Water Framework Directive & Case Amsterdam-Rhine canal The implementation of the WFD on the ecology of canals in EU-Member States and in The Netherlands Thesis report Date: March 2007 Student: M.M.H.P. Baijens (S0102563) Status: Final thesis WFD & case ARC European WFD & case ARC The implementation of the WFD on the ecology of canals in EU-Member States and in The Netherlands. Thesis report Date : March 2007 Place : Enschede & Nieuwegein Author : ing. Marloes Baijens E-mail address : [email protected] University : University Twente, Enschede Study : Master Civil Engineering & Management Thesis coach : Dr. M.S. Krol Dr.ir. D.C.M. Augustijn Company: Regional Directorate General for Public Works and water management Utrecht, department wsw Company coach : Drs. R. van den Heuvel 2 thesis WFD & case ARC Acknowledgement “Practice, the master of all things.” Augustus Octavius This MSc thesis forms the completion of my study Civil Engineering and Management at the University of Twente, The Netherlands. The European policy Water Framework Directive and the case Amsterdam Rhine Canal are discussed by this report. The project is carried out at Directorate General for Public Works and Water Management Utrecht at Nieuwegein. I am very grateful to some people, who supported me during my thesis activities. I thank Rene van den Heuvel and Gerard Rauwerda for their helpful suggestions and constructive feedback. Moreover, I would like to thank Maarten Krol (University of Twente) and Denie Augustijn (University of Twente) for their supervision. Finally, I would like to thank my colleagues at Directorate General for Public Works and Water Management, department w.s.w. for their interest in my research topic and the good working atmosphere. I also would like to thank my parents and the last years just my mother for the opportunity to study and for the support, confidence and interest in my study. At least, I would like my brother, friends, family and hospita at Nieuwegein to thank, not only for supporting me, but also for releasing me from the thesis in the weekend breaks and holidays. This report is dedicated to my father Leo Baijens. Also during this thesis I have lost some dear persons, namely Cees Kuyvenhoven and Elly Peper. The good memories live on. At least I will thank Medicort practice and its physiotherapeutic for the good support during my rehabilitation after a knee operation so my thesis could go on. This graduate period was not in the least quiet, but nevertheless also this time will be concluded. Marloes Baijens Deventer, April 2007 3 thesis WFD & case ARC Abstract The EU policy Water Framework Directive 2000/60/EC (WFD) is known to have significant influence on water management through whole Europe. It establishes a new, integrated approach to the protection, improvement and sustainable use of European’s rivers, lakes, estuaries, coastal waters and groundwater. The result will be a healthy water environment achieved by taking due account of environmental, economic and social considerations. The river basin management plans (RBMP) defines how this should be achieved through the establishment of environmental objectives and ecological targets for water bodies. The WFD sets up a six-year cycle of planning and action with the production of the first RBMP required by the end of 2009. The goal of this thesis is to understand how the official WFD, CIS reports and other translations are used in Member States and in The Netherlands and what the consequences are for the ecology of artificial water bodies, mainly for the case Amsterdam Rhine Canal (ARC) in The Netherlands. The CIS guidance MEP-GEP for artificial water bodies which defines the WFD implementation process has been written by a European workgroup (CIS) and is one of the fourteen reports to make the WFD policy workable. The MEP-GEP Guidance for AWB (level 2) is basically a step- by-step plan. It can help water management authorities to implement the Water Framework Directive (level 1) on a transparent way. The guidance is made to get insight in the development process of ecological aims, give a methodical approach and grip, information and get insight in politically space and process of policy and decision making. The CIS guidance MEP-GEP is suited to the Dutch situation by RIZA and STOWA and named Dutch MEP-GEP Guidance (level 3). Unfortunately those reports and approaches are still difficult to use and during national meetings there was a lot of incomprehension about the way to fill in the WFD process. In the Netherlands the WFD implementation process is in full pace. In other Member States is more priority to implement the WFD on rivers or other water systems and not immediately to artificial water bodies. Just research institutes in the UK (SNIFFER & UKTAG) and in Ireland (SNIFFER and EPA) are started in 2006 with a research project about the way to implement the WFD on artificial water bodies, especially canals. The process is still in development so there is little specific information available. The participants of the Dutch meetings agreed with the objectives and ideas of the WFD, but the translation into