Addressing aquatic pollution and biodiversity loss through nature positive solutions from source to sea

This grant aims to directly engage and support public authorities and other relevant socio-economic actors in addressing aquatic pollution and biodiversity loss. The goal is to demonstrate and accelerate transitions needed for achieving the objectives of the Mission 'Restore our Ocean and Waters'. Projects funded will support Member States and Associated Countries in accessing and deploying nature-positive solutions to address pollution from nutrients, chemicals, plastics, and microplastics, while protecting and restoring ecosystem capacity and resilience. Actions include demonstrating effective, scalable solutions, monitoring progress, enabling replication, and fostering collaborations across EU regions to reduce pollution and benefit society.

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Agency	HORIZON (EU)
Region	EU
Country	N/A
Legal form	Company, NGO, Government organization, Other
Start date	4 Feb 2026
End date	23 Sep 2026
Max funding	Between 7,000,000 EUR and 7,750,000 EUR per grant (maximum financial support to third parties: 100,000 EUR per recipient).
Budget	31,000,000 EUR for this topic in 2026.
Coverage	According to Horizon Europe rules (generally 70%-100% of eligible costs, depending on organization type and activity).

Grant application conditions

Eligible Countries	EU Member States and eligible Associated Countries as per Annex B of the Horizon Europe Work Programme.
Admissibility Conditions	Proposal must comply with the page limits and layout as described in the Application Form.
Legal and Financial Capacity	Applicants must demonstrate financial and operational capacity. Details in Annex C.
Mission Basin Focus	Proposal must address one of the following basins ('lighthouses'): Atlantic and Arctic Sea basin, Mediterranean Sea basin, Baltic and North Sea basin, Danube River basin including the Black Sea.
Demonstration Sites Requirement	At least 4 demonstration sites from source to sea covering relevant socio-ecological systems in the chosen basin.
Consortium Composition	Direct and strong involvement of public bodies and relevant socio-economic stakeholders is required.
Monitoring and Open Data	Mandatory monitoring of pollution levels. Collected data (in-situ and marine observations) must be made openly available via EMODnet, following FAIR principles.
Support to Third Parties	Beneficiaries may provide financial support to third parties (local/regional authorities not already demonstration participants) up to 100,000 EUR per recipient.
Evaluation Criteria	Award based on ranking and ensuring coverage of the four Mission basins; thresholds must be attained.
Exclusion	Standard Horizon Europe exclusion criteria apply, as detailed in the Work Programme.
Documentation	https://ec.europa.eu/info/funding-tenders/opportunities/portal/screen/opportunities/topic-details/HORIZON-MISS-2026-03-OCEAN-02

Eligible expenses

Evaluation criteria

Business exclusions

Reporting

Application process

Application requirements