PIANC Seminar "Navigation and the EU Water Framework Directive"

From 2007 the WFD implementation process will focus less on the production of guidance at EU level and more on action at river basin level - notably the preparation of river basin management plans and agreement on the programmes of measures required to meet ‘good status’. 2007 may also bring some clarification with respect to the priority substances daughter Directive, and possibly the links between the WFD and the Marine Strategy Directive. But there are also questions - for example how will sediments be dealt with and what will be the implications of the WFD for new development proposals?
With so much happening, this conference aims to bring together the navigation community and water managers at all levels; the regulators and the regulated; along with their advisors, academics and NGOs. Its purpose is not only to provide a targeted update on progress with implementation of this ambitious Directive, but also to offer an opportunity to ask questions, exchange experiences and express views. An important part of the conference will be a trio of workshops dealing specifically with three of the most important WFD issues facing the navigation sector:
• the relationship between the WFD and EU Maritime Strategy,
• the role of sediment management in river basin management planning, and
• the need for practical solutions to hydromorphological issues.
Each workshop will comprise a mixture of presentations by experts, stakeholder statements and open discussion, with plenty of time dedicated to the latter.
In recognition of the importance of the WFD and its interrelationship with navigation interests, the Director of the Water, Chemicals and Cohesion Directorate of DG Environment of the European Commission, and the Head of Unit of Motorways of the Sea and Inter-modality of DG Transport and
Energy have been invited to present the keynote addresses to the conference. The Water Director from Germany - the country with Presidency of the EU at the time of the Conference - will present the concluding remarks.