A Blueprint to Safeguard Europe’s Water Resources

1. Baseline for policy options

3rd European Water Conference

Peter Gammeltoft,Head of Unit Protection of Water Resources, DG ENV

What is the Blueprint?

• The Blueprint to Safeguard Europe's WaterResources will present the policy response to the challenges presented in the State of Water Report,

• Long-term aim: to ensure sufficient availability of good quality water for sustainable and equitable water use.

• Closely linked to EU 2020 Strategy and Resource Efficiency Roadmap.

Why a Blueprint?

• Improving the implementation of current EU water policy

• Fostering the integration of water and other policies

• When necessary, seeking the completion of the current policy framework

Synthesis of policy recommendations building on on-going assessments

Nov 2012Blueprint

ToSafeguardEU Waters

Report on 2009River BasinManagement Plans

ReviewWater Scarcity& Droughts Strategy

Climate ChangeVulnerability& Adaptation

Report on 2009River BasinManagement Plans

ReviewWater Scarcity& Droughts Strategy

Report on 2009River BasinManagement Plans

Climate ChangeVulnerability& Adaptation

ReviewWater Scarcity& Droughts Strategy

Report on 2009River BasinManagement Plans

ReviewWater Scarcity& Droughts Strategy

Report on 2009River BasinManagement Plans

Climate ChangeVulnerability& Adaptation

ReviewWater Scarcity& DroughtsStrategy

Report on 2009River BasinManagement Plans

Outlook of sustainability and

vulnerability of EU water resources

Stakeholders’views on EU water

policyinstruments

Policy OptionsImpact

assessment

Impact Assessment

6

Assessment River Basin Management Plans:Some general preliminary findings

• A lot of effort put into preparation of the plans

• High uptake of the commonframework and common language on water management provided by the WFD

• Integration of ecological perspective into water management

• Enhancement of international cooperation

• Public participation, stakeholder involvement

• Impressive improvement in the knowledge base

• 4 Member States yet to submit plans

• Low ambition in many of the plans (extensive use of exemptions)

• Lack of concrete measures and low ambition

• Lack of comparability in some areas (e.g. chemical status!)

• Dressing “business-as-usual” as WFD

Status of adoption of WFD plans

GREEN - River Basin Management Plans adopted!

RED – consultations not started or ongoing

http://water.europa.eu/participation

Improved international cooperation

Extensive public participation

A lot has been achieved, but challenges remain

Significant pressures (rivers) Significant impacts (rivers)

Source: EEASource: EEA

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10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

EE SK RO SE MT IE PT LV LT ES BG AT FR CY DK EL UK FI IT CZ DE HU LU PL NL BE

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█ Good Ecological Status█ Unknown Ecological Status▌ Exemptions

Source: WFD Reporting

Starting point and ambition

How big is the problem?• 2012: Water stress in 26

basins (all year)/43 basins (summer)

• 2030: Water stress in 47 basins (all year)/63 basins (summer)

• Not only a Southern issue –31 of 63 water stressed river basins are expected to be in the North

Water Scarcity & Droughts- State of play

What is being done about it?•Some measures from the 2007 communication are being implemented

BUT

•Responses are NOT reverting the trend in water scarcity the near future.

Water Scarcity & Droughts- Gaps in current policy framework

Conceptual gaps: Common understanding of WS&D Adequate indicators

Information gaps:Inadequate knowledge on abstraction, uses, balances No clear understanding of effectiveness & impact of measures

Implementation gaps:

Measures not linked to water stress & environmental flowsClear roles and responsibilitiesFunding

Policy & governance gaps

Focus on drivers: land useDemand-based measures: water efficiencyWater saving: pricingDrought Management planning

Climate Change Vulnerability & Adaptation

• Assessment of drivers of vulnerability and adaptation measures at EU level in the ClimWatAdapt project

• Combination of 4 socio-economic and 11 regionalclimate scenarios

• On-going assessment of specific measures (naturalwater retention, water efficiency, protection of drinking water resources)

ClimWatAdapt policy recommendations:

• Knowledge Gap• Additional research on

uncertainty and adaptive capacity

• Embed EU and national forecast systems in CLIMATE-ADAPT

• Economic analysis under WFD: forecasts about future water use and related investments

• Define and agree EU wide set of vulnerability indicators to measure the success of implemented adaptation measures

• Mainstreaming• Ecosystem-based approach

into all EU policies targetingland use changes (CAP, Energy, Transport)

• Funding priority to “green” or “soft” and multi-objectives measures

• Climate proofing measures in 2nd RBMPs

• Start assessment of long-termmeasures

• Transboundary water management adaptation strategies

Support actions at EU level to foster the uptake and implementation of technical

adaptation measures.

