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Seminar on Integrated Water Management in the Tisza River Basin
Final Report - II
1. SEMINAR OBJECTIVES
Main Objectives
With the overall objective to provide the basis for developing an Integrated River Basin Management (IRBM) Plan for the Tisza River, the seminar objective is to achieve agreement on a joint approach between the five involved countries:
1) Finding a common ground: establish the economic and environmental basis for transboundary co-operation (policy and issue statements)
2) Filling the gaps: Specify the technical and geographic scope of water management in the Tisza Basin (working groups)
3) Supporting an initiative: Exploring the regional funding opportunities and looking at national co-financing.
More specifically the goals of the seminar are:
 to present and exchange information on recent, ongoing and future policies, programmes and projects concerning water management in the Tisza river basin
to discuss sector obstacles and constraints with respect to water management in the Tisza River Basin
to explore common grounds for a joint approach directed at the ultimate establishment of a trans-boundary IRBM plan for the Tisza River Basin in line with the EU Water Framework Directive (WFD)
to agree on further steps to be taken to achieve the above joint approach and plan
to take the first step to the design of a joint organisational and financial structure, to monitor the implementation of a road map towards IRBM and to coordinate relevant projects and programmes.
2. SEMINAR PRESENTATIONS
Seminar Introductions
1) Welcome speech
Ms. Jutta Krause, FAO Deputy Representative for Europe
2) Opening ceremony
Dr. Jozsef Simon, Deputy State Secretary of Ministry of Agriculture and Regional Development of Hungary
3) Integrated water management in view of the EU WFD and Flood Protection
Dr. Tamas Domeny, Head office of Ministry of Environment of the Republic of Slovakia
4) Policy issues concerning Tisza river management
Mr. Janos Nemcsok, Ministerial Commissioner of the Prime Minister's Office of Hungary
5) The Incentives for Co-Management in Trans-boundary River Basin Management
Mr. Jacob Burke, FAO Senior Water Policy Officer, Land & Water Division of Agricultural Dep.
6) Seminar objectives and procedures
Mr. Tobias Salathe, the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands (seminar moderator)
Country Presentations of Hungary
7) Interaction between agricultural and water sector
Mr. Gabor Kolossvary, Head of Dep. of Water Management of Ministry of Agriculture and Regional Development
8) International cooperation in the framework of the Tisza Water Forum
Dr. Peter Bakonyi, Director General of VITUKI, & Mr. Kalman Papp, Head of Dep. of EU and International Coordination, National Water Authority
9) Environmental cooperation in the Tisza river basin
Mr. Peter Kovacs, Head of Water and Soil Protection Dep, Ministry of Environment and Water
10) Management of ecological problems of the Tisza river in Hungary
Mr. Imre Lanszky, Special advisor of Ministry of Environment and Water
Country Presentations of Romania
11) Institutional cooperation in the Tisza River Basin
Ms. Anemarie Ciurea, Head of International Relations and Trans-boundary Waters
12) The stage of the WFD implementation in Romania
Ms. Elena Tuchiu, Expert from National Administration of "Romanian Waters"
Country Presentations of Serbia-Montenegro
13) River Basin Management in Serbia-Montenegro
Ms. Marina Mladenovic, Director of Dep. for River Engineering and Management, MOAWM
14) Tisza River - base for development of the Vojvodina Region
Ms. Marina Mladenovic, Director of Dep. for River Engineering and Management, MOAWM
Country Presentations of Republic of Slovakia
15) Experiences with implementation of WFD in water management planning
Ms. Maria Vagasiova, Slovak Water Management Enterprise, Branch Office River Basin Bodrog and Hornad
16) Potential agricultural pollution in Tisza river basin and elements of agricultural policy to control it
Mr. Radoslav Bujnovsky, Deputy Director, Soil Science & Conservation Research Institute
Country Presentations of Ukraine
17) Water management policy of the Ukraine
Mr. Alexandr Deziron, Deputy Head of Water Resources Dep., State Committee for Water Management, Ministry of Agricultural Policy
