EU Water Framework Directive Report from the Monitoring Workshop Brussels 27-28 April 2006 SCG meeting Brussels, 15-16 May 2006 Jorge Rodriguez Romero European Commission, DG Environment Unit D.2 – Water and Marine, WFD Team

Objectives of the workshop CIS Workshop on surface waters monitoring networks and classification systems Exchange of views among Member States on current practice for the design of monitoring networks and classification systems Surface waters only

Contents Design of monitoring networks for rivers, lakes and transitional/coastal waters Surveillance and operational monitoring How Article 5 reports risk assessment results are used in the design of the monitoring networks Quality elements Investigative monitoring strategies International River Basin Districts: key issues in the design of monitoring networks to ensure comparability across IRBD. Classification systems design: practical application of the Ecostat classification guidance Combining information from different quality elements to assess water status Role of supporting elements Application of one-out all-out principle

19 presentations from 11 countries plus EEA, JRC Some figures 80 participants 23 Member States + RO, NO, CH 19 presentations from 11 countries plus EEA, JRC http://forum.europa.eu.int/Public/irc/env/wfd/library?l=/framework_directive/thematic_documents/12_-_monitoring/monitoring_networks

Some charts The following charts are based in preliminary figures collected informally during the workshop and afterwards by email These charts are not intended to be part of any compliance checking exercise! The objective is to provide an overview of the extent of diversity

Number of surveillance and operational monitoring sites rivers

Number of surveillance and operational monitoring sites lakes

Surveillance sites in relation to water bodies: rivers

Surveillance sites in relation to water bodies: lakes

Surveillance sites per 1000 km2 rivers

Operational sites / article 5 water bodies at risk

Some preliminary conclusions (I) Severe differences in concepts for surveillance and operational monitoring Surveillance vs operational Surveillance covers all five classes or high-good only Some (but not all) MS go beyond minimum monitoring frequencies in WFD Annex V Relation with the results of the Article 5 risk assessment unclear

Some preliminary conclusions (II) “Budget driven” design Use of CIS guidance unclear One-out all-out principle should be used with caution