1. Water Scarcity and Drought Expert Group
ITALIAN EXPERIENCES
AND
QUESTIONNAIRE ON PILOT RIVER BASINS
Giuseppina Monacelli
Saverio Venturelli
Helsinki, 30 September 2010

2. Water Scarcity and Drought Expert Group
SUMMARY
Italian reference frame
Drought bulletin
Local Action Programme to combat drought and desertification
River Basin Management Plans
The four Italian River Basins which have answered the questionnaire
Outcomes
Critical aspects in the questionnaire filling in and suggestions
Other initiatives

3. Water Scarcity and Drought Expert Group
Italian reference frame
Directive 2000/60/CE transposed into Italian legislation – Legislative Decree 152/06
Art. 98 paragraph 2
Regions according to Basin Authorities approve specific rules on water save in agriculture based on uses planning, the correct individuation of the sector needs and on the control of the real abstractions.
Art. 98 paragraph 3
Regions and Basin Authorities verify if there are areas prone to or at risk of drought and any process of desertification in their territory. They mark these areas as vulnerable to desertification. For the areas mentioned in paragraph 2 specific protection measures are adopted in the District plan and its implementation according to the criteria established in the national action plan provided by the CIPE deliberation dated 22 December 1998 and published in the Official Journal of the Italian Republic n. 39 of 17 February 1999.
Drought bulletin: instrument for quantitative monitoring of drought condition in Italy and Europe, through monthly – updated maps of the Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI)
National Committee to Combat Drought and Desertification
National Action Program - Local Action Program of Emilia-Romagna Region (LAP, 2009)
Sardinia River Basin Management Plans

4. Water Scarcity and Drought Expert Group
Hydrological drought condition
Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI) is a meteorological drought index
it is based only on precipitation values and provides indication on the amount of precipitation in relation to the normal values
SPI 3 Months
May – Aug 2009
May – Aug 2010
Source:

5. Water Scarcity and Drought Expert Group
Socio-economical drought conditions
SPI 12 Months
May – Aug 2009
May – Aug 2010
Source:

6. Integration of River Basin Management Plans
Water Scarcity and Drought
Expert Group
Integration of River Basin Management Plans
(RBMPs) and Drought Management Plans (DMPs)
Example: Sardinia Region
Each month in the web page of Sardinia Region the "Bulletin of the artificial reservoirs of the multisectorial water system of Sardinia" is published. It provides the values of the monitoring indicators and the drought pre-warning for each reservoir issued by the general directorate of the Agency for the hydrographic district of Sardinia. this bulletin allows the risks assessment and the inclusion of drought in the general planning in order to start a proactive management of this extreme event.
According to the indicator level I (frequency of non overcoming of the contained volumes) the decision on the starting up (or not) of the procedures established in the crisis management plan can be taken.
In perfect harmony with the indication of the “Drought Management Plan Report Including Agricultural, Drought Indicators and Climate Change Aspects”, Water Scarcity and Droughts Expert Network, European Commission.

7. Drought and Desertification National Action Programme
Water Scarcity and Drought
Expert Group
Drought and Desertification National Action Programme
Local Action Programmes
Example: Emilia-Romagna Region
The Local Action Programme of the Region Emilia-Romagna has focused on the improper use of land and of water resources in areas characterised by climatic fragility with growing “drought phenomena”.
Through meteorological and agro-meteorological indicators it was possible to identify the regional areas more subject to climate change, with the highest anomalies in precipitations and in the temperature regimes.
structural solutions responsive to the requests without actions of mitigation
solutions for the agro-alimentary re-equilibration of the entire basin, considering the opportunity for mitigation
solutions providing the sharing of the social and environmental value of the resource
Lamone Valley
critical water balance
In addition:
the Emilia-Romagna Region has recognized as “water stress areas” (subject to water balance deficit) the main irrigation areas depending on surface water derivations of the following rivers: Torrente Nure, Torrente Parma, Torrente Enza, Fiume Taro, Torrente Arda and Fiume Trebbia (Deliberation n of Regional Council on December 18th, 2006, and according to the Article 18 of the Water Protection Plan)

8. Water Scarcity and Drought Expert Group
Questionnaire topics
Data request for water scarcity and drought indicator system (WSDiS)
N° Indicator 1
Population 10 2
Economy 24 3
Land Use 9 4
Infrastructure 14 5
Quality – Environmental 6
Education and Awareness 7
Responses
Total 79
Request for RBDs to participate
in Water Scarcity and Drought
Indicators Test Case Exercise
Perhaps too many ?
Too detailed?