18) Technical presentation of Ukraine
Mr. Valerii Kasianchuk, Head of International Cooperation Dep., State Committee for Water Management, Ministry of Agricultural Policy
International Presentations
19) Steps towards integrated water management planning in the Tisza River Basin
Mr. Jack Damen, Visiting Expert FAO
20) Trans-boundary river management experiences in The Netherlands
Mr. Maarten Hofstra, Director of Water Pollution Control and International Relations of Netherlands Institute for Inland Water Management and Waste Water Treatment (RIZA)
21) Sustainable development programme on the Tisza River Basin
Ms. Eva Csobod, Director of the Regional Environmental Center, Hungary
22) How NGO's can contribute to achieve IRBM of Tisza
Ms. Victoria Siposs, Tisza project leader, WWF Hungary
23) Keynote address
Ms. Marine Trevisan, Co-Secretary, Council of Europe, Parliamentary Assembly
24) Wetlands management in the upper Tisza river basin
Dr. Douglas Taylor, Acting CEO of Wetlands International
25) CADSES opportunities for integrated water management planning & implementation
Mr. Alfred Evers, Policy Advisor on EU Affairs, Euregio Meuse-Rhine
26) Trans-Boundary integrated water management in the Sava river basin
Mr. Henk Zingstra, International Agricultural Center, the Netherlands
Seminar Introductions
1. Welcome speech
By Ms. Jutta Krause
As the Deputy Regional Representative of the FAO European Regional Office, Ms. Jutta Krause welcomed the participating delegations. This International Seminar is convened upon the initiative of the Government of Hungary which had requested FAO during its Regional Conference for Europe in Portugal in 2000 and confirmed in Cyprus in 2002 for technical assistance in order to address recurring problems related to water management, environmental, social and rural development issues. During the mentioned conferences and afterwards support for such an initiative was expressed by Serbia-Montenegro, Slovak Republic, Romania and Ukraine in favour of a joint approach for the management of the Carpathian Sub-Basin of the Danube River in compliance with the EU WFD.
Disruptive downstream floods and consequent disruptions of economic activities and social hardships have been frequent along the Tisza River. This fact represents a driving force for relevant authorities to strengthen the cooperation in order to regulate the Tisza River Basin primarily for socio-economic and environmental reasons. Since the Tisza River is shared by five countries there is a need for concentrated cooperative actions and multifunctional approaches in order to address the existing serious problems of the Carpathian Tisza River catchment area.
The main objective of this seminar is to serve as a forum for exchange of information and experiences on the ongoing and planned activities in the Tisza River Basin and to focus on further development. Moreover, the objective is to transfer the achieved common interest from this seminar into the larger follow-up project proposals geared, with the assistance of international co-financing institutions, towards IRBM plans in line with the EU WFD.
The FAO intents to formulate a regional project for the concerned countries, and the outcomes of this seminar will have significant implications on such a regional project. This FAO seminar does not intent to start something "new" but to build on existing initiatives and approaches. Many initiatives have been implemented already, and of significance is the establishment of the Tisza Water Forum at Ministerial level, several ongoing activities on the Tisza's tributaries, recently signed by Ministers and high level officials, declaration on the sustainable spatial development of the Tisza River Basin in the framework of the Council of Europe and also the already signed Kyiv Resolution on Biodiversity. Up to now many possibilities were created for cooperation at the Tisza basin level, so further ideas directed towards the Tisza have to be strengthened, adjusted and coordinated within the existing frameworks. This seminar is an opportunity to take a significant step towards strong economical, social, environmental and rural development in the Carpathian Tisza River Basin.
