396
L. Paj˛ ak et al.
Abbreviations
WFD
Water Framework Directive
EU
European Union
RBMPs River basin management plans
uRBMPs Updated river basin management plans
NPG
National power grid
BAT
Best available technics
20.1 Introduction
The European Union’s water policy is defined in “Directive 2000/60/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2000 establishing a framework
for Community action in the field of water policy”, also known as the Water Framework Directive (WFD) [1]. This document commits all Member States to the rational
use and protection of water resources in accordance with the principle of sustainable
development (and sets as an overarching objective achieving good status of all waters
by 2015. In justified cases, this deadline may be extended until 2021 or 2027 [2, 3].
Some authors suggest that the timescale of the WFD (achieving good ecological
status in all surface waters by 2027) is over-ambitious [4].
The overarching strategic objectives of EU water policy are primarily:
• Achieving and maintaining a good status and potential of waters as well as the
related ecosystems;
• Ensuring access to water resources in order to meet the needs of the population
and of the natural environment as well as socially and economically justified water
needs of the economy;
• Mitigating the negative effects of floods and droughts and minimising the risk of
emergencies;
• Implementing a system for the integrated management of water resources.
Since the WFD was formally adopted in December 2000, various developments
potentially affecting its implementation have occurred [5]:
(a) The importance of specific pressures has been increasingly recognised,
including climate change and associated flood and drought risks [6], invasive
species [7] and a wide range of emerging pollutants [8];
(b) New perspectives on environmental management have been developed,
including ecosystem services, nature-based solutions and adaptive and
resilience-based approaches [9–11];
(c) The sustainable development goals have been set, in which many targets are
related to water, or affect waters in both positive and negative ways [12].
L. Paj˛ ak et al.
Abbreviations
WFD
Water Framework Directive
EU
European Union
RBMPs River basin management plans
uRBMPs Updated river basin management plans
NPG
National power grid
BAT
Best available technics
20.1 Introduction
The European Union’s water policy is defined in “Directive 2000/60/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2000 establishing a framework
for Community action in the field of water policy”, also known as the Water Framework Directive (WFD) [1]. This document commits all Member States to the rational
use and protection of water resources in accordance with the principle of sustainable
development (and sets as an overarching objective achieving good status of all waters
by 2015. In justified cases, this deadline may be extended until 2021 or 2027 [2, 3].
Some authors suggest that the timescale of the WFD (achieving good ecological
status in all surface waters by 2027) is over-ambitious [4].
The overarching strategic objectives of EU water policy are primarily:
• Achieving and maintaining a good status and potential of waters as well as the
related ecosystems;
• Ensuring access to water resources in order to meet the needs of the population
and of the natural environment as well as socially and economically justified water
needs of the economy;
• Mitigating the negative effects of floods and droughts and minimising the risk of
emergencies;
• Implementing a system for the integrated management of water resources.
Since the WFD was formally adopted in December 2000, various developments
potentially affecting its implementation have occurred [5]:
(a) The importance of specific pressures has been increasingly recognised,
including climate change and associated flood and drought risks [6], invasive
species [7] and a wide range of emerging pollutants [8];
(b) New perspectives on environmental management have been developed,
including ecosystem services, nature-based solutions and adaptive and
resilience-based approaches [9–11];
(c) The sustainable development goals have been set, in which many targets are
related to water, or affect waters in both positive and negative ways [12].