EIB Workshop with NGOs

1

• EIB Workshop with NGOs
• Investments for sustainable agricultural and
  tourist water use Challenges for the Spanish
  National Hydrological Plan
• Thessaloniki (Greece), 21.2.2003
• Guido Schmidt (WWF Spain)

2

• Water management in Spain
• SNHP (and river basin plans) are the key elements
  for water planning.
• They are based mainly on old-fashioned increase
  of water offer.
• Government pushes urgently transfers and dams.
• Environmental pieces (Ebro, Guadiana, Tagus,
  groundwater) delayed.

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• The SNHP is a very complex project
• Ebro river transfer (440 hm3/yr for urban and
  industrial demand 560 hm3/yr for agriculture
  demand) to Eastern Spain.
• Annex 2 includes 889 public (wish-list vs.
  priority) projects.

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• Objectives of the SNHP
• Ensure and increase water offer via 117 dams, 22
  transfers, water supply projects for urban,
  industrial and agricultural increase (new
  irrigation areas included in SNHP).
• Control water demand (modernization of irrigation
  agriculture, control of abstractions, etc.).
• Improve ecological quality (water treatment,
  wetland restoration, delimitation of public
  domain, forestation, etc.).
• Others (dredging, canalisation, road
  construction, recreational use of reservoirs,
  etc.)

5

• Problems
• Infringement of WFD (non-deterioration, cost
  recovery, good status), HD and EIAD.
• Technical long-term feasibility (climate change
  vs. water offer policy, canalisations vs. river
  dynamics).
• Economic sustainability (Ebro river transfer
  0,31 vs. 0.73, CAP/WTO impacts, etc.).
• Social impact (gt150.000 people affected by dams
  and Ebro river transfer).

6

• Environmental EIB criteria (1)
• Legal compliance.
• Environmental Impacts Development boom,
  desertification.
• Environmental risks Dissemination of invasive
  species (zebra mussel).
• Promoters management capability Aquifer
  mismanagement (gt90 illegal boreholes),
  corruption, no learned lessons from Tagus-Segura
  transfer.

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• Environmental EIB criteria (2)
• Quality of EIA and public participation.
• Partial EIAs (minimum-EAE, fragmentation of
  projects, exclusion of vital pieces)
• Lack of transparency public consultation data,
  hidden research studies, few info on 889
  projects.
• ADVISOR trustworthiness of governmental
  information.

8

• Challenges for the SNHP
• Effective water demand management (with SD
  background).
• Changes in water management authorities (from
  construction to the environment, participation).
• Application of WCD principles.
• Understanding and promotion of water values/
  value of water.

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• WWF suggested priorities for EIB
• Priority 1. Environmental improvement
  (forestations, water treatment, delimitation of
  domain, control of abstractions, wetland and
  river restoration).
• Priority 2. Water demand reduction (modernization
  of irrigation new urban and industrial waters
  (25-36)).
• No to new increases in water demands
  (irrigation) and offer (dams, transfers,
  desalinisation plants).
• No to river canalisations. Look out for
  misleading environmental wording.

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• Objectives
• Conservation of wetlands.
• Promotion of integrated river basin management.
• Water saving.
• SNHP is a priority case for WWF
• www.panda.org