Water scarcity and droughts Expert Network Progress Report Brussels, 5 November 2008 Teodoro Estrela Deputy Water Director, ES

BACKGROUND Spain, France, Italy and the CE are leading the Water Scarcity and Drought Expert Network (mandate period 2007-2009). TECHNICAL LEVEL Main activities: Drought Management Plans, Exemptions and Agriculture and groundwater. Water Directors endorsed “Drought Management Plan Report, Including Agricultural, Drought Indicators and Climate Change Aspects” on November 2007. This report supports the drawing of DMP, powerful tool, supplementary to River Basin Management Plan, to prevent and mitigate drought impacts.

BACKGROUND POLITICAL LEVEL A follow-up of the Communication of EC to Council and Parliament, “Addressing the challenge of water scarcity and droughts in the European Union” is being carried out.

EXEMPTIONS The contents on WS&D of the guidance document on environmental objectives and exemptions was discussed within the EN. Regarding Prolonged Drought it includes: Text: characteristics to identify prolonged drought. Annex: Conditions to identify prolonged drought, impacts, indicators characteristics and general management measures.

CORE GROUP: WS&D INDICATORS This group was set-up within the Expert Network to work on the development of indicators jointly with the EEA. The JRC, the EEA, MS and the CE are working on a European WSD Information System, that will include: European Drought Observatory, for drought detection, monitoring, and forecasting (JRC, pilot project). A WS&D section within WISE.

CORE GROUP: WS&D INDICATORS NEXT STEPS To agree on using the overall DPSIR-based approach. Drivers; Pressures; State; Impacts; Responses To agree on a preliminary list of indicators as a starting point in the WS&D Expert Network, SCG and WD fora. To develop case-studies with voluntary countries using available data. Progressively additional indicators will be added (mainly on anthropogenic factors).

FOLLOW-UP OF THE COMMUNICATION The Commission has drafted a report based on the progress made in the measures of the Communication. To make a follow-up of this progress, indicators coming from the Core Group work will be used.

OTHER ACTIVITIES The EN is collaborating in the drafting of the “drought management and water scarcity adaptation” chapter, within the Climate Change CIS guidance document, “How to adapt to climate change with regard to water issues and EU legislation”. EN members are participating in the RTD-FP7 XEROCHORE project. The objective is to come up with research, policy and management recommendations in the field of droughts and water scarcity in Europe. The EN contributes to the chapter on water scarcity and drought issues within the European Report of the World Water Forum 2009.