European Environment Agency Water scarcity and drought indicators Peter Kristensen, European Environment Agency

What has EEA been doing Comprehensive WS&D assessments Water resource report – EEA 2009: ” Water resources across Europe — confronting water scarcity and drought” Climate and water impact indicators Regular update of EEA water indicators WS&D chapter in the next EEA State of the Environment and Outlook Report SOER2010 Improve data and information (Water availability, abstraction and use) Regular reporting of water quantity data – WISE-SOE Water Quantity – Reporting sheet agreed 2008 – regular reporting from 2009 WSDiS: Water Scarcity and Drought Information System Gap analysis – review of national and international initiatives ECRINS (European-wide reference dataset of rivers, lakes and catchments): water balances and water accounts Cooperate with Eurostat on water statistics; JRC on drought information Cooperate with other stakeholders (Eureau, ECMWF, WMO; requirements to GMES climate service; Water Footprint)

Water resources across Europe — confronting water scarcity and drought Introduction Water availability, abstraction and supply Impacts of water abstraction and supply Water abstraction for industry and energy production Public water supply Agricultural water use Conclussions on future water resource management in Europe

Water scarcity and drought (WS&D) in Europe Reservoir, Sicily Reservoir, Cyprus River Elbe, Dresden Spring. 2007 Source: Tallaksen L. 2007: http://www.geo.uio.no/for_skolen/lena-torke.pdf

Water scarcity and drought in 2008 During the summer 2008 Cyprus has received water by more than 30 tankers from Greece Capacity of storage reservoirs Barcelona og Cypern spring 2008 Desalination plants

Four key abstracting sectors….. Water consumption ? ?

Irrigation; up to 80% of total water abstraction in the South Source; JRC 2008

Tourism – Water Demand Tourist water use can be twice that of locals (OECD) Peak demand when availability is at a minimum Golf courses – irrigation and swimming pools

Water Exploitation Index (WEI) indicates extreme stress Increasing stress

Supply-led management is unsustainable Reservoirs, inter-basin transfers, desalination etc have provided no incentive to limit abstraction

Sustainable demand-led approach is required to managing Europe’s water resources Focus on conserving water and using it more efficiently Account for the need for healthy freshwater ecosystems Less water use also means lower energy consumption

EEA State and Outlook Report 2010 Chapter on water quantity including WS&D Focus on vulnerability to water scarcity and sustainable water resource management Build on 2009 water resource report, improved MS information (reported via WISE-SOE) and WS&D Expert Network; DG ENV WS&D studies ; draft RBMP; ECRINS: Water balances;

WISE-SOE Reporting sheet #3 Water Quantity During 2008 test data reporting, discussion and agreeing with MS experts on reporting sheet. Streamling with other reporting processes (Eurostat&WFD). Spatial scale River Basin and temporal scale: monthly (if available) The SoE Reporting Guidance was approved by the Water Directors in November 2008 and the National Focal Points in February 2009. From 2009 regular (volunteer) MS reporting of water availability, water abstraction and water use data

WS&D Indicators as from current SoE#3 Reporting Current parameters are used in more than one DPSIR category (primary and derived) Possible Indicators from other SoEs in italics Indicators only related to natural influences displayed in green Additional indicators to enable a comprehensive assessment in red

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What we are not developing Draft guidance chapter 10 on climate change and WS&D (p. 8) In addition, while the WFD foresees the possibility of exemptions in case of prolonged droughts, the lack of agreed indicators at the EU level to identify and quantify droughts is making difficult to achieve consensus on when and how to apply them. Technical work is being developed by the Water Scarcity and Drought Expert Network, the European Environmental Agency and the CE on a common understanding of the phenomenon and its impacts. <Much information included in the Drought Management Plan report> Therefore, it will be essential to identify in the short-medium term common indicators that allow Member States to clearly define and identify prolonged droughts that could later justify possible exemptions. (Indicators work being currently developed by the EEA) EEA is not developing common indicators that allow Member States to clearly define and identify prolonged droughts that could later justify possible exemptions.

What we are aiming at developing Core Group on water scarcity and drought indicators - Minutes of the meeting of 19 March 2008 DG ENV clarified the context of the work on WS&D and the role of the Core Group. The interim report on WS&DR published in June 2007 reveals a lot of gaps in the available data and information. The Communication on WS&D adopted in July 2007 therefore includes the development of a European WS&D Information System. The purpose of the current work is to: Develop WS&D Indicators in order to provide a comprehensive view of the extent and impacts of WS&D and Develop a WS&D Information System.

Develop WS&D indicators in order to provide a comprehensive view of the extent and impacts of WS&D Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council - Addressing the challenge of water scarcity and droughts in the European Union {SEC(2007) 993} {SEC(2007) 996} 2.7. Improve knowledge and data collection 2.7.1. A water scarcity and drought information system throughout Europe The issue: Reliable information on the extent and impacts of water scarcity and droughts is indispensable for decision-making at all levels. Shared definitions are necessary to ensure data consistency at EU level. The recently published Water Information System for Europe (WISE) provides the ideal platform to integrate and disseminate such information. Way forward: Present an annual European assessment, based on agreed indicators and data provided by Member States and stakeholders to the Commission or the European Environment Agency on a yearly basis. Fully exploit the Global Monitoring for Environment and Security (GMES) services for the delivery of space-based data and monitoring tools in support to water policies, land use planning and improved irrigation practices.

WS&D Indicators as from current SoE#3 Reporting Current parameters are used in more than one DPSIR category (primary and derived) Possible Indicators from other SoEs in italics Indicators only related to natural influences displayed in green Additional indicators to enable a comprehensive assessment in red

Next Steps Agree on using the overall DPSIR-based approach. Agree on the list as a starting point in WS&D Network, SCG and WD. During 2009 other indicators (e.g. population, water prices etc) will be developed to enable a comprehensive assessment. Setup case-studies with voluntary countries: use data available from test data exchange + additional sources (EUROSTAT, JRC, MS) Provide first case study results to WS&D Network and May SCG.