Assistance with the implementation of the Water Framework Directive – WAFDIP Project - EuropeAid/114902/D/DV/RO
The overall objective was to assist Romania in meeting the criteria for EU membership by ensuring that the principles and approaches promoted by the Water Framework Directive are appropriately taken into account during the planning and implementation of investments in the water sector. The project was carried out in two pilot basins with specific objectives for each sub-basin. The results and methodologies were disseminated to other basins in Romania.
For the Somes river basin:
? Drawing up a river basin management plan in line with the provisions of the WFD;
? Producing unitary implementation methodologies for the activities of the river basin management plan and producing programs of measures in order to achieve “good status”;
? Sharing the experience gained within this project with other river basins.
For the Arges river basin:
? Acquiring a better knowledge about water bodies in the Arges river basin;
? Establishing of a Standard Operational Procedure for water quality monitoring;
? Establishing priorities for ecological rehabilitation of affected water bodies in the Arges river basin;
? Sharing the experience gained within this project with other river basins.
• Economic analysis of water management: the IOWater specialists and the 54 executives of the NAAR created a group of experts to approach field problems such as the difficulty of accurately assessing the impact of economic agents on water / the recovery of costs through the prices paid by the users / the changes in the users’ behavior / the on-site water supply equipment of the rural population / the financing of flood control / the transfer of the assets of State-owned water utilities to local Authorities.
• Training of 54 executives of the 11 river basin districts on the practical use of concepts such as price, costs and tariffs, taxes and charges, financial amortization and technical depreciation, but also on the difference between repair, renewal and investments as well as on opportunity costs, administrative costs, environmental costs, on demand-related water management and users’ capacity to pay.
• Drafting of a practical handbook, in English and Rumanian, to be used by the 11 NAAR river basin areas.
In addition, the two additional experts produced a guide on accidental water management and another on public participation, doubled with two training courses for the experts of the Arges and Somes branches of Apele Romane (25 participants per course).