scholarly journals Coordination and Participation Boards under the European Water Framework Directive: Different Approaches Used in Some EU Countries

Water ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 833 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emilia Pellegrini ◽  
Lucia Bortolini ◽  
Edi Defrancesco
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Water Framework Directive ◽  
River Basin ◽  
District Level ◽  
European Water Framework Directive ◽  
Eu Countries ◽  
European Water ◽  
River Basin District ◽  
Decision Making Processes ◽  
River Basin Planning

River basin planning under the European Water Framework Directive (2000/60/CE, WFD) poses two major challenges to EU countries: coordination among administrative units for large-scale river basin planning and the inclusion of interested parties in decision-making processes. To face both challenges, many Member States have established Coordination and Participation Boards at the River Basin District or river basin level. These boards can be defined as multi-agency and multi-actor groups that support the development of inclusive and coordinated river basin planning to comply with the WFD requirements. The aim of this paper is to understand the functioning and effectiveness of the coordination and participation boards in promoting participatory river basin planning in seven EU countries. We built a conceptual framework, based on spatial fit, coordination capacity and participatory governance theories, to assess the scale at which these boards are established as well as the type of coordination and participation they support. The results indicate the relevance of the sub-River Basin District level to promote participatory decision-making. However, a clear linkage between participatory processes conducted at the sub-district level and decision-making processes at River Basin District should be established. Only if this link is well established are the outcomes achieved through the coordination and participation boards included in river basin plans. Moreover, we identified a lack of knowledge on how planning and implementation activities carried out at sub-River Basin District are aggregated and coordinated for the entire District. Research could contribute to this issue, by focusing on coordination mechanisms and problems that occur at the River Basin District level.

scholarly journals Unfolding the Water Framework Directive Implementation at the River Basin District Scale: An Italian Case Study on Irrigation Measures

Water ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (9) ◽  
pp. 1804 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pellegrini ◽  
Bortolini ◽  
Defrancesco
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Water Framework Directive ◽  
River Basin ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Irrigation Management ◽  
Implementation Process ◽  
Coordination Mechanisms ◽  
Public Authorities ◽  
River Basin District ◽  
Decision Making Processes

Despite that the European Water Framework Directive has attracted scholars’ attention worldwide, research is sparse on how its implementation is carried out for the whole River Basin District (RBD). This paper aims to fill this research gap by studying the implementation of this directive in the Italian Eastern Alps RBD. Based on 21 semi-structured interviews with both public authorities and the stakeholders engaged with implementation, along with a document analysis, we traced the overall implementation process, from planning to implementation, of measures to increase irrigation efficiency. Our interest was on how coordination mechanisms for the entire RBD were established during the main steps of the implementation process. Moreover, we looked at the effects of the Water Framework Directive at the local level, both in terms of changes in irrigation management practices and in terms of stakeholders’ engagement in decision-making processes. We found that, establishing decision-making processes based on a stronger coordination among all the authorities involved was fundamental both in terms of the production of shared decisions and of the participants’ satisfaction with the processes. Moreover, if true participation of stakeholders has to be achieved in the decision-making processes, then the RBD could not be the only scale where participation takes place. Actually, interactions among stakeholders and public authorities, in order to consider local interests in the decision-making processes, could be more effective at the sub-RBD level Ultimately, while cross-administrative coordination can be achieved for the whole RBD through specific coordination mechanisms, public participation should find more appropriate spaces at the sub-RBD level.

Different cost-benefit analyses in The Netherlands for the European Water Framework Directive

Water Policy ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 746-760 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. van der Veeren
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
The Netherlands ◽  
Water Framework Directive ◽  
Cost Benefit ◽  
European Water Framework Directive ◽  
Decision Making Process ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
European Water ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Economic Analyses

Since 2005, several cost benefit analyses have been performed for the European Water Framework Directive (WFD) in The Netherlands. These analyses had in common that they were meant to support the decision-making process by informing policy makers and making the trade-offs as transparent as possible. The analyses also anticipate questions from the Dutch Parliament. Nevertheless, each time the analyses were slightly different, depending on the situation and (political) questions that had to be answered. This article presents the background and the highlights of the various analyses, describes their differences and similarities and tries to find a common thread in the results. Even though the results are barely comparable for a number of reasons, they seem to indicate that such a line exists and that economic analyses have played a role in the decision-making process by making tradeoffs more explicit. This has offered the opportunity for an iterative dialogue with the Dutch Parliament, which contributed to a decision-making process which resulted in a socially accepted programme of measures that is economically sound and transparent.

scholarly journals Management of Global Warming Effects in the European Water Framework Directive: Consideration of Social–Ecological System Features in the Elbe River Basin District

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (16) ◽  
pp. 9111
Author(s):  
Eva Sievers ◽  
Christoph Zielhofer ◽  
Frank Hüesker
Keyword(s):  
Water Management ◽  
Global Warming ◽  
Water Framework Directive ◽  
River Basin ◽  
Elbe River ◽  
Social Ecological ◽  
European Water ◽  
River Basin District ◽  
Elbe River Basin ◽  
The Elbe River

In this study, we examined the extent to which global warming management is currently integrated into the European Water Framework Directive (WFD), the central legal framework for water management in the EU. We focused on the Elbe River Basin District and how global warming is addressed in its water management. We used the social–ecological systems (SES) approach as our theoretical framework, representing an eminent analytical frame of biosphere-based sustainability science. In our study, we analysed core characteristics of SES in the context of global warming to evaluate the effectiveness of current water management in the Elbe River basin concerning long-term changing climate conditions. To determine to what extent each SES feature is considered in the Elbe water management, we applied a scale of 1 to 5. Our results show that the SES feature “scale and openness” is best addressed (score 4.0) by the Elbe River basin management, followed by “context dependency” (score 3.9); however, “non-linearity, uncertainty, unpredictability” (score 3.2), “self-organisation and adaptability” (score 3.1), and “dynamics” (score 3.0) have only moderate impacts. SES features can only be considered comprehensively if global warming is accounted for in an integrated way at a European level. In order to ensure effective implementation, explicit regulations and legally binding obligations are most likely required.

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