World Water Day
This year’s World Water Day was celebrated under the theme ‘Water and Energy’. On March 21 and 22, United Nations, working closely with its Member States and other relevant stakeholders, shed the light on the water-energy nexus and on addressing inequities, especially for the ‘bottom billion’ who live in slums and impoverished rural areas and survive without access to safe drinking water, adequate sanitation, sufficient food and energy services.
Among the objectives of World Water Day in 2014, whose official celebrations took place in Tokyo, Japan were to:
- Raise awareness of the inter-linkages between water and energy
- Contribute to a policy dialogue that focuses on the broad range of issues related to the nexus of water and energy
- Demonstrate, through case studies, to decision makers in the energy sector and the water domain that integrated approaches and solutions to water-energy issues can achieve greater economic and social impacts
- Contribute as relevant to the post-2015 discussions in relation to the water-energy nexus.
Water and Energy, as the theme of this year’s celebrations, has also been defined as one of the eight EIP Water priority areas,while there are already three out of the nine initial Action Groups active in this field. Even though, the groups focus on different issues, their work is interlinked. The three Action Groups are
To read more about the EIP Action groups, please visit EIP website
Read MoreLaunch of the OECD Report “Water Governance in the Netherlands : Fit for the Future?”
In the context of its initiative on Water Governance, OECD launched a report titled “Water Governance in the Netherlands: Fit for the Future?” on 17th of March, in The Hague, in the presence of Yves Leterme, Deputy Secretary General of the OECD and Melanie Schultz van Haegen, Minister of Infrastructure and the Environment.
The report assesses the extent to which Dutch water governance is fit for future challenges and suggests ways to adjust or reform policies and institutions. It is based on a one-year policy dialogue with a wide range of Dutch stakeholders, supported by robust analytical work and drawing on international best practice.
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Interview with Richard Seeber
[quote align=”center” color=”#999999″]Richard Seeber, MEP and President of the first Intergroup on Water of the European Parliament[/quote]
Why did you found the Intergroup Water? What were your ambitions and expectations for it?
My commitment to water began with the Bathing Water Directive, where I was a Shadow rapporteur. Subsequently, I was rapporteur to the Commission’s Communication on Floods and Droughts in 2006. At that point I realised that water was of crucial importance to our citizens and the economy. I therefore decided to found the Parliamentary Intergroup on Water, today’s “EP Water Group”, in order to put water higher on the political agenda.
Were your expectations fulfilled?
The EP Water Group is today a very recognised inter-institutional platform in the European water sector. In every meeting, we had between 50 and 150 visitors from the Parliament, other EU Institutions, national and regional representatives, industry, environmental organisations and other stakeholders. In over 20 very fruitful meetings, we have discussed issues of great significance to water in general – energy, agriculture, concessions, financing, innovation, water reuse etc. I can proudly say today that the EP Water Group had its fair share in shaping EU water policy.
More generally, if you reflect on your activity on water issues in the EP, to what degree do you think they were efficient?
Apart from the legislation mentioned above, I was also responsible for the Implementation Report on Water ahead of the Commission’s Blueprint. In this report, I called upon the Commission to work on three objectives: firstly, improving the implementation of current legislation, secondly taking regional criteria better into account and thirdly, mainstreaming water policy into all other relevant EU policies. This has been included in the Blueprint and will be implemented accordingly.
Also, I was rapporteur on the “Priority Substances” dossier, i.e. the Environment Quality Standards Directive. Today, our waters contain an alarming number of harmful chemical substances which need to be monitored and, potentially, phased out. Together with the Commission and the Council, we elaborated a satisfactory compromise to establish a watch list, where Member States could place suspicious substances. We further achieved that pharmaceutical products of concern for water will in the future be analysed through a General Pharmaceutical Strategy.
How do you see the opportunities of the water sector for the European economy?
