1. EUROPEAN CIVIL PROTECTION Preview of the meeting on
Lessons learnt on Floods in Europe 2010
11-12 November 2010
DG ECHO
Civil Protection Units

2. The EU CP Mechanism in a Nutshell
Mechanism facilitates reinforced cooperation between the Community and the Participating States in civil protection in the event of a major disaster
Natural and manmade disasters, inside and outside EU
European Commission + 31 Participating States (EU + Iceland, Lichtenstein, Norway, Croatia)
Main tools:
Monitoring and Information Centre (MIC) – available 24/7
Coordination and assessment teams
Database of modules and experts
Transport pooling and co-financing
Training and exercises
Preparedness and prevention projects
what is exactly the role of the Mechanism ?
[read 1st bullet point]
it facilitates and supports: the EU does not have its own teams and equipment; rather, it helps Participating States (PS) to provide their assistance to disaster-stricken countries. The PS do it on a voluntary basis
it gets activated only in response to major disasters and only upon an official request of country in distress, when it cannot cope by itself. (One exception is failed states, where request could come from International Community)
all types of disasters are covered: natural and man-made (e.g., earthquakes, floods, industrial accidents and terrorism)
currently the Mechanism brings together 30 PS
operational hearth of the Mechanism is the MIC (Monitoring and Information Centre)

4. Lessons Learnt meeting on Floods in Europe 2010
11-12 November 2010 (the same place)
Previous years:
lessons learnt focused only on response to disasters
and only for those events that triggered activation of the EUCP Mechanism
Council Conclusion of 30 Nov 2009 called on the Commission to: “support the exchange and diffusion of best practices and lessons learnt on disaster prevention”
So, this meeting will try to address in an integrated manner issues related to prevention, preparedness and response to floods in Europe

5. Lessons Learnt meeting on Floods in Europe 2010
Objectives:
creating a network of the response and prevention authorities in a European context;
understanding how the lessons learnt at national level after significant flood events are integrated in the national prevention policy/flood risk management plans;
drawing up lessons learnt on the use of:
EU co-financing ,
Floods Directive,
early warning systems,
modules
Learning by doing – feedback is welcomed, as well as proposals for the future

6. Lessons Learnt meeting on Floods in Europe 2010
Portugal (Madeira flash-floods)
Poland (May-June 2010),
Hungary (May-June 2010),
Romania (May-June 2010),
Republic of Moldova (July-August 2010) – non-EU, but EUCP Mechanism was activated
Slovak Republic (May-June 2010),
Czech Republic (May-June 2010),
France (Var flash-floods, June 2010),
Germany
Slovenia (September 2010),
Croatia (September 2010),
Malta (October 2010)

7. Lessons Learnt meeting on Floods in Europe 2010
Main topics to be discussed
Presentation of experiences from the affected Participating States & from the team deployed in Rep. of Moldova
EWS - EFAS use
Flood preparedness: registered modules, experience of the module deployed, host-nation support
EU Solidarity Fund
Floods Directive: recovery and review phase; role of funding
Structural funds for flood prevention, preparedness, response and recovery

8. Lessons Learnt meeting on Floods in Europe 2010
Working document on the Floods in [Country X] – before 8 November
General situation of the flood development and affected area / population / damages,
Use of Early Warning Systems in forecasting the events, preparing the response and reacting,
Type of flood events (e.g. flash flood, slow on-set, coastal flood),
Type of national assets involved in the response,
Type of assets requested within the Mechanism,
Evaluation of the response via the Mechanism (if case),
Lessons learnt at national level,
Integration of the Lessons Learnt into the prevention and response relevant plans (e.g. Flood Management plans, evacuation plans, land-use plans, etc),
Impact on the use of national and EU financial resources available (including use of EUSF, Structural Funds, Rural Development Fund).
This document should be prepared in a joint manner by the authorities that deal with the various aspects at national level.