Wetlands and Water Framework Directive: Protection, Management and Climate Change - Wetlands and Water Framework Directive: Protection, Management and Climate Change - page 1

Chapter 1
Wetlands and Water Framework
Directive: Protection, Management
and Climate Change

S. Ignar and M. Grygoruk

Abstract In this chapter the general context of protection and management of
wetlands in legal frameworks of water management is discussed. We present the
background of the topic, referring to its main conclusions and achievements. The
main

finding is that the existing regulations of the European environmental policy

are suf ciently accurate and provide adequate tools to maintain good status of

ecosystems as well as to restore the degraded ecosystems that provide a potential of
reaching the favourable environmental status. However, implementation of these
regulations requires attention and enhancement, as in selected cases it fails to ful

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their environmental objectives. We state that the main attention of the EU envi-
ronmental policy the day before, when the good status of waters and aquatic
ecosystems demanded by the water framework directive has to be met by the
member states, should pay special attention at assessment of the implementation
ef ciency of existing legal regulations rather than at the development of the new

ones. We conclude that in order to succeed with the adaptive management of
wetlands facing climate change, social sciences should be more deeply involved in
EU environmental policy inducing attitudes of managing authorities and users of
valuable wetlands.

Keywords Wetlands Water framework directive Climate change Environ-

ment Conservation