The European water sector is already a global leader in terms of service provision and technology development. Its growth potential is huge – the annual global turnover in the water sector amounts to 375 billion euros. The water sector further contributes considerably to job creation. In order to secure these achievements, we need to boost innovation and R&D. Only by promoting these drivers we can address infrastructure, efficiency and recycling needs in water management. Several water-related societal challenges, such as the water/energy nexus, will only be met by promoting innovative technologies and research. This might require substantial investment at first – but will inevitably solve key issues in water management while maintaining the competitiveness of the European water sector. Initiatives such as the European Innovation Partnership on Water are therefore highly appreciated, also at the EU Parliament.
What are your plans after the European elections?
Looking back at the past ten years in the European Parliament, I am first of all proud to have been a member of this institution, especially an EPP Coordinator in the ENVI Committee, thus contributing to improve and facilitate life for the European citizens and the raise the environmental performance of the EU. In all, I would like to say that my time in the European Parliament was extremely rewarding. I hope to also be able to serve the European citizens with my activities for the environment in the future, possibly as Director of the Euregio office Tyrol – South Tyrol – Trentino.
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Water Innovation Europe 2014: Registrations are now open!
WssTP is all excited to announce the opening of the registrations for its annual stakehoder conference ‘Water Innovation Europe 2014′ that is going to be held on 25 & 26 of June at the Diamant Centre in Brussels.
Our special 2-day event will be dedicated to the theme ‘ Water: green tape or blue gold?‘, bringing together 200 experts from across the water sector, including scientists, technology developers, utility representatives, large water users, European and national/ regional policy makers, as well as finance.
In the context of the Water Innovation Europe 2014 conference, WssTP will also host WssTP-IWA PIA Awards and the first Water Innovation SMEs awards in Europe!
[quote align=”center” color=”#999999″]To find all the details about our conference, explore our website![/quote]
Should you have any queries, please don’t hesitate to contact us.
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ACQUEAU releases post-workshop report ‘Water Beyond Europe II’
After the successful organisation of ‘ Water Beyond Europe II’, ACQUEAU has released its post workshop report, including summaries of the speeches and presentations delivered at the event, information about ACQUEAU’s success stories and biographical details of the workshop’s speakers.
ACQUEAU workshops are bi-annual and their main objective is to bring together relevant R&D and innovation stakeholders – Large Enterprise, SMEs, Research Centres and public authorities – to develop projects ideas around a selection of water priority issues.
Further information about the workshop available at the workshop’s presentations
More information available at Acqueau’s website
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1st EIP Water Conference: Highlight Film and report out!
Over 350 participants from EU and non-EU countries participated in the 1st EIP Water Conference which was held at the EU Parliament in Brussels on 21 November 2013. After the conference’s great success, a 2-minute film and a brief conference report, featuring the conference’s highlights, have now been released by the EIP Water. Under the theme ‘Νetworking & interacting – Innovating water”, the conference managed to bring together EIP Water stakeholders, take stock of EIP Water’s progress and help shaping the future of EIP Water to further increase the opportunities for collaborating on water innovation in Europe and globally.
[quote align=”center” color=”#999999″]Watch the 2minutes highlights film from the Conference;
Download the keynote speech of Tomas Michel, WssTP President;
Read the Conference Report or;
Download the conference presentations [/quote]
Read MoreBarriers & bottlenecks to water innovation- EIP Water Report published!
What is hindering the development and uptake of innovations in the water sector? Do legal, technical and political barriers and bottlenecks exist? How can they be addressed?
These are the questions that the EIP Water Report addresses in its newly published edition ‘Barriers and bottlenecks to water innovation’. An ad-hoc group of the EIP Water Task Force led by WssTP, SusChem and the Industry Expert Group has analysed and prioritised the barriers and bottlenecks to innovation in the water sector in Europe and abroad. Five priority actions have been identified as well as roadmaps for each will be drafted and agreed upon by April 2014. The diagnosis is available free of charge on the EIP Water Marketplace.
To download the report, please register on the EIP Water Marketplace
For more information, please don’t hesitate to contact us.
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Every drop counts interview
As the key authors of the report “Guidance on evaluation and selection of sustainable water demand management technologies”, developed within the FP7 research project “Transitions to the urban water services of tomorrow” (TRUST), Dr. Aisha Bello-Dambatta and Professor Zoran Kapelan from the University of Exeter, UK have given an interview ‘ Every drop counts’ to explain the results of their research.