reality is not feasible. Furthermore the Dutch MEP-GEP guidance just describes the process and has free room of interpretation and how to use it. That led to that the Netherlands in 2005 wrote a different method to implement the WFD, Praagmatic approach, which should be better to use in practice. It has mostly the same steps as the Official WFD process, but some in a different order. Nevertheless, it has also some difficulties to use it in reality. Mainly the definitions of significant, disproportionate, irreversible and the class boundaries of the biological quality elements to assess the current situation are unclear. The ‘December nota 2006’ should have had given answers, but there is still not any solution. So till now also the new approach ensures more communication instead of more grip on the WFD implementation process. The working group canals had the task to use the MEP-GEP guidance on the twelve Rijkswateren, canals in the Netherlands. The Directorate General for Public Works and Water Management Utrecht, a participant of the Dutch workgroup canals, is, by using the Dutch MEP-GEP guidance, focused on the artificial ARC. They started in July 2006 and will present the official report in April 2007. A concept version shows that the whole Dutch MEP-GEP guidance has a lot of own interpretation and that also the working group has difficulties by using the MEP-GEP Guidance for artificial water bodies. They must invent the wheel on its own which resulted in a combination of the Official WFD text and the Praagmatic approach. Also that combination did not give more grip to define the objective MEP or GEP. Brussels is still unclear about the requirements, but DSW has made a list of requirements to which Brussels could become satisfy. That suggests that the WFD implementation is just for 4 thesis WFD & case ARC Brussels while there a lot of opportunities for the countries itself. Brussels will judge the RBMP on efforts and not on results at the end. However, the process ensures that the objective work method between the water managers nationally and internationally could be compared. The first steps of the MEP-GEP guidance show what can be done. The last phase of the MEP- GEP guidance is still a political discussion about what will we do. The effects of the measures are thereby a gamble. It gives no new (innovative) ideas in measures and possibilities to improve the environment of a canal. One positive thing of the WFD is that it ensures a more objective way of defining objectives for the water systems. Monitoring shows that the situation near the Amsterdam Rhine Canal is not reaching the objective good ecological potential, so there should be taken action. The working group canals do not define a vision about what the level of the GEP should be, but there are measures determined. The costs to improve the ecology by making the already known fish passages and nature friendly banks (NFB’s) will be extremely high (70 million euro’s). The Dutch institute WL Delft supports the WFD by making a tool to make the effects of measures on a water body visible. The tool ‘WFD explorer’ could be very handsome to make the effects of measures visible to politicians without much technical knowledge is required. That tool is still in development. A threat of the effective realisation of the WFD in 2015, 2021 or 2027 could be the inaccessibility in practice of the whole WFD procedure. Furthermore, it is a fact that some countries should do more than others, but the main thing is that there will be an integral view to river basins which ensures a better way of protection, improvement and sustainable use of the environment. This new water legislation is taken the interests of actors into account in an integral approach. And the (social-economic) conflicts between the functions of a water will be still a conflict in the future, but one thing is clear, more reverses of, for example the ecology are not permitted any more.. Shipping function is the most important so hardened banks AND/OR a combination of a function and environment is important, for example nature friendly banks near canals 5 thesis WFD & case ARC Table of Contents 1 INTRODUCTION 9 1.1 OBJECTIVES OF WATER FRAMEWORK DIRECTIVE 9 1.2 WATER FRAMEWORK DIRECTIVE DEFINITIONS FOR CANALS 9 1.2.1 Water Body characterization 10 1.2.2 River Basin Management Plans 10 1.3 IMPLEMENTATION OF WFD 11 1.3.1 Common Implementation Strategy (CIS) 12 1.3.2 Dutch MEP-GEP Guidance for artificial water bodies 12 1.4 WFD AND THE AMSTERDAM RHINE CANAL 12 1.5 RESEARCH OBJECTIVE 13 1.5.1 First part, objectives and research questions 13 1.5.2 Second part, objectives and research questions 14 1.6 METHOD AND OUTLINE OF THE RESEARCH 14 2 STATUS OF WFD IMPLEMENTATION IN EU MEMBER STATES 17 2.1 INFORMATION FROM MEMBER STATES 17 2.2 WFD APPROACH IN IRELAND 19 2.2.1 General description and Article 5 report 19 2.2.2 MEP-GEP process 19 2.2.3 Projects related to the WFD 19 2.3 WFD APPROACH IN GERMANY 20 2.3.1 General description and Article 5 report 20 2.3.2 MEP-GEP process 20 2.3.3 Projects related to the WFD 20 2.4 WFD APPROACH IN AUSTRIA 21 2.4.1 General description and Article 5 report 21 2.4.2 MEP-GEP process 21 2.4.3 Projects related to the WFD 21 2.5 WFD APPROACH IN SCOTLAND 22 2.5.1 General description and Article 5 report 22 2.5.2 MEP-GEP process 22 2.5.3 Projects related to the WFD 22 2.6 WFD APPROACH IN ENGLAND 23 2.6.1 General description and Article 5 report 23 2.6.2 MEP-GEP process 23 2.6.3 Projects related to the WFD 23 2.7 DISCUSSION/CONCLUSION 24 3 WFD IMPLEMENTATION IN THE NETHERLANDS 25 3.1 RBMP REQUIREMENTS AND GUIDANCES FOR THE WFD PROCESS 25 3.2 OFFICIAL WFD TEXT TRANSLATED INTO CIS REPORTS 26 3.2.1 Requirements to a RBMP & WFD articles & CIS reports 26 3.2.2 Differences between the Official WFD and CIS reports. 