Transcript Amendment of the COM Proposal on the list of priority

EU Water legislation
PEIP National Workshop – Montenegro
Budva, 13-14 May 2008
Dagmar Kaljarikova
Policy Officer for Turkey, Montenegro, NGOs and REC
European Commission, DG Environment
Unit E.3 – Enlargement and Neighbouring Countries
1
EU policy instruments
for protecting our water resources
EU
Environmental
Legislation
Water Framework Directive,
Urban Waste Water Directive,
Nitrates Directive,
Groundwater
Directive
Financial
incentives (+/-)
new EU Agricultural Policy;
EU Funding Tools;
water pricing reflecting
cost recovery
EU Research
Programmes
2
Key EU Water Policy Documents
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Water Framework Directive 2000/60/EC
Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive 91/272/EEC
Drinking Water Directive 98/3/EC
Bathing Water Directive 2006/7/EC
Floods Directive 2007/60/EC
Communication on Water Scarcity and Droughts 2007
Marine Strategy Directive (adopted; about to be published)
Overview and texts at
http://ec.europa.eu/environment/water/index.html
3
Water Framework Directive
key elements
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
protecting all waters, surface and groundwaters;
covering all impacts on waters;
good quality (‘good status’) to be achieved, as a rule,
by 2015;
water quality comprehensively defined in terms of
biology, chemistry and morphology;
water management based on river basins;
monitoring programmes for surface and groundwaters,
both as a planning tool and as an assessment
instrument;
economic instruments: getting the prices right - to
promote prudent use of water;
mandatory public participation;
… and complemented/guided by an unprecedented
4
cooperation on implementation.
Implementation:
a continuous and transparent process
Formal transposition into national law;
River basin district designation

Environmental analysis; economic analysis

Monitoring programmes operational
Public participation to start at the latest

Draft river basin management plans

Final river basin management plans

Implementation, assessment, adjustment
Dec 2003
/May 2004
Dec 2004
Dec 2006
Dec 2006
Dec 2008
Dec 2009
- 2015
and further
5
Environmental objective
holistic definition of “good status”
• For surface waters defined in terms of
 biology (aquatic flora and invertebrate fauna –
composition and abundance; fish fauna –
composition, abundance and age structure);
 chemistry and
 hydromorphology.
• For groundwater defined in terms of
 chemistry (compliance with numerical quality
standards; no saline or other intrusions) and
 quantity (balance between natural recharge and
abstractions).
6
Measures to achieve the objectives
• “Good status” as the binding general objective for all
waters, entailing operational measures to achieve /
maintain that objective;
• Objectives and measures to be tailored to the
characteristics and sensitivities of the region
(“ecoregions”), and coordinated within the river basin;
• Additional measures in specifically protected areas
(areas subject to eutrophication; nitrate vulnerable
zones; areas used or intended to be used for drinking
water abstraction).
7
Ambitious and binding on objectives,
flexible on tools
•
Legally binding and enforceable on environmental
objectives
•
Flexible on paths/tools to achieve these objectives,
thus allowing and encouraging innovation
Status quo
“Good status”
environmental
objective
8
European Court of Justice
… non-compliance can be costly
.....
2. Orders the Hellenic Republic to pay to the
Commission of the European Communities,
into the account
. . .EC
. . own resources, a penalty
payment of EUR 20 000 for each day of delay
2. Orders
the Kingdom
of Spain
in implementing
the measures
necessary
to to pay to the
Commission
European
comply with the
judgement of
in the
Case
C-45/91 Communities,
into
the
account
Community own
from delivery of
the
present
until
. .judgement
. . European
.
a 2.
penalty
payment
of EURRepublic
624 150 to pay to the
the judgementresources,
in Case C-45/91
has
beenthe French
Orders
per 1% of bathing
in Communities, into
of theareas
European
complied with;per year and Commission
Spanish inshore
waters which
have
been
the account
EC own
resources’,
a penalty payment
EUR 57to761
forvalues
each period
of six months
found not to of
conform
the250
limit
laid
from delivery
of the
down under Directive
76/160
…; present judgment at the end of
which the judgment in Case C-64/88 Commission v
France has not yet been fully complied with;
3.
Orders the French Republic to pay to the
Commission of the European Communities, into
the account ‘European Community own
resources’, a lump sum of EUR 20 000 000; 9
Analysis of article 5 reports
(The analysis is demonstrating achievements as well as non-achievements …)
ENV and economic analysis shows that a high number of
water bodies are at risk:
1. Hydromorphological alterations (inter alia from navigation,
pressures of land use in urban and rural areas, hydropower,
flood defences) are a common concern across Europe.
2. In several parts of Europe non-delivery on tasks already due
(waste water treatment, nitrates pollution from agriculture)
plays a considerable role in shaping our waters ‘at risk’.
3. Over-abstraction is a problem in some regions.
4. Climate change will aggravate problems in many regions.
Full Commission Report (March 2007), published at European
Water Conference (http://ec.europa.eu/environment/water/waterframework/2007conference/index_en.htm)
10
Transparency: all WFD environmental
assessments available on the Internet
http://forum.europa.eu.int/Public/irc/env/wfd/home
Contact address [email protected]
11
Outlook
• Protection of all waters across Europe, based on
comparable principles and objectives;
• Binding objectives, at the same time flexibility on the
tools how to achieve them;
• River basin cooperation and involvement of citizens,
local communities and stakeholders will reap
benefits for all involved;
• Long-term planning basis for technical, financial and
political decisions, at regional and national level as
well as at EU and international level.
12
Further
information
Commission server
http://ec.europa.eu/environment/water/index.html
CIRCA system providing public access to all WFD
information and documents
http://forum.europa.eu.int/Public/irc/env/wfd/library?l=/framework_
directive&vm=detailed&sb=Title
Email address for further information
[email protected]
13
Thank you for your attention.
14
Source (graphics): ÖVGW