Wasserkraft und Ökologie: Ein gemeinsamer Weg Sustainable Hydropower in the Danube River Basin: Bringing together renewable energy targets, water management and environmental objectives International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River (ICPDR) Mr Peter Gammeltoft, ICPDR President 2017

Table of contents Danube River Basin Sustainable Hydropower in the Danube River Basin Legal Framework Outlook and Impacts Guiding Principles for Sustainable Hydropower Development Outcome of ICPDR Hydropower Workshop March 2017 Summary and Conclusions

I. Danube River Basin 3

II. Sustainable Hydropower in the Danube River Basin Danube Ministerial Mandate from 2010 to develop „Assessment Report on Hydropower Generation” and „Guiding Principles on Sustainable Hydropower Development in the Danube Basin“ Process launched in 2011 and led by Austria, Romania and Slovenia Broad participative process: Involvement of administrations from Danube countries on energy and environment, hydropower sector and businesses, NGOs and scientists Adopted in June 2013 4

Legal framework Ambitious EU legislation for energy + water RES-e Renewable Energy Directive 2009/28/EC Objectives: To increase share of energy from renewable sources with target figures for 2020 for each state States set national targets + decide on strategy; e.g. by targets for HP WFD Water Framework Directive 2000/60/EC Objectives: To achieve good ecological status of water bodies No deterioration of status Without cross-sectoral dialogue both sectors are at risk to fail achieving the objectives and legal compliance! 5

Hydropower plants in the Danube River Basin (2012) © Verbund Majority of electricity generated by large hydropower ~ 300 large facilities (>10MW) generate ~ 90% of electricity from HP > 8,000 small facilities (<10MW) generate ~ 10% of electricity from HP 6

Outlook: Increasing trends Outlook hydropower: Intention to increase hydropower capacities by Danube countries Main drivers: To increase share of renewable energy Reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and climate protection policies Integration of other forms of renewable energy (wind, solar) 7

Impacts – why should we care? Environmental protection and biodiversity conservation issues Negative impacts of hydropower generation have led to rather negative reception of new projects by civil society and financial institutions  assess impacts in detail Economic, social and environmental benefits can be maximised in case all benefits and impacts are considered from the very beginning Significant investments needed to remediate negative impacts of existing facilities to meet requirements of EU environmental legislation - costs (much) higher compared to initial consideration Legal compliance with existing legislation 8

Sustainable Hydropower in the Danube Basin The process... Establishment of interdisciplinary working group Setting the scene – Hydropower Assessment Report Learning from experiences in place – Good Practice Examples Negotiation of Guiding Principles – Reaching consensus Based on Assessment Report and Good Practice Examples Principle of transparency and inclusiveness Aspiration to reach consensus by all actors involved Pre-condition for balanced document Political will and support is crucial 9

III. Hydropower Guiding Principles Set of general principles Technical upgrading of existing hydropower plants combined with ecological restoration Strategic planning approach for new hydropower based on two level assessment (regional + site specific) Mitigation of negative ecological impacts 10

III. Hydropower Guiding Principles 1. General principles Principle of sustainability Holistic approach in energy policies, incl. energy efficiency gains Consideration of plant size and capacities – taking cumulative impacts into account Weighing public interests in decision making  hydropower is not automatically of overriding public interest just because it generates renewable energy Consideration of climate change 11

Technical upgrading and ecological restoration III. Hydropower Guiding Principles 2. Principles related to existing hydropower plants Technical upgrading and ecological restoration Need to reach WFD objectives – Good Ecological Status/Potential – Need for mitigation measures Technical upgrading should be promoted to increase energy production from existing facilities Should be linked to ecological criteria for improvement of the water status Combination of technical upgrading with ecological restoration implies a win-win solution Should be promoted by national energy strategies and instruments 12

III. Hydropower Guiding Principles 3 III. Hydropower Guiding Principles 3. Strategic planning approach for new hydropower development Two level assessment – The national/regional assessment classifying the appropriateness of river stretches for potential hydropower use Identification of exclusion zones where hydropower development is forbidden by national or regional legislation/agreements All other stretches to be assessed using an assessment matrix and classification scheme for hydroelectric potential as well as ecological and landscape value Followed by the project specific assessment More detailed and in-depth assessment of benefits and impacts Project specific criteria Energy management Environment and water management Socio-economic criteria 13

