Public Participation in River Basin Management in Germany

"From borders to natural boundaries"

Publication: Report
Citation: Kampa, Eleftheria; Nicole Kranz and Wenke Hansen 2003: Public Participation in River Basin Management in Germany. From Borders to Natural Boundaries (HarmoniCOP/WP 4). Ecologic - Institute for International and European Environmental Policy, Berlin.

Ecologic Institute compiled the national study for Germany, which focused on the Rhine and Elbe basins and mainly analyzed the origins and experiences of public participation approaches in water management. The study is available for download.

Public Participation in the Elbe Basin

Case study report produced under Work Package 5

Year 2004

Publication:Article

Finding a place for public participation in the policies and practices of European river basin management planning is a challenge for the authorities in the participating countries and territories. Understanding the relationship between national culture, the historical and political differences in the respective countries, and their practical experience with participation is considered important in the implementation of the EU Water Framework Directive. Knowledge and understanding of this relationship will help to provide a context and basis from which new participatory practices can be designed and experiences evaluated, and will also facilitate the identification of conditions necessary for social learning.

Cultural Factors as Co-Determinants of Participation in River Basin Management

Year 2007

Publication:Policy Brief

This Ecologic Brief gives an overview of the main results and policy implications of the HarmoniCOP project. HarmoniCOP provides a comprehensive knowledge base for public participation in water management.

Public Participation in European River Basin Management

Lessons from the HarmoniCOP project

Year 2006

Publication:Book

The printed edition of the handbook "Learning together to manage together – improving participation in water management" was published in January 2006. Ecologic actively contributed to the development of the handbook, which is one of the main outputs of the European project Harmonising Collaborative Planning (HarmoniCOP).

Learning Together to Manage Together

Improving Participation in Water Management

Year 2005

Project:FP 5

The main objective of the HarmoniCOP (project duration 2002 – 2005) project, which was funded under the 5th European framework for Research, was to increase the understanding of participatory river basin management in Europe. It caters to the paradigm that river basin management can only be effective and sustainable if the actors at each level and in each phase and sector become engaged in a social learning process.

Public Participation and the European Water Framework Directive (HarmoniCOP)

Oct 2002 - Aug 2005

Language: English
Authorship: Dr. Eleftheria Kampa

Dr. Nicole Kranz

Wenke Schönfelder

Natasha Madeira
Published by: Ecologic Institute, Germany
Year: 2003
Dimension: 60 pp.
Project: Public Participation and the European Water Framework Directive (HarmoniCOP)
Project ID: 1975
Table of contents: Click to show full table of contents

1 Introduction
2 Framework for Water and River Basin Management in Germany
2.1 General Background
2.2 Geography and Hydrology
2.3 Water Bodies in Germany
2.4 Socio-Economic and Cultural Context
2.4.1 Demography and Anthropogenic Pressures on Water Bodies
2.4.2 Economic Activities
2.4.3 Cultural Background
2.5 Institutional Framework and Actors in Water Management
2.5.1 Legal Institutional Framework
2.5.2 Main Actors Involved
2.6 History of River Basin Management Planning
2.6.1 RBMP at the National Level
2.6.2 RBMP at the International Level
3 History and Institutional Background of Public Participation
3.1 Early Beginnings
3.2 Cultural Change
3.3 Recent Developments
4 Involvement Dynamics in River Basin Management
4.1 Elbe Basin
4.1.1 Emergence of Environmental Awareness in the Elbe Basin
4.1.2 Involvement of the Public at Different Governance Levels
4.2 Rhine Basin
4.2.1 Emergence of Environmental Awareness in the Rhine Basin
4.2.2 Involvement of the Public at Different Governance Levels
4.3 Levels of Public Participation: Elbe Basin
4.3.1 Information Level
4.3.2 Consultation and Active Involvement Levels
4.4 Levels of Public Participation: Rhine Basin
4.4.1 Information Level
4.4.2 Consultation and Active Involvement Levels
4.5 Use of IC Tools to Stimulate Involvement
4.5.1 Current Situation
4.5.2 WFD Outlook for IC Tools
5 Analysis of the National Approach to Public Involvement
5.1 Comparison of Involvement across Germany
5.2 Discussion of Main Issues
5.2.1 Cultural Influences
5.2.2 Institutional Framework
5.2.3 Scale
5.2.4 Formal Processes
5.2.5 Informal Processes
5.2.6 Social Learning
6 Conclusions
6.1 The National Approach to PP and the WFD
6.2 Main Lessons Learned
7 Acknowledgements
8 Glossary and Definitions
9 List of References
10 List of Interviews
List of Figures
Figure 1 The 16 Länder of the Federal Republic of Germany
Figure 2 River Basin Districts in Germany
Figure 3 Institutions and Functions in Water Management in Germany
Figure 4 The River Elbe catchment showing national and German Länder borders
Figure 5 The Rhine Basin and its Sub-Basins
List of Tables
Table 1 Dimensions of German River Basins
Table 2 Allocation of Water Management Authority in Germany
Table 3 Other Federal Ministries with Responsibilities for Water Management.
Table 4 Levels of Government within the Länder
Keywords: Water

Implementation, Water Framework Directive, Public Participation, River Basin Management, Water Management

Europe

Further Links

ProjectFP 5Public Participation and the European Water Framework Directive (HarmoniCOP)

The Water Framework Directive restructures the legislative frame for the protection of European water bodies and establishes new approaches to an integrated and comprehensive management of river basins. Part of these novel approaches is the explicit requirement for an... Read more

Public Participation and the European Water Framework Directive (HarmoniCOP)

Duration: Oct 2002 - Aug 2005
Funding: European Commission, Directorate-General Research (DG Research), International

PublicationBookLearning Together to Manage Together

Cernesson, F. et al. 2005: Learning Together to Manage Together - Improving Participation in Water Management]. Osnabrück: University of Osnabrück, Institute of Environmental Systems Research.

PublicationCase StudyPublic Participation in the Elbe Basin

Borowski, Ilke; Nicole Kranz; Eleftheria Kampa and Antje Vorwerk 2004: Public Participation in the Elbe Basin. Case study report pruduced under Work Package 5 of the HarmoniCOP project. Institute for Environmental Systems Research - University of Osnabrück, Osnabrück.