Stakeholders views:

• Improvements in implementation of EU water policy are required but no need to revise the WFD now

• Need for a stronger basis for tackling the problems of water scarcity and droughts

• Ecosystem services not systematically addressed within water policy

• More coherence needed with the CAP, regional, renewable energy and transport policies

• Potential to enhance synergies with chemical, pesticides, pharmaceuticals policies on issues such as risk assessment methods.

• Improved analysis of the costs and benefits of water protection measures is needed

Baseline, Scenarios, Objectives

Water resource balances

Use of water by the different economic activities and impacts

Measures affecting water availability and water use

Climate, land-use, demographic and socio-economic Scenarios

baseline scenario / sensitivity analysis/

optimisation model,

ImplementationMeasures

(POLICY BASELINE)

AdressingWater Stress

Resilience to Extreme Events

AchievementGood Ecological Status

From Objectives to Policy Options

AdressingWater Stress

Resilience to Extreme Events

AchievementGood Ecological Status

Increase the use of economic instruments

Achieve a more efficient water

governance

Improve knowledgeand tools

Foster integration of water into sectoral

policies

2. Unlocking measures

3rd European Water ConferenceJacques Delsalle, Team Leader, DG ENV

Focus on measures serving multiple benefits

Managing water demand

Soilmanagement

Restoring riparian area

Restoring lateralconnectivity

Reducing water pollutionat source

Water reuse& recycling

Water storage

Treatment of brackish or

sea water

Transfers

Restoring longitudinal continuity

Cropmanagement

Improvement of irrigation systems and management

Distribution networks

efficiency measures at the buildings level

water efficient products

Protecting the water ecosystems

Improvingavailability of clean water

Measures aiming at protecting ecosystems

• Restoring river continuity• Addressing the reduction

of pollution at source• Safeguarding drinking

water and ground-water resources

• In most cases contributing to increasing the availability of clean water.

Source: Wikimedia Commons

Natural Water Retention Measures

• Measures slowing down or reducing the flow of water downstream, leading to a more natural flow regime within a catchment, alleviating the effect of droughts & preventing floods through:• restoration of floodplains• natural flood defence

measures• sustainable drainage systems• reforestation• wetland restoration• soil management, etc

Source: Wikimedia Commons, ONEMA

Water efficiency measures

• Needed in water stressed/potentially stressed areas

• All sectors need to contribute

• Cost efficiency needs to be considered – no one size fits all

• Water - energy link

Water re-use

• Water re-use has a strong potential for agriculture and industry

• Challenge: using the right water quality for the right purpose, including grey water sources, but also rainwater harvesting, non-drinking water quality distribution etc.

• All options need to fully respect relevant public health and environmental standards Source: Veolia

Alternative water supply options Artificial water

storage

Desalination

• Can be useful to supplement traditional sources

• Are becoming the largest contributors to meeting water demand for some regions

• When determining which solution can be appropriate ALLenvironmental and resource costs, social and political consequences need to be considered - Local factors crucial

• Proper water pricing crucial -WFD obligation to implement integrated water management and cost recovery programs essential

Rainwater harvesting

Ground water recharge

Barriers to the implementation of no -regret measures

• Market failures• Financial sources• Regulatory support• Precise rules flexibility• Lack of coordination• Societal barriers

Types of intervention at EU level

• RBMP process (Guidance) has limitations in ensuring integration between water policy and sectoral policies

• Need for further integration at EU level to support the implementation of strategic measures

• + horizontal actions (next sessions)• Use of economic & communication instruments: Pricing,

Payment for Ecosystem Services, Labelling• Governance: skills and resources, effective working

relationships between institutions, integration water quantity / good ecological status / vulnerability concerns

• Improved knowledge base

Further integration into EU policy instruments

EIA/SEAEU standards-regulation on waste water re-use

EIA/SEAEcodesign

Integrationoptions considered

Artificial Water supply

Re-useWater efficiency

Natural Water Retention measures.

Protection ecosystem

Measure

to be implemented as soon as possible after the adoption of the Blueprintand in any event in the 2nd and following planning cycles of the WFD.

implementing rules for the post-2013 CAP I and II

pillars support

Prioritisation in the use of Structural & Cohesion Funds

3. Economic instruments

3rd European Water Conference,Henriette Faergemann, Team Leader, DG ENV

The place of economic instruments in water resource management

• Complementary to other policy instruments (Regulation, Communication, Planning)

• Not only about pricing (trading schemes, taxes, subsidies, transfers…)

• Should be designed • to contribute to environmental objectives• to create the right incentives for behavioural changes

• Design requires looking at transactional costs, social acceptability, institutional complexity

• + take into account objectives and policy instruments of other policies

Pricing Schemes

Objective of pricing schemes is to combine:

• efficiency (marginal social cost pricing) obtained trough incentive function of economic instruments,

• fairness (polluter/user pays principle, which take into account socio-economic-regional circumstances)

