MAIN COMMENTS ON THE DRAFT MANDATE WFD & HYDROMORPHOLOGY MAIN COMMENTS ON THE DRAFT MANDATE SCG meeting Brussels 26-27 October 2005 Gilles Crosnier Gilles.crosnier@cec.eu.int European Commission, DG Environment Unit D.2 – Water and Marine, WFD Team

Sources Outcomes of the Prague workshop on WFD & hydromorphology organised on 17-19 October 2005 Additional written comments received until the 25th October.

Points to clarify Co-ordination with other activities: ECOSTAT/ WFD&AGRI/ Flood Action Programme/ Research Hierarchy of the actions: protection (no deterioration)/ restoration/mitigation Place of the economic analysis to appraise social, economic and environmental impacts and benefits

Points to add Information exchange on pragmatic approaches for the designation tests for HMWB Most pragmatical way to define MEP/GEP (request to ECOSTAT) Impacts of coming GES standards for the HMWB designation strategy (comparison between GEP of a HMWB/ GES of a WB) Information collation on links between hydromorphological conditions and biology

Points to add –cont’d Information exchange not only on technical measures but also on co-operation processes between the different authorities and stakeholders Integration of the Natura 2000 network and biodiversity policy aims in the activity

Steering Group Composition Call for volunteers. You are invited to express your interest to gilles.crosnier@cec.eu.int (copy Rob.Hitchen@defra.gsi.gov.uk and Ulrich.Irmer@uba.de) . Deadlines 1st December Remember: a limited group (no more than 15 people) One open question: do we include representatives from MS ministries of transports and energy?

Next steps Update of the mandate after the SCG meeting Endorsement in the next WD meeting First steering group meeting in January 2006