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Water
Innovative Programs and Policies
Tools and Guidelines
Databases and Case Studies
Newsletters, Publication Collections and Reports of Interest
International Organization and Government Web sites
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The Netherlands and the Chesapeake Bay Region established a profitable cooperation on land-use planning, low-impact development, smart growth, and non-point urban and rural run off. |
Chesapeake Bay Leaders Learn about Dutch Innovations
In June 2002, eight watershed practitioners from the Chesapeake Bay region representing local, state and federal governments, an interstate commission, and a non-governmental organization traveled to the Netherlands for two weeks to observe Dutch policies involving land-use, low-impact development, smart growth, and non-point urban and rural runoff.
Chesapeake Bay officials learned about many innovative Dutch policies and programs of environmental protection. They witnessed the advantages of a government-wide integration of national environmental policies that address environmental, transportation, energy, agricultural and recreational issues comprehensively. Chesapeake officials were also impressed by the broad scale and intensive public involvement of the Dutch planning process.
Participants from the Chesapeake area noted that dredging was an especially pertinent issue for both their region and the Netherlands. The increasing size of commercial ships and growing environmental concerns make dredging projects contentious and long. The Dutch consensus approach to dredging brings environmentalists, shipping companies, and the public together to ensure the viability of their ports. The Chesapeake region can apply this model to keep Baltimore and Norfolk competitive.
Yet another creative method to protect Dutch watersheds deals with point source pollution. The Dutch established the Mineral Accounting System to manage manure by tracking mass balances of nutrients on more than 80,000 farms. When a farm exceeds runoff limits, the farm must pay a penalty.
To learn more, see Dutch treat: Technology exchange tour offers pointers for Bay 
in the Bay Journal by Peter Marx.
Innovative Programs and Policies
Canadian National Action Plan to Encourage Municipal Water Use EfficiencyThe Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment adopted this action plan to achieve more efficient use of water in Canadian municipalities in order to save money and energy, delay or reduce expansion of existing water and wastewater systems, and conserve water.
European Commission's LIFE-Environment Initiative
Launched in 1992, LIFE cofinances environmental initiatives in the European Union and bordering countries. LIFE-Environment contributes to the development of innovative techniques and methods by cofinancing demonstration projects in a number of areas including water management. This Web site provides information on LIFE projects and hosts a database of over 1,000 state, municipal, and local level projects funded through this program, including case study reports of particular success stories.
European Union Water Policy Directives
The European Parliament has provided policy directives on many aspects of water management including the most recent directive on river basin management, established in 2000 to protect inland surface waters, transitional waters, coastal waters and groundwater, in order to prevent and reduce pollution, promote sustainable water use, protect the aquatic environment, improve the status of aquatic ecosystems and mitigate the effects of floods and droughts. This Web site includes European water policy directives such as that for river basin management, urban wastewater treatment, discharges of dangerous substances, nitrates, and drinking water.
European Union's Water Initiative Research
This Web site is the research dimension of the EU's Water Initiative, which aims to increase the number of people with access to safe water and basic sanitation as well as generalize the adoption and practice of integrated river basin approaches. This Web site contains research projects and findings of the Water Initiative.
EUROMARKET Research Project
EUROMARKET is a research project headed by the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology on "Water liberalisation scenarios: An empirical analysis of the evolution of the European water supply and sanitation sectors" that provides an in-depth case study of the European water market. The project strategy and other documents and news related to this project may be found on the Web site.
International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI) Water Campaign
ICLEI's Water Campaign supports local councils in identifying practical approaches and solutions to their water management challenges and promotes the inter-municipal exchange of ideas and lessons learned. This Web site provides documents on ICLEI's Water Campaign.
Queensland, Australia's Water Recycling Strategy
Queensland, Australia's Water Recycling Strategy aims to develop effective ways to manage municipal, industrial and agricultural effluents and urban stormwater as a resource rather than as a waste. This Web site provides information on the strategy and background studies on relevant subjects.
Tools and Guidelines
Canadian Substance Removal Technologies DatabaseDeveloped by the Canadian Water and Wastewater Association, this database allows the user to identify water and wastewater treatment technologies capable of removing specific substances, or search for information on a specific technology and determine if there is research taking place in a given area.
Global Water Partnership's Integrated Water Resources Management ToolBox
The Global Water Partnership is an international partnership among government agencies, public institutions, private companies, and professional organizations involved in water management. Global Water Partnership's ToolBox on Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM ToolBox) provides water management professionals clear examples of good practices and lessons learned from implementing IWRM. The ToolBox consists of tools for addressing water management problems, case studies, reference material, and an extensive list of water management organizations.