• degree of cost recovery required for sustainable financing of the measures

Current pricing schemes in Europe often fail to combine these objectives

Water pricing policy implementation reflected in RBMPs

In many River Basin Management Plans:• Polluter pays principle is not respected• No incentive function of water pricing• Lack of metering concerning some water users• No fairness - in relation to contribution to cost recovery• Price does not include all financial costs• Lack of internalisation of external costs• Lack of transparency

Barriers to the implementation of pricing• Insufficient knowledge (water accounts, environmental

flows, economic instruments)• Inappropriate and ineffective structures of present

economic instruments• Low social acceptability – understanding the value of water• Historical and legal reasons• Pressure from sectors of economy• Lack of pre-conditions

• absence of water metering• illegal abstraction

Are water markets a right instrument for the EU?• Water markets can help setting the correct price• Introduced at river basin or smaller scales• Need EU level support in research on adaptation to

local conditions• Preconditions:

• a solid legal framework,• understanding of hydrological conditions• ensure sufficient environmental allocations• ensure social equity (water as a public good)• high investments in infrastructure,• trading system should cover all transactional costs,• stakeholders must be trained and educated.

Introduction of water markets in a given region should be preceded by Cost Benefit Analysis

Payments for Ecosystem Services (PES)

• Can help “getting the incentives right” by sending signals to providers and users that reflect the real social, environmental and economic benefits that ecosystem services deliver

• A new approach of communicating and resolving conflicts • Could be used in addition to integration of measures into the Common

Agricultural and Cohesion Policies

• Foster the achievement of environmental objectives that go beyond the minimum threshold of the polluter-pays-principle

• The Blueprint will provide an overview of the state of ecosystems and their capacity to supply services in a changing environment

• Methodological framework needed for the wider application of PES

Certification & labelling schemes

• Enabling consumers to express environmental and social values through their purchasing decisions

• Many different labels/schemes are emerging: B2B,B2C; Single /multi –criteria

• Specific water labels: Other environmental, social or economic aspects may worsen

Two main trends: 1) the amount of water in a product (water footprint)2) encouraging good water stewardship

Labelling with water footprint •not currently recommended•clarity to consumers•reliability •impacts•International standards needed

Certification of water stewardship activities •appear more appropriate •can be applied through the supply-chain •encouraging best practice•ensuring minimum standards •Can be accompanied by labelling

What can be proposed at EU level• Mandatory metering for individual users• Enforce proper art 9 implementation –

infringement procedures• Impose conditionality for using EU funds (RD, CP)• Produce guidance on cost recovery calculation &

monetization of environmental and resource costs• Removal of harmful subsidies• Promoting water trading in some regions• Enforce efficient allocation mechanism

4. Governance and Knowledge base

3rd European Water ConferenceJorge Rodriguez-Romero, Team Leader, DG ENV

Integrated river basin management

Driving Forces

Pressures

State

Impacts

Responses•Agriculture•Urbanisation•Hydropower•Industrial dev.

•Water abstraction•Wastewater discharges•Diffuse pollution•Physical alteration of water bodies

•Organic enrichment•Eutrophication•Altered habitats•Reduced connectivity•Loss of ecosystem services•Socio-economic impacts

HIGH

GOOD

MODERATE

POOR

BAD

•Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive•Nitrates Directive•Industrial Emissions Directive•WFD basic measures (regulation of abstraction, discharge, modification)•RBMP planning process

Governance issues

• Fragmented institutional set-up• Poor intra and inter-institutional relationships

(weak co-ordination requirements)• Capacity (personnel, technical capacity…)• Rigidity of concessional system

Financing water management :Two sides of the impact of economic crisis

• Negative:• Water managers

- cuts in public expenditures, increase in taxes and charges- lower investments in water infrastructure, innovation: difficult to unlock efficiency measures, water reuse etc.

• Water service providers- lower incomes of water providers and financial problems– shorter term goals above long term investment needs

• Also some opportunities:• Priority for cost-

effective solutions• Abandon large and

expensive emblematic water projects

• Remove harmful subsidies

Improved knowledge base

• WFD brought an impressive improvement in the knowledge base on water

• Increased transparency in setting objectives and managing water

• The ecological perspective is generally now firmly integrated into the assessment of the status of surface waters and has become an integral part of water management

• However, still areas where additional guidance may be needed (e.g. chemical status, costs and benefits analysis, etc)

Knowledge gaps

• Important knowledge gaps in quantitative aspects of water management (flows, stocks, water use).

• Better focusing reporting and statistical obligationsmay be required in some areas

• Scope for increasing the interoperability (INSPIRE, SEIS) of available information and further decreasing administrative burden

• Further development of the Water Information System for Europe (WISE), transformation into a shared knowledge platform

Assessment of measures

• Requires a better understanding of costs of inaction and benefits of measures, and a consistent assessment framework at EU level

• Tools:• Water accounts at catchment level• Hydro-economic modelling (baseline and

measures)• Integration EU-wide, national and local tools

• Common methodology, shared dataset, discussion in working group