the water. How long the lamp stays on depends on how much power the bacteria have generated that day. When the lamp is off, the biological battery is recharging. The light color displayed by POND indicates water quality, with red indicating relatively poor water quality and green-blue indicating relatively good water quality. POND bases this on measurements of dissolved oxygen, conductivity (an indication of the amount of dissolved salt), acidity, and temperature.
Alderman Susanne Schilderman (Public Space): “Water is an incredibly important part of our ecosystem. It provides biodiversity, cooling, and places to play and relax. Our urban water remains healthy only if we work hard for it. The light spheres of POND are mirrors of the water, making the hidden water world visible in an accessible way. Thanks to POND, we know how this piece of urban water is doing and become aware of the value of healthy water for Utrecht.
Pond in the pond of Griftpark
Water Board Chair Els Otterman (Hoogheemraadschap De Stichtse Rijnlanden): “Clean and healthy surface water is vital for people and animals. As a water board, we share responsibility for its quality. It is important to know the water quality status to take appropriate measures to improve it. And it helps when we work together with other parties, such as the municipality. Besides collecting data, POND also raises awareness of water quality among park visitors.”
Els Otterman (HDSR), Ermi van Oers (Nova Innova) and Susanne Schilderman (municipality of Utrecht) at POND in Griftpark
Joint effort for healthy water
POND will be visible for the next two years in the pond of Griftpark, near the restaurant En Public. The municipality of Utrecht and the water board Hoogheemraadschap De Stichtse Rijnlanden jointly invest in this project through the Healthy Water program. Within this program, more than 100 measures are being implemented to improve ecological water quality, so that there is more water in the city where plants and animals can thrive.
POND is a Living Water project by biodesign studio Nova Innova, developed in collaboration with Deltares and other knowledge partners. Currently, new pilot setups are also being developed for Amsterdam, Rotterdam, and at Fieldlab Westvoorne.
More information about POND can be found at https://livingwater.novainnova.com/pond/utrecht/griftpark and on the HDSR website: Collaboration with municipality of Utrecht: Healthy Water Program - HDSR
Help and contact – Municipality of Utrecht
Visiting address
Stadsplateau 1
3521 AZ Utrecht
Postal address
PO Box 16200
3500 CE Utrecht