32 3.3 CIS REPORT NO 4 TRANSLATED INTO DUTCH MEP-GEP GUIDANCE 32 3.4 SEVERAL LEVELS OF WFD TRANSLATIONS 32 3.4.1 Official WFD Approach and Praagmatic Approach 33 6 thesis WFD & case ARC 3.4.2 Comparision of the steps in level 2, 3 and variant level 3 33 3.4.3 Overall vision and discussion about Praagmatic Approach 35 3.5 NATIONAL WFD IMPLEMENTATION MEETINGS 36 3.5.1 Findings from questionnaires by WFD congress June 20th 36 3.5.2 Findings from observing workshop September 19th,2006 37 3.5.3 Conclusions from questions form and workshop 38 3.6 DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS 39 4 WFD PROCESS FOR AWB IN THE NETHERLANDS 42 4.1 WORKING GROUP CANALS 42 4.2 WFD APPROACH BY WORKING GROUP CANALS 42 4.2.1 Approach to define MEP - GEP for 12 canals 42 4.2.2 RIZA document used by working group canals 43 4.3 PROCESS OF DUTCH WORKING GROUP CANALS 44 4.3.1 Findings of observation 11 July,start meeting working group canals 45 4.3.2 Findings of meeting working group canals September 46 4.3.3 Findings of the workshop by working group canals and water managers October 48 4.4 THE RESULT METHOD TO DEFINE MEP 49 4.5 CONCLUSION 52 5 CASE AMSTERDAM RHINE CANAL 53 5.1 CURRENT ENVIRONMENT OF ARC 53 5.1.1 Characterization Amsterdam Rhine Canal 54 5.1.2 RIZA document filled in for ARC 54 5.2 POSSIBILITIES TO IMPROVE THE ECOLOGY 56 5.2.1 Feasible measures 56 5.2.2 Measures in the MEP-GEP determination 57 5.2.3 Current projects near Amsterdam Rhine Canal 59 5.3 CURRENT STATUS OF THE ARC 60 5.3.1 Assessment of current status 61 5.3.2 Overall view class boundaries of biological elements 62 5.4 JUDGEMENT OF THE CURRENT SITUATION ON THE CLASS BOUNDARIES OF THE BIOLOGICAL QUALITY ELEMENTS DEFINED BY WITTEVEEN&BOS 64 5.4.1 Current situation of ARC assessed on element fish 64 5.4.2 Current situation assessed on element macrofauna 65 5.4.3 Overall assessment of the WFD biological elements 65 5.4.4 Differences between the canals of the working group 66 5.5 THE CONTENTS OF PACKAGES FOR THE TWELVE CANALS 66 5.6 TOOLS TO SUPPORT THE DECISION PROCESS 67 5.6.1 Models as a tool 67 5.7 CONCLUSION 69 6 DISCUSSION 71 6.1 SWOT ANALYSIS OF THE WATER FRAMEWORK DIRECTIVE 71 6.2 PROCESS OF WATER POLICY AND WATER FRAMEWORK DIRECTIVE 72 6.3 WHAT WILL BE THE LEVEL OF THE ECOLOGICAL TARGETS? 73 6.4 THE WORKING METHOD BY THE DUTCH WORKING GROUP CANALS 74 7 thesis WFD & case ARC 7 CONCLUSION 75 7.1 RECOMMENDATION 76 8 GLOSSARY AND LIST OF FIGURES 78 9 REFERENCES 80 Appendices 8 thesis WFD & case ARC 1 Introduction This first chapter gives an overview of the Water Framework Directive process with a focus on its implementation for canals. The global introduction results in a problem formulation and the research questions addressed of this thesis. After that the research method will be discussed. 1.1 Objectives of Water Framework Directive The EU Water Framework Directive (WFD), which came into force on 22 December 2000, establishes a new, integrated approach to the protection, improvement and sustainable use of Europe's rivers, lakes, estuaries, coastal waters and groundwater. It is minimal fragmented in nature and will have more progress with regard to its implementation than the older water legislations. The WFD pays attention to the ecology and chemistry to get an improvement and sustainable use of the environment realized. The Water Framework Directive has five key objectives: 1. to prevent further deterioration and protect and enhance the status of aquatic ecosystems and associated wetlands; 2. to promote the sustainable consumption of water; 3. to reduce pollution of waters from priority substances; 4. to prevent the deterioration in the status and to progressively reduce pollution of groundwaters; and 5. to contribute to mitigating the effects of floods and droughts. These objectives are frequently in conflict Shipping versus ecology in case Amsterdam- with the functions of water bodies. In canals Rhine Canal the main function is often shipping which has in general a negative influence on ecology. The Directorate General for Public Works and Water Shipping and environment is just one Management Utrecht (DUT) is managing the Amsterdam example of water management conflicts in Rhine Canal in the Netherlands. The canal is very important The Netherlands (see text box 1). It for transport. 