Synergies and Conflicts Between Water Framework Directive and Natura 2000: Legal Requirements, Technical Guidance and Experiences from Practice - Wetlands and Water Framework Directive: Protection, Management and Climate Change - page 23

Since, in general, details on coordination activities are not documented in the
RBMP or in the programmes of measures, it is not comprehensible, whether pos-
sible con

icts between Natura 2000 and WFD were already solved during the
preparation of the programmes of measures or whether they are rather passed on to
the subsequent planning levels. Thus, one can assume that a considerable amount of
probably unsolved con

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icts of objectives is remaining as part of the RBMPs and
programmes of measures.

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2.4.3 Recommendations for the Implementation and Future
Management Planning

A look at the first generation of RBMPs in Germany and Austria has shown that the

relationship between WFD and BHD was already considered and coordination
between water management and nature conservation has taken place. However, the
information given in the plans is not very detailed and provides still room for
improvement. To avoid con

icts and to utilize synergies in further implementation
and planning, the following recommendations can be given on the basis of hitherto
planning experience, especially gained in the above-mentioned project on the
analysis of German river basin management planning 2009 (see 2.2.2 ):

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1. Network areas and protected areas for Annex IV species should be included.
Representatives of nature conservation have repeatedly demanded that the list of
protected areas according to Art. 6 of the WFD should include network areas
according to Art. 10 of the HD and protected areas for Annex IV species
according to Art. 12 of the HD, as well as the national categories of protected
areas, despite this is not being required by European law. This has not yet
occurred in Germany, neither, for instance, in Austria or Poland. The inclusion
of such areas would, however, encourage the timely harmonisation of objectives
and thus the smooth implementation of both directives. On the part of nature
conservation, criteria should therefore be developed according to which a
consistent approach and selection of the relevant areas can occur (Stratmann
et al. 2012a , p. 307). These areas include those of the national biotope network
and various national categories of protected areas, in particular nature conser-
vation areas, national parks, biosphere reserves and landscape conservation
areas. Once network elements or protected areas that form these network ele-
ments are identi ed, it is also necessary to decide which objectives related to the

hydrological regime are critical for their function and should be integrated into
agreements with water management.
2. Implementation of measures in Natura 2000 sites should be closely coordinated
and prioritised.
The sensitivity of species included in Annex II of the HD to the types of measures
(included in the catalogue compiled by LAWA the German Working Group on
water issues of the Federal States and the Federal Government) has been