Queensland, Australia's Water Recycling Strategy
Queensland, Australia's Water Recycling Strategy aims to develop effective ways to manage municipal, industrial and agricultural effluents and urban stormwater as a resource rather than as a waste. This Web site provides information on the strategy and how it was developed.
UNESCO's Institute for Water Education
UNESCO's Institute for Water Education (UNESCO-IHE) contributes to the education and training of professionals mainly in developing countries and countries in transition. This Web site provides information on UNESCO-IHE's educational and research programs and a database of international projects.
Waterwise- Good for Business and Good for the Environment (United Kingdom, 2002) (PDF Format About PDF)
Waterwise is part of a series of free water efficiency publications from the United Kingdom's Environment Agency. This Waterwise guide provides businesses and other organizations with a simple and systematic approach to developing and implementing a water management plan.
Databases and Case Studies
Canada's Water Efficiency Experiences DatabaseCanadian Water and Wastewater Association and Environment Canada have developed this site to encourage the exchange of information in this rapidly growing field. This searchable database contains over 170 conservation projects from across Canada.
European "Best Practices for Sustainable Urban Infrastructures"
Founded in 1971, COST is an intergovernmental framework for European Co-operation in the field of Scientific and Technical Research, allowing the co-ordination of nationally funded research on a European level. COST8, an activity in identifying best practices for sustainable urban infrastructures, has assembled a series of European case studies on topics such as water and wastewater.
European Commission's LIFE-Environment Initiative Database
Launched in 1992, LIFE cofinances environmental initiatives in the European Union and bordering countries. LIFE-Environment contributes to the development of innovative techniques and methods by cofinancing demonstration projects in a number of areas including water management. This Web site hosts a database of almost 1,000 swater related projects funded through this program, including case study reports of particular success stories.
Global Water Partnership's Case Studies
Global Water Partnership's ToolBox on Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) provides water management professionals clear examples of good practices and lessons learned from implementing IWRM. The ToolBox case studies section contains many examples of best practices and real experiences.
"Local Sustainability:" European Good Practice Information Service Case Studies
'Local Sustainability' has been conceived and developed as a service of many partners, disseminating and making accessible the good practice experiences of European cities, towns, counties and their associations, national and regional governments, research and educational institutions, and Directorate Generals of the European Commission. This Web site provides a searchable database of over 100 case studies of European sustainability practices including 16 related to water management.
The German Water Sector : German Case Studies
The German Water Sector , a documentary report, depicts water management procedures by means of concrete case studies. It shows the successes of German water policy, but also points out the unresolved problems and challenges. The case studies section can be accessed directly through the Contents link on the side of the page.
The Netherlands Water Partnership Water Information Network (WIN)
The Netherlands Water Partnership Water Information Network (WIN) provides a variety of information on water subjects around the world. Its database contains news facts, over 700 international project descriptions, and events and contact information.
UNESCO World Water Development Report Case Studies
The World Water Assessment Programme's World Water Development Report (WWDR) uses case studies as a testing ground for new methodologies in water management. This Web site includes seven river-basin case studies from the first edition of WWDR, released in March 2003.
United Kingdom Environment Agency's Savewater Web site and Water Efficiency Award Winners
This Web site provides information on best water practices including case studies on recipients of the Water Efficiency Awards. The Awards provide public, private and voluntary sector organizations with the opportunity to showcase their innovative approaches to water efficiency.
Newsletters, Publication Collections and Reports of Interest
Newsletters
European Water Association's European Water Management NewsThe European Water Management News (EWMN), produced by the Netherlands Water Partnership (NWP) for the European Water Association, provides the latest news on the European and international water sectors. Free subscriptions are available.
Global Water Partnership Brochures and Newsletters
The Global Water Partnership (GWP) is an international partnership among government agencies, public institutions, private companies, and professional organizations involved in water management. The GWP Library offers a collection of global and regional brochures and newsletters on water management.
United Kingdom's Demand Management Bulletin
The UK's National Water Demand Management Centre's (NWDMC) Demand Management Bulletin is a bimonthly newsletter that provides news and analysis on UK and international demand management and water conservation issues.
World Water Council
The World Water Council (WWC), an international think tank, publishes a regular newsletter featuring reports of activities, announcements of future water events and interviews and articles from members.