100,000 ships annually use the canal highlights the need to improve coordination connecting the river Waal, Nederrhine, Lek and Amsterdam. for better integrating water policies and Other stakeholders are the agriculture, drinking water strategies in The Netherlands and Europe to companies, industry, nature and recreation. Every prevent further deterioration of the stakeholder is using the water of the canal in his own way. The ecological environment is negatively influenced by the environment. several users of the canal. In the current situation the Amsterdam Rhine canal is constructed with hardened banks The Water Framework Directives use the which have a negative impact on ecology or prevent ecology term artificial water body for a canal. The to emerge. As a consequence, in the canal are almost no WFD tries to get a better ecology and water animals or plants. Furthermore, the canal is dividing a quality, also in an artificial water body, but nature area in two parts so migration is not possible. with taken the interests of actors into account. The result of the WFD implementation Textbox 1- Example of shipping versus ecology will be a healthy water environment achieved by taking due account of environmental, economic and social considerations.[1] 1.2 Water Framework Directive definitions for canals To get the objectives of the WFD realized the process is described specificly in the policy. The WFD process is divided in three main phases: 1. the characterization phase (2000-2004) 2. the defining of objectives in a River Basin Management Plan (2005-2009) 3. the realisation phase (2010-2015) This thesis describes the implementation of the first two phases of the Water Framework Directive process with specific focus on artificial water bodies and Amsterdam Rhine Canal as a case study. In this paragraph the WFD characterization and defining of objectives phase and its contents will be discussed shortly. 9 thesis WFD & case ARC 1.2.1 Water Body characterization In order to implement the WFD, the concept of “water bodies” has been introduced in WFD Article 1 [2]. The Directive requires Member States of the EU to identify water bodies as part of the analysis of the characteristics of the river basin districts. Each surface waterbody should be classified as natural, heavily modified or as artificial, see table 1. It should be emphasized that the identification of a water body is a tool and not an objective in itself [3]. Instead, the objectives are, to attain good ecological and good chemical conditions for all surface water bodies. Heavily modified water bodies (HMWB) are bodies of water which as a result of physical alterations by human activity are substantially and irreversibly changed in character, for example by canalisation or water level management. Artificial water bodies (AWB) are defined in article 1 of the WFD as surface water bodies, which have been created in a location where no water body existed before, and which have not been created by the direct physical alteration, movement or realignment of an existing water body. This classification is used for the Amsterdam-Rhine Canal (ARC). Table1- classifications and objectives of surface waters Categories of surface Examples Objectives water bodies Natural Lakes, rivers, transitional waters, coastal waters Good Ecological Status& Good chemical status HMWB Good Ecological Potential AWB canals & Good chemical status Waterbodies classified as natural will be compared in the WFD process with natural references to get the objective maximum ecological status known. The WFD process leads to a nivellation so the objective Good Ecological Status could be reached. Artificial and heavily modified water bodies are a specific water body category with its own classification scheme and objectives, because it is difficult to compare these water bodies with natural references.[4] The classification for The Netherlands was completed by 22 December 2004. The procedure for designation of a water body as an AWB or a HMWB is set out in the WFD and further explained in a Common Implementation Strategy (CIS) Guidance Document which proposes a stepwise approach to the identification and designation of AWB and HMWB.[5] The Member States could use the CIS reports as a guideline and translate it towards its own policies. 1.2.2 River Basin Management Plans The WFD requires that all inland and coastal waters within defined river basin districts must reach the objectives ultimately by 2027. The Directorate General for Public Work and Water Management is the manager, in compliance with the requirements of the EU Water Framework Directive WFD 2000/60/EC. The River Basin Management Plan (RBMP) should describe how the WFD requirements will be achieved through the establishment of environmental objectives and ecological targets for surface waters; program of measures and a monitoring plan. The WFD sets up a six-year cycle of planning and action with the production of the first RBMP required by the end of 2009. They are subject to ministerial approval. Figure 1 shows the obligated River Basin Management Planning Cycle that allows for implementation of the WFD requirements.[6] In 2015 a first full evaluation of the effect of measures for achieving the WFD objectives has to be performed. 10