2. Opening ceremony
By Dr. Jozsef Simon
Today, the local and global problems of water, of food production and of environment are the subjects in many forums. This fact has become particularly important because the Assembly of the UN declared, by its decision n° 55/196, the year 2003 as the International Year of Freshwater. Water is a valuable and limited natural resource. According to predictions, the freshwater resource of the Earth declines dangerously. An important part of the existing freshwater resources is polluted. It is predicted that the water abstraction will increase with 40% in the next 20 years. Because of inappropriate water use, surface water and groundwater has become more and more polluted. We have to pay attention to the protection of existing resources and to the freshwater management.
An important principle of successful production is the appropriate water management. In order to provide the safe conditions of human life in the region and the harmonious development of the economy, especially of the agriculture, putting water as nature resource at easy disposal is indispensable. An up-to-dated water management, which complies with the recent requirements, is essential. All affected countries within the Carpathian Basin have to be involved in the establishment and execution of such a water management.
At the European Regional Conference of FAO in 2000, the Hungarian ministry initiated a program on drainage covering the whole Carpathian Basin. This seminar concentrates on the biggest sub river basin of the Carpathian Basin, the Tisza River Basin.
The effects of the global climatic change that threatens our Earth are perceptible in the sub-river basins. Many agricultural territories, communities and populations were affected by three different natural disasters - drought, inundation and inland water pollution - during the same year. The primary objective of Hungarian water management is the reduction of damages caused by surplus water and the ability to hold back and if necessary conduct surplus water into floodplains and hilly territories. The conclusion is that a new international agreement is needed complying with the recent requirements and establishment of an international common agricultural water management program to manage the above-mentioned issues.
The main objective of the seminar is to take into account the possibilities for management of the common river basins and to work out initiatives in order to minimize the damages, to increase the production safety and the productivity and to decrease the damage sensibility. It is the hope that the seminar will be able to formulate common objectives and by cooperation and common actions of the involved countries to find the necessary financial resources.
3. Integrated Water Management in view of the EU WFD and Flood Protection
By Dr. Tamas Domeny
To address problems and find solutions for the increased demand of water resources in the required quantity and quality for present and future generations, the European Parliament and the European Council adopted the WFD No. 2000/60/EEC. By adopting the WFD, the philosophy of water source protection has changed. It aims at creating conditions for sustainable use of water sources through IRBM. This changed attitude to water resources requires new attitudes in understanding and securing water protection based on providing sufficient quantity of water in satisfactory quality. These functions must be accomplished in the frame of preserving the natural functions of water courses. An instrument for achieving environmental goals is IRBM.
Transposition of WFD in Slovakia
The WFD is already reflected in the Law No. 184/2002 on water and in the amendments of related laws (the Water Act) apart from some concept definitions and regulations related to protected areas and vulnerable areas. The Slovakian Water Act needs to be amended to be fully compatible with the WFD. The WFD is in the process of being transposed into an amended version of the Water Act, which is planned to come into force before the EU accession of the Slovak Republic. According to the amendment of the Water Act, the territory of Slovakia belongs to the Danube River Basin and the Visla River Basin, in which the regions of river basins are determined according to the natural hydrological borders of the partial river basins. Regions of the Danube River Basin (Black Sea) are Danube River Basin, Váh River Basin, Hron River Basin, Hornád and Bodrog River Basin and of the Visla River Basin are the Poprad and Dunajec River Basins. River basin management plans are prepared for each of the sub-river basins.
Nine working groups have been established for securing compliance with and implementation of the WFD in Slovakia: 1) analysis of the influence and impact of human activity on water systems, 2) definition of water systems significantly changed due to human activity, 3) classification of condition of surface water systems and identification of referential profiles and terms, 4) designation of inter-calibration network, organisation and realisation of training, 5) economic analysis, 6) monitoring of water systems, 7) classification and assessment of underground water system condition, 8) management plans of activities in river basins affecting the water regime, 9) geographical information system. The working groups consist of experts from the Research Institute of Water Management, the Hydro-meteorological Institute, Slovak Water Management Enterprise in Banská Štiavnica, Slovak Environmental Agency, Slovak Academy of Science and the universities, which have prepared methodological procedures for the areas specified in the WFD reflecting conditions of Slovakia. Analysis of river basin characteristics, study of human activity impact on the condition of surface and groundwater and economic analysis of water utilization are some of the prioritized tasks of the working groups. Results of these tasks will form basis for gradual processing river basin management plans aimed at achieving the environmental goals of the WFD.
