Janez Potočnik, EU Commissioner for Environment.

Ten years have passed since the adoption of the EU Water Framework Directive. Today, the impact and success of this comprehensive directive on Integrated Water Resources Management are visible in the Danube region– says Janez Potočnik, EU Commissioner for Environment.

Danube Watch: What is the current state of implementation of the Water Framework Directive (WFD)?
Potočnik: For about 80% of the EU population, River Basin Management Plans are, or will soon be, in place. This is also the case for most EU Member States in the Danube River Basin District.

The Danube River Basin Management Plan is a success in international river basin management world-wide. It provides a good overview of basin-wide water management issues, and how to solve them. However, the international plan indicates that for the most important water management issues at the basin wide level, such as nutrient pollution and hydromorphological pressures, the environmental objectives will not be achieved in 2015. Those therefore have to be addressed with specific action at national or regional level. And despite the River Basin Management Plans being ready, the biggest effort is still to come: the implementation of the plans for real improvements to water status until 2015 and beyond. We are approaching 2012, the year by which Member States need to ensure that the Programmes of Measures adopted under the River Basin Management Plans are fully operational. There is only a three-year window, so all countries need to be pro-active in implementing sometimes costly measures.

The improvements for the Danube countries, including for non EU Member States, are not only about implementing measures such as the construction of urban waste water treatment plans. They are also about ensuring that all economic developments in the Danube Region go hand in hand with environmental protection. This is particularly valid for development of infrastructure for inland waterway transport and renewable energy.

Danube Watch: How can environmental concerns be integrated in these developments?
Potočnik: For inland waterway transport, the Joint Statement on Guiding Principles for the Development of Inland Navigation and Environmental Protection in the Danube River Basin‘ is an important tool in integrating the different requirements. It is now time to put these principles in practice in different parts of the region.

I also support the forthcoming ICPDR initiative to develop similar guiding principles on the use and development of hydropower plants. The current practice of hydropower development often lacks an assessment of impacts and better environmental options at river basin scale. More strategic planning is therefore crucial for international river basins such as the Danube. This will allow planners to take into account cumulative effects or available locations for hydropower plants which are less valuable, for example regarding fish migration.
But besides guidance and adequate coordination, it is crucial that sufficient funding is made available for integration of environmental concerns in different policies. While it is clear that the implementation of the WFD requires resources at Member States level, we need to make sure that at the EU level policies for agriculture, energy, industry, transport and research, and regional policy all contribute to water protection. In this respect, there are important opportunities ahead of us. Later this year and then in mid-2011, the Commission will table proposals for the reform of the Common Agriculture Policy and the new financial perspectives, which will cover both agriculture and regional funding. As you may know, these absorb the bulk of the EU budget.

If we do not achieve further integration of environmental protection in these policies, we will be undoing with one hand what we are trying to achieve with the other. Moreover, we should not underestimate the business opportunities that such an approach would offer in terms of development of know how and new technologies.

Danube Watch: Can the future strategy for the Danube region play a role in this?
Potočnik: The EU Strategy for the Danube Region will address environmental concerns and the need for economic developments in the region. The importance of ensuring and improving river continuity will be recognised, as well as the important work of the ICPDR in environmental protection in the region. It is important that actions in the future Strategy are in line with the needs of protecting the environment and with the Danube River Basin Management Plan. With this in mind, the future Strategy can play an important role in further integrating environmental concerns in economic developments.

Danube Watch: What will the european Commission do with all the river basin Management plans?
Potočnik: The Commission is preparing a report to be presented to the European Parliament and the Council on Member States’ on implementation of the Directive in 2012. It will conduct an in-depth analysis of the 170 River Basin Management Plans, which have been or should be reported to the Commission. This report will focus on how Member States have implemented the substantial requirements of this Directive and on to what extent, at both the national and EU level, synergies with other policies have been exploited.

In addition, I will propose a ‘Blueprint to safeguard Europe’s waters’ in 2012. This will build on the results of the review of the implementation of the WFD and the review of the existing EU policy on water scarcity and droughts.

This Blueprint will be designed to provide Europe with the water security it needs and will address the challenges associated with efficient water use and ensuring a good quality of water resources and aquatic ecosystems in and bordering Europe. This is imminent to protecting the environment, for climate change resilience, improving the health and safety of Europeans, the stability of food supply and the economic prosperity for years to come.

This Blueprint will be a significant element of the resource efficiency initiative under the EU2020 strategy. It will highlight the importance of integrating water policy objectives with other areas such as agriculture, energy, industry, land use, research and transport. And all these topics are of course very relevant for the most international River Basin District in the world: the Danube.

Interview by Joe Hennon, the European Commission Spokersperson for Environment.