9. Water Scarcity and Drought Expert Group
The four Italian River Basins
which have answered to the questionnaire
Padano River Basin District - Po River Basin Authority
Northern Apennine River Basin District - Arno River Basin Authority
Chiana Valley Area
Serchio River Basin District - Serchio River Basin Authority
Southern Apennine River Basin District - Liri/Volturno Garigliano River Basin Authority
Fucino Basin
Lower Volturno Basin

10. Po River Basin Authority
Water Scarcity and Drought Expert Group
Water Scarcity and Drought
Expert Group
Po River Basin Authority
Beginning of the activities to prevent and to forecast water crisis into the basin
First results included into the Water Balance Bulletins
Tables of the available water quantity and of the abstracted water in the Po river basin available at the link:
Answers questionnaire
Source: Data Po RBA on ISPRA’s map

11. Arno River Basin Authority Chiana Valley Area
Water Scarcity and Drought Expert Group
Water Scarcity and Drought
Expert Group
Arno River Basin Authority Chiana Valley Area
Questionnaire answers
Source: Data Arno RBA on maps of ISPRA and Arno

12. Serchio River Basin Authority
Water Scarcity and Drought Expert Group
Water Scarcity and Drought
Expert Group
Serchio River Basin Authority
Questionnaire answers
Source: Data Serchio RBA on ISPRA’s map

13. Liri/Volturno Garigliano River Basin Authority Fucino Basin
Water Scarcity and Drought Expert Group
Water Scarcity and Drought
Expert Group
Liri/Volturno Garigliano River Basin Authority Fucino Basin
Questionnaire answers
Fucino Basin
Source: Data Liri/Volturno Garigliano RBA on ISPRA’s map

14. Liri/Volturno Garigliano River Basin Authority Lower Volturno Basin
Water Scarcity and Drought Expert Group
Water Scarcity and Drought
Expert Group
Liri/Volturno Garigliano River Basin Authority Lower Volturno Basin
Questionnaire answers
Basso Volturno
Basin
Source: Data Liri/Volturno Garigliano RBA on ISPRA’s map

15. Water Scarcity and Drought Expert Group
Outcomes (1)
% of answers for Italian Districts
Distretto Idrografico Appennino Settentrionale
Distretto Idrografico Appennino Meridionale

16. Water Scarcity and Drought Expert Group
Outcomes (2)
% of answers for indicator for considered area

17. Water Scarcity and Drought Expert Group
Outcomes (3)
% of answers with relation to the indicators

18. Critical aspects in the questionnaire filling in
Water Scarcity and Drought Expert Group
Water Scarcity and Drought
Expert Group
Critical aspects in the questionnaire filling in
Spatial scale
The information required is collected in Italy through different institutional channels at varied geographical scale. Therefore, it is very difficult for the District Authorities to aggregate all these data.
Italian Water Service is articulated in ATOs (92) with the involvement of sectorial entities such as the hydroelectric power managers, agricultural and reclamation consortia, etc.
Consequently, it is very difficult to homogenizate data.
Temporal scale
The information is mainly annual and problems rose in filling mouthy data.
Furthermore:
Why the water quantity data have not been introduced in this questionnaire?
How the quantity and socio– economic data could be integrated?
Which indicators could be further developed with the collected information?

19. Water Scarcity and Drought
Expert Group
Other initiatives
ISPRA, Department for internal and marine waters protection, is participating in the II common call of the coordination action "Integrated water Resource Management" IWRM-Net of the VI Frame Programme for Research on consolidation of the national research programmes on all water protection policies, the promotion and dissemination of good practices in WS & drought prevention and forecast, the impacts of climate change on water availability, the economical value of water.
ISPRA is collaborating with Mediterranean EUWI Water Scarcity and Drought Working Group.
After the conclusion of the Xerochore project new research proposals are developed in the last call to which a large Italian participation is welcome.

20. Water Scarcity and Drought Expert Group
THANKS FOR
YOUR KIND ATTENTION!
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