The European Water Framework Directive: Water Quality Classification and Implications to Engineering Planning

The European Water framework directive (WFD) is probably the most important environmental management directive that has been enacted over the last decade in the European Union. The directive aims at achieving an overall good ecological status in all European water bodies. In this article, we discuss the implementation steps of the WFD and their implications for environmental engineering practice while focusing on rivers as the main receiving waters. Arising challenges for engineers and scientists are seen in the quantitative assessment of water quality, where standardized systems are needed to estimate the biological status. This is equally of concern in engineering planning, where the prediction of ecological impacts is required. Studies dealing with both classification and prediction of the ecological water quality are reviewed. Further, the combined emission–water quality approach is discussed. Common understanding of this combined approach is to apply the most stringent of either water quality or emission standard to a certain case. In contrast, for example, the Austrian water act enables the application of only the water quality based approach - at least on a temporary basis.     

The economic value of water use: implications for implementing the Water Framework Directive in Scotland

The European Union Water Framework Directive (WFD) enshrines several economic principles in pursuit of 'good ecological status' for Europe's waters and rationalising water use in society. The implicit principle of maximising the social value from use of a scarce resource is reminiscent of the debate about treating water as an economic good, which has competing uses in society. This paper locates the debate about the economic value of water in the requirements of WFD. Specifically, we consider the implications of national reporting requirements for the economic characterisation report that stress the identification of relative value derived from use. As part of the Scottish contribution to the UK reporting exercise, we use a range of secondary data sources to derive economic values for water on a sector basis. We suggest whether the implications of different water values can be followed through in the WFD.     

Impacts of changes in water quality on recreation behavior and benefits in Finland

The implementation of the European Union Water Framework Directive (WFD) requires nationally generalizable estimates of the benefits of protecting inland and coastal waters. As an alternative to benefit transfers and meta-analyses, we utilize national recreation inventory data combined with water quality data to model recreation participation and estimate the benefits of water quality improvements. Using hurdle models, we analyze the association of water clarity in individuals' home municipalities with the three most common water recreation activities – swimming, fishing and boating. The results show no effect on boating, but improved water clarity would increase the frequency of close-to-home swimming and fishing, as well as the number of fishers. Furthermore, to value the potential benefits of the WFD, we estimate the consumer surplus of a water recreation day using a travel cost approach. A water policy scenario with a 1-m improvement in water clarity for both inland and coastal waters indicates that the consumer surplus would increase 6% for swimmers and 15% for fishers. In contrast to previously estimated abatement costs to improve water quality, net benefits could turn out to be positive. Our study is a promising example of applying existing national recreation inventory data to estimate the benefits of water quality improvements for the purposes of the WFD.     

The scope for regulatory incentives to encourage increased efficiency of input use by farmers

Managing diffuse water pollution from agricultural land continues to be one of the more intractable challenges for environmental policy. The advent of the Water Framework Directive places the onus on EU member states to identify reasons why water bodies fail or are at risk of failure to meet good ecological status. In such cases, programmes of measures are to be enacted to mitigate the causes at least cost. Failing this, users may ultimately be faced with the full costs of pollution. This paper considers the scope for measures that address nitrogen and phosphorus pollution at source. Specifically the paper relates the diffuse pollution problem to the extent of over application of nitrogen and phosphorus. Data envelopment analysis applied to English cereal and dairy farmers, provides an indication of resource use and evidence of over application. This inefficiency provides a potential basis for either a least cost abatement approach using effective information and advice, or alternatively a pollution charge.     

River Restoration in Spain: Theoretical and Practical Approach in the Context of the European Water Framework Directive

River restoration is becoming a priority in many countries because of increasing the awareness of environmental degradation. In Europe, the EU Water Framework Directive (WFD) has significantly reinforced river restoration, encouraging the improvement of ecological status for water bodies. To fulfill the WFD requirements, the Spanish Ministry of the Environment developed in 2006 a National Strategy for River Restoration whose design and implementation are described in this paper. At the same time many restoration projects have been conducted, and sixty of them have been evaluated in terms of stated objectives and pressures and implemented restoration measures. Riparian vegetation enhancement, weir removal and fish passes were the most frequently implemented restoration measures, although the greatest pressures came from hydrologic alteration caused by flow regulation for irrigation purposes. Water deficits in quantity and quality associated with uncontrolled water demands seriously affect Mediterranean rivers and represent the main constraint to achieving good ecological status of Spanish rivers, most of them intensively regulated. Proper environmental allocation of in-stream flows would need deep restrictions in agricultural water use which seem to be of very difficult social acceptance. This situation highlights the need to integrate land-use and rural development policies with water resources and river management, and identifies additional difficulties in achieving the WFD objectives and good ecological status of rivers in Mediterranean countries.     