Flood protection
In the year 2000, the Government of the Slovak Republic approved the report of proposed system measures aimed at the flood protection and financing consequences: "Program of Flood Protection Measures of the Slovak Republic until 2010". The implementation of short-term, medium-term and long-term measures are proposed in this report, including financial means required for the implementation. These measures are of traditional technical character, but also of a non-traditional character, e.g. increase of absorption capacity of individual river basins and river inundation, re-evaluation of the use of territory (land use planning). Funds required for the implementation of these measures represent almost SKK 18 billion, of which over SKK 200 million are for the execution of research and development (R&D) projects.
Conclusions
The WFD should serve to achieve "good water status" through meeting environmental goals. The environmental aspect of this directive is emphasized by the first declaration in the introduction: "Water is not a commercial article; it is rather a national heritage to be adequately maintained, protected and cared for". The implementation and transposition of the WFD is a serious and contemporary task to be solved intelligently without delay due to its complexity. This process will be, however, long and gradual. Due to the wide scope of the WFD and to the fact that water will be a key to sustainable development of the country, many sectors and representatives of social and non-governmental organisations will have to be involved in the implementation process of this Directive.
4. Policy issues concerning Tisza river management
By Mr. Janos Nemcsok
Hungary is high on the world list of countries exposed to flooding, because 10% of our territory consists of among others floodplains, streams and rivers. Flood control in Hungary has been successful in recent years. The last flooding causing the loss of human life occurred about 50 years ago.
Due to the particular physical, economic and geographical conditions, important studies have attracted attention in Hungary for centuries to control the losses from river floods. Of the 93,000 km2 of the lowland territory of the country, 21.000 km2 are floodplains, which protect 97% of the area against damage by rivers. The ratio of floodplains in Hungary is the highest in the European countries.
Some facts:
1) 2.5 mill people are exposed to flooding risk
2) 20,000 km2 are inhabited mainly by farmers
3) 15% of the roads and 32% of railway lines are running through floodplain areas
4) more than 2,000 industries are settled on floodplains
5) more than 25% of gross domestic products are produced in these areas.
The new Hungarian Tisza restoration programme is called the Vásárhelyi River Plan for the Tisza. Floods have occurred in the past and will occur in the future. Man must protect himself against these floods and learn to control them.
The starting basis for any development is a permanent flood control, which in Hungary has evolved during the last 150 years. Flood prevention must be done in combination with economic needs and human activities, especially here in Eastern Europe.
Further, the recent flooding has made people change their view points to focus on safety and utilities for their production. These changes in attitudes have resulted in the focus on safety for human existence and the living conditions in areas with flood risk. Thus compensation has become an important issue for people, who are exposed to the risk of flood hazards. Interactions between nature conservation and landscape values in the Tisza River have also contributed to the focus on the importance of flood retention as a safety precaution. It is likely to assume that it is at the same time profitable to enhance the landscape protection and the creation of green corridors.
What are the measures to be used for the protection of the ecology systems:
1) storages in the upstream part of the catchment
2) increase the capacity of the floodplains
3) lowland storages
4) flood protection measures
Based on these measures, the optimal development of a Tisza River flood protection system must be a combination of the different technical alternatives providing also the support for the rehabilitation of the Tisza River and the neighbouring landscape. Analysing the above suggestion, a proposal has been developed for the necessary interventions and their potential impacts have been studied. The most appropriate solution is development of a system with storage capacities with at the same time beneficial use of the stored waters.