Strategic planning for new hydropower Two-level assessment National/Regional level – „WHERE“? Project-Specific Level – „HOW“? 14

Strategic planning for new hydropower Tool for assessing appropriate locations for new projects Criteria-based assessment of river stretches (energy management, environment and landscape value) Provides information on suitability of river stretches for new hydropower development 15

4. Mitigation measures to make hydropower more sustainable III. Hydropower Guiding Principles 4. Mitigation measures to make hydropower more sustainable Fish migration aids for ensuring connectivity and access to habitats Mitigating artificial flow fluctuations (hydropeaking) Ensuring ecological flow requirements + other issues (such as sediment transport, improvement of lateral connectivity) 16

Ongoing developments Guiding Principles were translated by Danube countries into Croatian, Czech, German and Slovak languages (additional languages such as Slovene are currently in progress) Incorporation of ongoing process and first results in Danube River Basin Management Plan 2015 In general, the process of practical application is still at an early stage, also because of different relevance depending on the respective framework conditions Experiences are already in place e.g. with regard to technical upgrading of existing plants, strategic planning approaches for new hydropower development and setting up of national stakeholder processes, application of mitigation measures Call for application by intensified cooperation of relevant sectors and follow-up meetings in Danube Declaration 2016 ICPDR Hydropower Workshop bringing together water management and hydrowpower sector representatives took place in March 2017 17

IV. Outcomes of ICPDR Hydropower Workshop March 2017 Results of review of application of ICPDR Guiding Principles in Danube countries Technical upgrading in place, often not linked with ecological restoration measures Strategic planning approach often lacking ecological criteria Classification scheme for river stretches appropriate for new hydropower missing in most of Danube countries Mitigation measures (fish migration, ecological flow) mostly mandatory for new and existing hydropower projects Reference to ICPDR Guiding Principles in national RBMPs and Water Management Plans 18

IV. Outcomes of ICPDR Hydropower Workshop March 2017 Main conclusions from discussions Progress has been made in applying and promoting ICPDR Guiding Principles BUT still more needs to be done to bring knowledge and process at national/local authorities level Strengthening of national implementation and legislation towards compliance with EU legislation needed Bringing ICPDR Guiding Principles deeper to stakeholders and society to foster its application Sharing experiences among Danube Countries needed not to repeat “mistakes” from the past - “Restoration will cost more than strategic planning” Market conditions for hydropower are less and less predictable, but big changes in different regions and individual Danube countries Going public to explain measures and its value 19

IV. Outcomes of ICPDR Hydropower Workshop March 2017 Next steps and way forward identified on ICPDR level ICPDR will continue being neutral platform for exchange of experiences in the application of ICPDR Guiding Principles (case studies, strategic planning, cost-efficient measures to mitigate negative impact of hydropower) Next exchange in 2019/2020 in frame of preparation of RBMP-Update 2021 focusing on ALL stakeholders, particular representatives from Hydropower Sector from Danube countries Need for strengthening national/regional dialogue with ALL stakeholders, to learn from lessons from the past at national, regional and project levels 20

V. Summary and conclusions Ambitious EU legislation in place for water and energy – challenge is implementation Inter-sectoral cooperation is key for sound implementation of legislation Practical application of ICPDR Guiding Principles and strategic planning approach for new hydropower provides broad range of potential benefits Energy sector: Streamlined authorisation processes, improvement of predictability and upfront information where authorisation is likely Environmental sector: Transparency, involvement in decision making process, protection of sensitive river stretches Authorities: Increase of security for legal compliance, balanced approaches with involvement of relevant actors at an early stage 21

More information available for download under Hydropower Guiding Principles, Assessment Report, Good Practice Examples and other related document: http://www.icpdr.org/main/activities-projects/hydropower ICPDR Secretariat / Vienna International Centre, D0412 / P.O. Box 500 / 1400 Vienna / Austria Phone +43 1 26060-5738 / Fax +43 1 26060-5895 / icpdr@unvienna.org / www.icpdr.org