Benchmark Criteria: A Tool for Selecting Appropriate Models in the Field of Water Management

A milestone in the field of European water protection policy is the European Union’s Water Framework Directive (WFD), which came into force in December 2000 and which integrates the management of European waters in many ways. In this study, we start by focusing on management issues connected to the implementation of the WFD and pose a question: “what type of models would be the most suitable for use in the context of the WFD?” With this question in mind, we aim to establish a set of operational and functional selection criteria for (computer) models whose application is intended to support decision-making related to a particular water management issue. These so-called “benchmark criteria” should help water managers and other model users in choosing appropriate models, e.g., for the WFD implementation purposes. We first describe models and their use in general and then propose an approach for setting the benchmark criteria for models, basing it on the concept of uncertainty management, while keeping firmly in mind the important role of citizens and citizen organizations in water management. The suggested benchmark criteria are in the form of 14 questions through which each model can be evaluated. Finally, the process for testing and refining the benchmark criteria is highlighted.     

Remote sensing water observation for supporting Lake Victoria weed management

This paper aims to assess the suitability of remote sensing for enhancing the management of water body resources and for providing an inexpensive way to gather, on a wide area, weed infestation extent and optical parameter linked to the water body status. Remotely sensed satellite images and ancillary ground true data were used to produce land cover maps, trough classification techniques, and water compounds maps, applying radiative transfer models. The study proposed within the framework of the cooperation between Italian Foreign Affair Ministry (through the University of Rome) and Kenyan Authorities has been carried out on the Kenyan part of the Lake Victoria. This lake is one of the largest freshwater bodies of the world where, over the last few years environmental challenges and human impact have perturbed the ecological balance affecting the biodiversity. The objective of this research study is to define the thematic products, retrievable from satellite images, like weed abundance maps and water compound concentrations. These products, if provided with an appropriate time frequency, are useful to identify the preconditions for the occurrence of hazard events like abnormal macrophyte proliferation and to develop an up-to-date decision support system devoted to an apprised territory, environment and resource management.     

海洋牧场生态效益的内涵与提升路径

生态效益是海洋牧场优于传统养殖方式的最显著特质。提升海洋牧场的生态效益,就必须对其内涵和提升路径有清晰的认识。基于生态系统服务理论,海洋牧场生态效益的内涵得以厘清:作为反映海洋牧场可持续发展能力的评价指标,须划清与经济效益和社会效益的界限,应仅包括海洋生态系统服务中的调节服务和支持服务,本质上是海域原有生态效益与人工措施形成的生态增益的叠加。生态增益是各项人工措施的正负生态效应共同作用产生的生态效益增量,具有明显生态增益的海洋牧场,才符合可持续发展要求。海洋牧场生态效益的最大化,须以人工措施形成的生态增益最大化为目标,以人工措施生态正效应的最大化和生态负效应的最小化为导向,以基于生态优先原则对人工措施的科学管控为实现路径。管控措施应以保证人工措施的科学性和合理性为核心,涵盖统筹规划布局、规范建设标准、强化监测管理三个方面,贯穿海洋牧场建设的全过程。该研究成果有望为提升我国海洋牧场的生态效益提供理论依据和工作思路。     

Irrigation-Dependent Wetlands Versus Instream Flow Enhancement: Economics of Water Transfers from Agriculture to Wildlife Uses

