The WFD refers to three forms of ‘stakeholder engagement’: access to background information, consultation in three steps of the planning process and the active involvement of interested parties in all aspects of WFD implementation.

Successful implementation of the EU Water Framework Directive (WFD) requires close cooperation between experts and organisations involved or interested in river basin management planning – in short among all stakeholders.

The first WFD-compatible public participation strategy for Hungary was developed in 2006. It was based on the European Commission’s Guidance Document No. 8 on Public Participation, the Danube River Basin Public Participation Strategy, the findings of the Harmonising Collaborative Planning Handbook and the country’s own specific characteristics. The strategy is based on written and verbal consultations from 42 river basin management planning sub-units divided into four sub-catchments: Danube River, Tisza River, Drava River and Lake Balaton.

As part of a pilot study on WFD implementation, the strategy was tested in the Upper-Tisza catchment area. The test coincided with the first round of the WFD Article 14 consultations in 2007 for the river basin management plan timeline and work programme, and the final version of the Hungarian Public Participation Strategy is the result of both processes.

Gathering stakeholders. The Public Participation process is the responsibility of the country’s twelve regional Environmental and Water Directorates in cooperation with the local environmental inspectorates and national parks. To assure meaningful public involvement the strategy suggests establishing planning committees of the existing 12 Regional Water Management Councils, 4 Sub-catchment Water Management Councils and a National Water Management Council.

The strategy recommends that these bodies be composed of representatives from four major interest groups: central and local governmental organisations, NGOs, water users and professionals and academia in a 40-20-20-20% distribution respectively. They provide public control of the planning process in accordance with the WFD, especially during the preparation of river basin management plans. They supervise the public participation process at their own level, comment on the draft plans, endorse or return them for further improvement. Finally, the National Water Management Council has the right to recommend the minister in charge of water to adopt the national river basin management plan.

Engaging the public. Once the national public participation strategy was ready, the second round of the WFD Article 14 consultations began on the significant water management issues. A consultation document describing each issue was made available to the public on the internet in December 2007. Comments were received in written form during the first half of 2008, and then those stakeholders who had sent comments were invited for a verbal consultation forum.

The consultation document was finalised based on those results, pointing out those problems the evolving river basin management should address. “The national river basin management plan cannot meet every single demand”, says László Kóthay water director, “but it is built up from sound compromises acceptable by all of us”.

The third round of the WFD Article 14 consultations was held as an open planning process with consultation periods and stakeholder conferences organised all over the country. The outline of the national river basin management plan was presented online in December 2008 and was available for comments until the end of January 2009. Based on the remarks received, the draft version of the national Programme of Measures was made ready and published in April 2009 and remained open for comments until end of July. The consultation documents were debated in 42 local stakeholder conferences during July to complete the written consultation.

Bringing consultation opportunities to stakeholders. Next, 25 thematic and regional conferences were held in September, when all the 47 drafts of river basin management plans were available (42 sub-units, 4 subbasins and a national plan). Some 30-40 stakeholders attended each meeting and all in all more than 1,500 comments and remarks were expressed.

The consultation period was originally planned to close with the last forum in mid-September, but on the request of NGOs the written consultation period was extended until November. The comments (either written or verbal) were documented in the river basin management plans, together with the responses given by the planners when completing the plans.

“The necessity of trust building between government and civil society has been an important lesson we learned during the planning process”, says Ferenc Ligetvári, Vice Chair of the National Water Management Council.

Putting public participation into action. The Regional, Sub-catchment and National Water Management Councils convened in December 2009–January 2010 to approve the river basin management plans. The recommendations of these bodies were integrated from the bottom-up and finally the National Water Management Council approved Hungary’s river basin management plan on 18 January 2010. For legislative reasons a shorter version of the national plan was compiled and endorsed on 1 March. This version was announced later by a governmental decision as Hungary’s river basin management plan.

The work of the Water Management Councils has not finished with the completion of the plans in the first planning cycle. They have the mandate to monitor the implementation of the Programme of Measures and act as supervisors of WFD implementation.

“The involvement of the public into the river basin management planning process was an unprecedented exercise in Hungary”, says Gyula Reich, Chair of GWP Hungary, “and demonstrated that governmental and civil organizations are able to work together if goodwill exists from both sides”.

József Gayer works for the Hungarian Ministry of Rural Development.