Publication Collections
European Water Association PublicationsThe European Water Association (EWA) is an independent non-governmental and non-profit organization dealing with the management and improvement of the water environment. EWA produces publications and reports on its conferences.
International Water Association Publishing Site
The International Water Association (IWA) is an organization with membership of water professionals from over 100 countries. IWA's Publishing Site offers the purchase of IWA journals and information on other books and journals on relevant subjects.
International Water Association's Water Policy Journal
Water Policy, a research journal published in partnership with International Water Association Publishing, includes reviews and debates on all policy aspects of water resources.
The Stockholm International Water Institute's Stockholm Water Front
Stockholm Water Front is a quarterly magazine about water and water-related issues. Stockholm Water Front provides news reporting on the activities of the Stockholm International Water Institute.
United Kingdom's National Water Demand Management Centre
The UK's National Water Demand Management Centre (NWDMC) is the focal point within the Environment Agency for the science and practice of water demand management in England and Wales. NWDMC produces a number of studies and reports that are available online.
Reports of Interest
Environmental and Resource Costs in the Water Framework Directive: the Case of Germany
In response to a 2003 European Commission Water Framework Directive (which stipulated, "Member States shall take account of the principle of recovery of the costs of water services, including environmental and resource costs") a working group was established to more clearly define "environmental and resource costs". This report investigates many of the economic aspects - such as the cost recovery for water services, incentive pricing for water, or the selection of cost-effective measures published here in the study by the German Federal Environmental Agency.
European Commission's Report: Water, an essential resource ((PDF 852KB) (2002))
Launched in 1992, LIFE cofinances environmental initiatives in the European Union and bordering countries. LIFE-Environment contributes to the development of innovative techniques and methods by cofinancing demonstration projects and publications in a number of areas including water management. This first edition in the LIFE Focus series, lays out the framework for the new European water policy and includes a selection of successful water projects funded by LIFE-Environment or LIFE-Nature on sustainable use of water resources throughout the Union.
European Environment Agency Report Series: Sustainable water use in Europe
The European Environment Agency and its Topic Centre on Inland Waters undertook a multi-part assessment of the sustainable use of water in Europe. The first report addresses sectoral use of water while the second part looks in particular at demand-side management of water across Europe.
European Union-Funded EUROMARKET Research Paper: "The German Water Sector: A Look into the Future
EUROMARKET is an EU funded research project on water liberalization scenarios and gives empirical analysis of the evolution of the European water supply and sanitation sectors. The project is funded by the European Union under the " Energy, Environment and Sustainable Development " program of the 5th RTD Framework Program, and by the Swiss Federal Office for Education and Science . In addition to this paper on the German water sector, there are also a number of other reports all addressing water issues and scenarios for solving these issues.
International Conference on Freshwater Papers (2001)
The German Government hosted the International Conference on Freshwater in Bonn, Germany on December 3-7, 2001 in close co-operation with the United Nations. The Conference developed Recommendations for Action in three important cross-sectoral areas: governance, management and partnerships; mobilizing financial resources; capacity building and sharing knowledge. The Web site includes conference papers and speeches.
Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Reports: Water Pricing Practices in OECD Countries
Detailed OECD reports on water pricing practices in the industrial, agricultural, and household sectors.
- Development and Climate Change in Nepal: Focus on Water Resources and Hydropower (2003) (PDF Format About PDF)
- Transition To Full-Cost Pricing Of Irrigation Water For Agriculture In OECD Countries (2002) (PDF Format About PDF)
- Household Water Pricing In OECD Countries (1999)
- Agricultural Water Pricing In OECD Countries (1999)
- Industrial Water Pricing In OECD Countries (1999)
- Water Subsidies and the Environment (1998)
As part of the first phase of the Water Recycling Strategy's development, the Queensland Water Recycling Strategy Secretariat commissioned a series of background studies into different types of water recycling and related issues. This body of work, including some listed below, presents information and issues that will provide guidance and a basis for decisions affecting water recycling. The entire collection of papers may also be found here.
- Economic Aspects of Water Recycling in Queensland (2000)
- Stormwater Recycling Background Study (1999)
Water Resource Management in Germany
The German Ministry for Environment and the German Environmental Agency have published several reports, offering readers insight into the development of water management in Germany.
Water Resources Management in Germany (2001) , a three-part publication, describes Germany's experiences in how water management is structured, how the actors on various levels work together and what effects measures have had on the status of surface waters, groundwater and seas.