Irrigated agriculture throughout western North America faces increasing pressure to transfer water to nonagricultural uses, including instream flows for fish and wildlife management. In an important case, increased instream flows are needed in Nebraskas Platte River for recovery of threatened and endangered fish and wildlife species. Irrigated agriculture in the Laramie Basin of southeast Wyoming is a potential water source for the effort to enhance instream flow. However, flood irrigation of hayfields in the Laramie Basin has created many wetlands, both ephemeral and permanent, over the last century. Attempting to increase Platte River instream flows by purchasing water rights or improving irrigation efficiency in the Laramie Basin would transform irrigated agriculture, causing a substantial fraction of the Laramie Basins wetlands to be lost. A creative solution is needed to prevent the sacrifice of one ecosystem on behalf of another. A rotating short-term water-leasing program is proposed. The program allows Laramie Basin producers to contribute to instream flows while continuing to support local wetlands. Permanent wetland desiccation is prevented and regional environmental water needs are met without impairing local ecological resources. Budget analysis is used to provide an initial cost estimate for acquiring water from agriculture through the short-term leasing program. The proposed approach is more expensive than traditional programs but allows contribution to instream flows without major wetland loss. Short-term leasing is a more efficient approach if benefits from wetlands exceed the difference in cost between the short-term lease program and programs that do not conserve wetlands.     

External threats and internal management: the hydrologic regulation of the Everglades,Florida, USA

The ecological character of seasonal marshes is determined in large part by the pattern of water level fluctuation. As a result, the ecological health of a wetland reserve can be controlled by hydrologic regulation external to its boundaries. As an example, the Everglades marsh of Everglades National Park in Florida, USA, has been severely effected by management of the inflow of surface water. The Everglades occupies most of the interior of southern Florida, but only the lower 6% of the original marsh is contained in Everglades National Park. Shallow surface water reservoirs north of the park enclose 3600 km² of Everglades. Their levee system confines surface water flow into the park to several structures. Historically this water flowed across the entire core of the natural drainage. Flows into the park have been on a congressionally mandated schedule of minimum deliveries that is supplemented by additional water released into the park in amounts determined solely by upstream water management needs. My research, aimed at evaluating the effects of water conditions, has shown that this regulatory system has adversely affected reproductive success, community structure, and population sizes of sensitive species whose population stability is tied to natural water level fluctuations. These adverse effects were caused by water levels that for over a decade have been maintained at unseasonably high levels. Mathematically deterministic models of water level effects can provide management options based on biologial criteria. Park managers must incorporate understanding gained from such models into internal management decisions. Modifications of water control structures and alternative policies for managing the distribution and amount of surface water flow into the park appear attainable, can improve biological conditions in the park, and need not be adverse to neighboring external interests. Thus far biological changes are severe, and to a large extent irreversible. Ecologically sensitive management of an external threat under constraints imposed by history and setting can better maintain some semblance of ecological processes in the Everglades. If management decisions do not reflect such understanding of ecological processes, further ecological deterioration will result.     

Application of Two Quality Indices as Monitoring and Management Tools of Rivers. Case Study: The Imera Meridionale River, Italy

On the basis of the European Water Framework Directive (2000/60), the water resources of the member states of the European Community should reach good quality standards by 2015. Although such regulations illustrate the basic points for a comprehensive and effective policy of water monitoring and management, no practical tools are provided to face and solve the issues concerning freshwater ecosystems such as rivers. The Italian government has developed a set of regulations as adoption of the European Directive but failed to indicate feasible procedures for river monitoring and management. On a local scale, Sicilian authorities have implemented monitoring networks of watersheds, aiming at describing the general conditions of rivers. However, such monitoring programs have provided a relatively fragmentary picture of the ecological conditions of the rivers. In this study, the integrated use of environmental quality indices is proposed as a methodology able to provide a practical approach to river monitoring and management. As a case study, the Imera Meridionale River, Sicily’s largest river, was chosen. The water quality index developed by the U.S. National Sanitation Foundation and the floristic quality index based on the Wilhelm method were applied. The former enabled us to describe the water quality according to a spatial–temporal gradient, whereas the latter focused on the ecological quality of riparian vegetation. This study proposes a holistic view of river ecosystems by considering biotic and abiotic factors in agreement with the current European regulations. How the combined use of such indices can guide sustainable management efforts is also discussed.     

Integrated water management of the Brahmaputra basin: Perspectives and hope for regional development

Water is strongly linked with the overall development framework of the Brahmaputra basin. However, the absence of integrated management of Brahmaputra water resources and lack of coordination among the riparian states constitutes an ongoing threat to future development plans within the basin. Brahmaputra's abundant hydropower potential can help give riparian countries a safer energy future that is the key driving force behind the prospect of potential cooperation. This paper analyses the current status of Brahmaputra water resources and identifies the perspectives of riparian countries regarding the development of the Brahmaputra basin. It also identifies the opportunities for cooperation and regional development through integrated water development and management of the Brahmaputra basin. It is essential to develop an integrated water resources management approach involving all riparians to foster regional development and overcome the prospect of severe water conflict along the Brahmaputra basin.     