[quote align=”center” color=”#999999″]Download the Interview[/quote]
Download the whole report “Guidance on evaluation and selection of sustainable water demand management technologies”
Read MoreERRIN-WssTP Info day on public funding opportunities for water-related SMEs
On Friday 24th of January, WssTP and ERRIN had the pleasure of welcoming more than 200 participants at the Infoday, organised to shed lights on the public opportunities for SMEs active in the Water Sector and EcoInnovation. The event was also co-organised through the FinnoWater Action Group of the EIP on Water.
A range of speakers and experts from the European Investment Bank, European Commission, Eurostars, ACQUEAU, COSME, Business Angels and Crowdfunding were present to demonstrate opportunities for SMEs of more than 11,3 Billion Euros.
The event was a great opportunitiy for all SMEs and Project Managers to understand how to make use of available funding instruments and develop partnerships.
WssTP and ERRIN would like thank the Embassy of Netherlands in Belgium that kindly hosted our Infoday and the other sponsors that made the event possible.
WssTP will continue to explore public and private funding opportunities for the water sector in the interest of its members.
For any further enquries, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with us by mail.
Programme | Download Programme |
Participants List | Download List |
Presentations | Download Presentations |
New Year Water Cocktail | Download Speech |
Pictures | See Gallery |
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Interview with Peter Gammeltoft
[quote align=”center” color=”#999999″]Peter Gammeltoft: Head of Unit for Water, DG ENVIRONMENT[/quote]
What do you consider to have been the most remarkable change in water management in the EU Member States since you started in this position?
In the first place, a major development has been the implementation of the Water Framework Directive (WFD) through the River Basin Management Plans (RBMPs). The tools which the WFD offers for water management have been largely implemented by most Member States, although there remain significant gaps in achieving the WFD objectives. Still, I would consider the glass to be half full considering the steps that have been made. The remaining gaps will now be addressed in the second cycle of RBMPs. Another major development I have noticed is the shift in the awareness of the general public about the need to treat water as a precious resource that needs to be managed wisely and efficiently.
What do you see as the key challenge for the future to reach the objectives of the WFD?
The key challenge for the coming years will be the implementation of the programmes of measures by the Member States, using cost efficient solutions that will address the key pressures. Funding will need to be made available for this, which is becoming increasingly difficult in times of economic downturn, but the long term benefits should not be ignored because of short term vested interests. Another important issue is that in many places ageing water infrastructure needs to be upgraded, adapted to the changing climate and new standards of resource and water efficiency.
Which role do you think innovation can play in the implementation of water policy objectives, have you already seen the benefits of innovations in the implementation in the past years ?
The WFD is innovative in itself, through the implementation of the river basin management approach, international coordination and stakeholder involvement. Furthermore, as the Blueprint to safeguard Europe’s water resources indicated, innovation is recognized as a key tool to support the implementation of water policy. The EIP Water is an important driver in this respect. It does not only refer to technological innovations, but also innovations in the field of governance or water management. And innovations are not only needed in the water sector itself, but also in connected sectors, such as agriculture, where innovations can play a very important part in reducing the pressures on water quality and quantity.
What do you consider to be the role of stakeholders in the development of policy and in the implementation?
Stakeholders have a direct interest in our waters being well managed. This places them in a position to have very valuable information about specific aspects of water management that is needed to develop sound policy. For example, the WssTP is a much valued organization as it can support in delivering the technical solutions and innovations that are needed to deal with our water challenges. Furthermore, we do not only need cooperation between the authorities and the stakeholders, but also between stakeholders themselves to support the development of holistic policy and its implementation.
How do you see the state of EU waters in 2027 after three full cycles of WFD implementation, do you expect strong improvements or even being close to having reached the objectives?
We need to remain ambitious and keep the goal of meeting the objectives of healthy water ecosystems and resources that we have set together. It may not be realistic to expect that the objectives have been fully met everywhere, but I prefer to focus on the achievements that have been made and will be made by 2027 and the opportunities they will bring.
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