- Part 1: Fundamentals (PDF, 64pp., 1.2MB)
- Part 2: Quality of Inland Surface Waters (PDF, 79 pp., 2.9MB)
- Part 3: Emissions into Surface Waters and the Sea (PDF, 75pp., 202.MB)
, a documentary report, depicts water management procedures by means of concrete case studies. It shows the successes of German water policy, but also points out the unresolved problems and challenges. World Water Development Report of UNESCO
The World Water Development Report (WWDR) is a periodic, comprehensive review giving an authoritative picture of the state of the world's freshwater resources and aiming to provide decision-makers with the tools for sustainable use of our water. The first edition of this report, Water for People, Water for Life , was launched on World Water Day 2003 (March 22nd) at the Third World Water Forum in Kyoto, Japan.
International Organizations and Government Web sites
Canadian Water and Wastewater AssociationCanadian Water and Wastewater Association (CWWA) is a non-profit national body representing the common interests of Canada's public sector municipal water and wastewater services and their private sector suppliers and partners. CWWA's Web site provides information on CWWA policies and events, databases on water management and a variety of publications and news sources.
COST- European Co-operation in the field of Scientific and Technical Research
Founded in 1971, COST is an intergovernmental framework for European Co-operation in the field of Scientific and Technical Research, allowing the co-ordination of nationally funded research on a European level. This Web site provides information on COST activities and the 46 European countries involved.
European Commission's LIFE-Environment Initiative
Launched in 1992, LIFE cofinances environmental initiatives in the European Union and bordering countries. LIFE-Environment contributes to the development of innovative techniques and methods by cofinancing demonstration projects in a number of areas including water management. This Web site provides information on LIFE projects and hosts a database of over 1,000 state, municipal, and local level projects funded through this program, including case study reports of particular success stories.
European Environment Agency
The European Environment Agency (EEA) aims to support sustainable development and to help achieve significant and measurable improvement in Europe's environment through the provision of timely, targeted, relevant and reliable information to policy making agents and the public. The water area of this Web site provides information on European water activities, indicators and data.
European Water Association
The European Water Association (EWA) is an independent non-governmental and non-profit organization dealing with the management and improvement of the water environment. EWA hosts international conferences, workshops and meetings, special working groups for experts and produces publications. This Web site provides information on EWA's activities and conferences.
Global Water Partnership
The Global Water Partnership (GWP) is a working partnership among all those involved in water management. This partnership actively identifies critical knowledge needs at global, regional and national levels, helps design programs for meeting these needs, and serves as a mechanism for alliance building and information exchange on integrated water resources management. This Web site provides information by region on GWP's activities and the Integrated Water Resources Management ToolBox.
International Water Association
Through the International Water Association (IWA), water professionals benefit from collaboration across the boundaries of specialties, professions and different parts of the world. IWA addresses global water challenges in communities throughout the world to create expanded knowledge and integrated, sustainable solutions. This Web site provides information on IWA events and links to IWA publications.
Netherlands Water Partnership
The Netherlands Water Partnership (NWP) is an independent body set up jointly by the Dutch private and public sector to act as a national coordination and information point in relation to water activities overseas. The NWP aims to harmonize the activities and initiatives of the Dutch water sector overseas and to undertake worldwide promotion of Dutch expertise related to water.
Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development: Water Management
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) conducts research and projects on water management in OECD countries and is currently examining the social aspects of water pricing, public/private partnerships in the water sector, and other related projects. This Web site provides links to a variety of OECD publications and documents on water management.
Stockholm International Water Institute
Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI) is a policy think tank that contributes to international efforts to promote sustainable use the world's water resources. SIWI facilitates research, increases understanding, and stimulates action on world water issues. SIWI's Web site offers information on SIWI's activities and research and links to water news resources and publications.
UNESCO's World Water Assessment Programme
The World Water Assessment Program (WWAP), a United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) program, aims to enhance global water knowledge and expertise to help resolve water crises. WWAP's Web site provides information on the program, its events and links to helpful case studies.
United Kingdom's Water Demand Management Web site
The UK's Water Demand Management (WDM) is the focal point within the Environment Agency for the science and practice of water demand management in England and Wales. This Web site provides information on WDM's activities as well as helpful resources about water conservation and use.
World Water Council
The World Water Council is an international water policy think tank dedicated to strengthening management of the world's water resources. WWC's Web site provides a variety of water resources, including links to publications, events and trainings in water management.