Multi-level water governance – the case of the Morsa River Basin in Norway

Management of fresh water resources meets a range of often conflicting interests. Waterways usually run across political and administrative borders and hence make management difficult and collective action politically challenging. In order to meet these challenges, multi-level bioregional approaches to water management have been called for. Such an approach is institutionalised in the EU's Water Framework Directive (WFD). This paper presents the experiences of the Morsa water sub-district in southern Norway, a pilot for implementing the WFD. The paper discusses Morsa in the light of four principles for multi-level water governance: management on a bioregional scale; polycentric governance; public participation; and an experimental approach to water governance. Contrary to widely held assumptions that collective action in polycentric networks will be difficult because actors will follow their own narrow interests, the findings demonstrate how this is not an absolute truth, and how social action cannot be fully explained by rational action theories. The analysis concludes that the relative success of Morsa relates to a complex of factors, including openness of practices and active involvement of key actors, strong but including leadership, and a knowledge based ‘hybrid’ type of multi-level network combining horizontal and vertical network governance.     

Forests and competing land uses in Kenya

Indigenous forests in Kenya, as in other developing countries, are under heavy pressure from competing agricultural land uses and from unsustainable cutting. The problem in Kenya is compounded by high population growth rates and an agriculturally based economy, which, even with efforts to control birth rates and industrialize, will persist into the next century. Both ecological and economic consequences of these pressures need to be considered in land-use decision making for land and forest management to be effective. This paper presents one way to combine ecological and economic considerations. The status of principal forest areas in Kenya is summarized and competing land uses compared on the basis of ecological functions and economic analysis. Replacement uses do not match the ecological functions of forest, although established stands of tree crops (forest plantations, fuel wood, tea) can have roughly comparable effects on soil and water resources. Indigenous forests have high, although difficult to estimate, economic benefits from tourism and protection of downstream agricultural productivity. Economic returns from competing land uses range widely, with tea having the highest and fuel wood plantations having returns comparable to some annual crops and dairying. Consideration of ecological and economic factors together suggests some trade-offs for improving land allocation decisions and several management opportunities for increasing benefits or reducing costs from particular land uses. The evaluation also suggests a general strategy for forest land management in Kenya.The views and interpretations expressed in this article are those of the authors and should not be attributed to the World Bank, its affiliated organizations, or any individual acting on their behalf.     

Cause,catalyst or conjunction? The influence of the Habitats Directive on policy instrument choice in Member States

In the process of implementing EU policy, Member States sometimes introduce new policy instruments in cases where this is not obligatory. To better understand this phenomenon, this paper reviews three cases in which new instruments emerged and develops a methodology to trace back the influence of EU Directives on instrument choice. The method is illustrated by a narrative of the emergence of new management planning instruments during the implementation of the EU Habitats Directive in three EU Member States: Finland, Hungary and the Netherlands. Three key features of a policy instrument are defined, namely, its authoritative force, action content and governance design. These are used to measure the contribution of the Habitats Directive compared to other potential explanatory causes for the emergence of the new policy instrument. In all three reviewed countries a nested causal relationship between the Habitats Directive and the introduction of the new policy instrument is identified. Based on the relative contribution of the Habitats Directive to the emergence of the new instrument a distinction is made whether the Directive acted as a cause, catalyst or if conjunction occurred.     

Riverscape and Groundwater Preservation: A Choice Experiment

This study presents a quantitative approach to support policy decision making for the preservation of riverscapes, taking into account the EC Water Framework Directive (2000/60/EC) and the EC Nitrates Directive (91/676/EEC) concerning the protection of waters against nitrate pollution from agricultural sources. A choice experiment was applied to evaluate the benefits, as perceived by inhabitants, of the implementation of policies aiming to reduce the concentration of nitrates in groundwater, preserve the riverscape by maintaining a minimum water flow and increasing hedges and woods along the Serio River in central northern Italy. Findings suggested that people were particularly concerned about groundwater quality, probably because it is strongly linked to human health. Nevertheless, it was interesting to observe that people expressed a high willingness to pay for actions that affect the riverscape as a whole (such as the minimum water flow maintenance plus reforestation). This is probably due to the close connection between the riverscape and the functions of the river area for recreation, health purposes, and biodiversity preservation.     

