Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
2.1 WFD in the Netherlands
Good water quality is essential for agriculture and nature, but also for the production
of drinking water. More than 30% of our drinking water is extracted from surface water
(www.minvrom.nl). Clean water is also important in other industries for sustainable
development in the Netherlands. The quality of the water system is not yet up to standard.
We anticipate that supreme efforts will be needed in a number of areas to achieve the
goals. In the Netherlands, there are several topics where the goals will be difficult or
hardly possible to achieve. These subjects are dangerous substances, eutrophication,
heavy metals and PCBs (Ministry of Transport, Public Works and Water Management,
2004). The pollution of the surface waters by eutrophicating substances like phosphate
and nitrate originates from agriculture, industry and sewage works, and for a certain part
from other countries. Also for heavy metals and PCBs agriculture is, next to construction
industry and traffic, a source of pollution. The introduction of the WFD will affect
practically every Dutch citizen and many business sectors and it is clear that the costs for
water management will rise. Technical work is needed to improve water mains and
sewers, but we also need to reduce the phosphate and nitrate burden on the environment
and clean up polluted sediments. Physical planning measures may also have to be used to
provide some of the solutions. Realistic goals and packages of measures need to be
formulated, in which regard public support and financial feasibility are vital factors. The
Netherlands is deliberately following a cautious strategy which leads to a pragmatic
implementation. Even then, the Netherlands will have a substantial extra task in relation
to current policies.
2.2 Organisation, communication and the WFD
The abundance of water in the Netherlands not only determines the issues we face in
the coming decade but has also shaped our attitude and our approach to these issues. In
the Netherlands, we call this striving for consensus between all parties 'poldering', and
not without reason. Implementation of the Directive is a major challenge both
administratively and organisationally. Given the substantive issues, existing
responsibilities and multitude of organisations, it is a complex process. The consultations
in the Netherlands are taking place at national level, with the provinces, with the
Association of Water Boards and with the Association of Netherlands Municipalities.
At national level the Ministry of Transport, Public Works and Water Management bears
prime responsibility for the implementation of the Directive. Because of many related
interests, the ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality (LNV) is also involved in
the process. Needless to say there are also tensions: these are only normal and arise from
the seriousness and nature of the task and the interests at stake for the various parties. The
decision-making process has been broken down into stages and filtered (from coarse to
fine). A decision-making structure has also been put in place. This is partly a bottom-up
and partly a top-down process, and results in annual policy documents that are adopted by
the Government and Parliament. This is considered to provide sufficient public support
for the implementation of the Water Framework Directive as laid down in the river basin
management plans. As for the involvement of private parties, the Netherlands has actively
invited interested parties to participate in the decision-making process. At national level
this consists of a stakeholder platform, representing a wide range of interests from nature
conservation to housing and infrastructure. The input of these organisations is appreciated
and may lead to changes in the final product. At river basin district level, sounding-board
groups are now in place. Next to the national decision making process, also at
international level consensus has to be found about the interpretation of the tasks of the
WFD.
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