The ongoing development of this concept under the programme offers the change for the rehabilitation of the river and the landscape. The whole river basin is considered unique regarding the possibilities for selection of flood defence, management alternatives and investigations of ecological food production. The goal of the programme is that the natural biological route of the floods is utilised in maintaining biodiversity, preserving areas of high value and migration of species. The programme has been estimated to Euro 600 million in direct costs over the five years for implementation of the strategy.
5. The Incentives for Co-Management in Trans-boundary River Basin Management
By Mr. Jacob Burke
The Issues
Environmental externalities are growing, extreme events expensive to cope with
Economic returns of water in agriculture are marginal but rural economies still seen as essential
Economic returns of water in rapidly growing municipal areas are high, inducing rapid land and water conversion/transfer
Decentralization introduces a natural resource planning dilemma: basin based or region based?
Tensions over land and water allocation will need to be reconciled, but by whom?
Demands for transboundary co-operation and management will persist and intensify.
The policy response
Institutional rigidity persists in agriculture - command / control economic planning or stupidity?
Agriculture continues to be protected - attempts for CAP reform are limited
However, we are seeing tighter regulations for land use and chemical inputs (EU Water Pollution Directives), and the EU WFD is calling for total economic value of water accounting and cost recovery across all uses, in addition to the 'polluter pays' principle.
Is agriculture policy response lagging in relation to other water related sectors? Is this a problem? What types of incentives are there to co-manage agricultural water management across borders?
The economic incentives are to allow the water economy to breathe (remove distortions), focus on shared benefits as opposed to shared water, identify and negotiate the trans-boundary externalities, regulate in the public interest to optimise economic and environmental returns.
The technical/institutional opportunities are to address the trans-boundary 'myths', identify alternatives, make 'smart' basin regulation possible. Also to have strong institutions with a) effective engagement with users, b) good information flow, and c) ability to integrate across jurisdictions and sectors where necessary (financial control, economic incentives).
Four fundamental qualities for co-management:
1. Implementation: Is there a competent institutional instrument to drive a process of co-management? - is this aligned well with existing national and regional initiatives?
2. Perception: Is there a clear acceptance of the purpose of co-management and a clear delineation of responsibilities and liabilities - is this understood by all parties?
3. Integration: Can the range of water related sector interventions and investments be integrated at the appropriate scales at national and basin level?
4. Operation: Can the national institutions manage and communicate water resources operations effectively?
Conclusions
Establish a national consensus at the outset on the basis of good trans-boundary analysis - economic and environmental
Align the key national institutions
Negotiate trans-boundary agreements on principles and qualities, quantities come later
Keep international co-ordination 'light' and proportioned. Do not try to be 'comprehensive'
Develop (and monitor) high levels of trust between the sector players.
6. Seminar Objectives and Procedures
By Mr. Tobias Salathe
Mr. Tobias Salathe summarised the seminar objectives as follows:
1. Finding a common ground among the countries that share the river basin: establish the economic, social and environmental basis for trans-boundary co-operation (policy and issue statements)
2. Filling the gaps: Specify the technical and geographic scope for water management in the Tisza Basin (the working groups)
3. Supporting an initiative: Exploring the regional funding opportunities and looking at national co-financing.
During the discussions, Mr. Salathe pointed out that it may be important to clarify what transboundary water management means - on river basin level, but also on more concrete administrative and land use level.
At this seminar, we should seek to identify opportunities for specific work, for specific projects for which donors already exist. We should seek to achieve agreement on policy level between the countries, but also on the more practical and local level on what are the main issues, priorities and gaps to be filled in the frame of trans-boundary river basin management.
Today, we listen to presentation on the national policy issues and statements and on technical aspects of IRBM and WFD. Tomorrow we will continue our discussions to draw up conclusions and recommendations by splitting up into four working groups on the following themes:
WG 1: Recommendations for a joint approach (the common ground)
WG 2: Flood protection/mitigation (to fill gap)
WG 3: Main sector interests, e.g. agriculture, environment, rural development (to fill gap)
WG 4: Implementation of WFD (to fill gap)
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