Water shortage and inequality in arid Minqin oasis of northwest China: adaptive policies and farmers’ perceptions

Minqin oasis, located at the lower reaches of the Shiyang River in northwest China, is one of the driest regions in the world. Severe water shortage has exacerbated the vulnerability of local ecosystems and the agricultural livelihood of farmers, and ecological failure threatens the environmental security of the region. Since 2007 China has implemented a range of strategic programmes and policies on water management which involve governments at all levels and include a diversity of adaptive actions in this region. However, rural households do not benefit equally from the policies and programmes. This study addresses two questions: first, how are inequality issues addressed in water-related policies and programmes? And second, what demographic and socio-economic factors at the household level are significantly related to the inequality in benefit sharing arisen from the implementation of these policies? The study employs a mixed method approach, integrating a qualitative approach that investigates policy documents with a quantitative approach that analyses primary data collected from a household survey in Minqin in 2012. The study finds that there are inadequate financial and instrumental resources put in place to address the causes of inequality. Unequal holdings of household capital, especially social capital and political status, significantly influences whether or not farmers can benefit from the water-related policies and schemes as practiced in the study area. Addressing the root causes of unequal benefits from water-related policies is urgent if China aims to achieve policy goals and sustainable development in this ecologically vulnerable region.     

The potential role of stated preference methods in the Water Framework Directive to assess disproportionate costs

This paper examines the issue of disproportionate costs of Water Framework Directive (WFD) implementation using public surveys as a means to inform policy and decision making. Public taxpayers are asked their opinion regarding the implementation of the WFD and its costs. Taxpayers are expected to bear a large share of the cost of WFD implementation, be it through national taxation, local water pollution charges or higher market prices for water related goods and services. The paper's main objective is to illustrate the role of stated preference research to elicit public opinions and perceptions towards socially acceptable levels of water quality and public willingness to pay (WTP) for the expected environmental benefits of the WFD. Stated preference research can be used as a way to assess the concept of disproportionate costs to those who are expected to bear a large share of the costs of WFD implementation, and at the same time address the issue of public participation in the WFD. The survey results are used as a public consultation tool to inform policy and decision makers about public willingness and ability to pay for the implementation of the WFD. This measure can be used as one of the benchmarks to define disproportionate costs in a cost-benefit context.     

Bilateral Monopoly: A Market for Intercountry River Water Allocation

/ Collaboration of countries with an aim to share fresh surface water resources promises to generate potential joint benefits. Unfortunately, existing agreements lack the perspective and capacity to produce any real action in efficient cross-border water allocation. When that problem is encountered by any two adjacent countries claiming riparian rights to the same watercourse, this paper suggests that apossible solution to be examined is a water market. This market requires the relevant countries to engage in a bargaining process as described in the theory of bilateral monopoly. The bargaining process should determine both the water quantity to be transferred and the price to be paid. However, there has to be a fair allocation of the joint benefits resulting from the transfer for a sustainable price solution. As an empirical illustration, the paper examines the case of river Nestos shared by Bulgaria and Greece in the southern Balkans. A net revenue function quadratic in water is specified and estimated using scarce data on three agricultural crops in Greece. Sensitivity analysis on the size and distribution of the net benefits is also performed.KEY WORDS: Bilateral agreements; Water markets; Efficient allocation     

Implementation of Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive in Finland: Evaluation of the collection network and challenges of the effective WEEE management

Further to the European Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Directive, setting up efficient collection schemes is necessary to ensure the recovery targets set. Following the subsidiary principle, the WEEE Directive defines only the general requirements for mandatory collection and recycling objectives. The modalities of the logistics and the organisation of the take-back schemes are left to the choice of Member States. In this paper, the implementation of the WEEE Directive and the development of the WEEE recovery infrastructure in Finland are described and the challenges to the effective management of the WEEE recovery system in Finland are expressed. It can be said that the implementation of the WEEE Directive has succeeded in Finland and, at the same time, the legislative basis has been enacted. In addition, a functional WEEE recovery infrastructure has been built and, the collection requirements of the WEEE Directive have been exceeded in a relatively short time. However, the paper outlines that some inefficient practices still exist, particularly in the registration and WEEE collection stages. It is concluded that raising awareness would lead to a more environmentally sound behaviour and would, ultimately, improve WEEE recovery efficiency.