CCP3 Input Paper "Mind the Gap in Water Management"

The Joint Declaration of Bad Ragaz stated the need to strengthen action in the field of water management. Accordingly, a specific Cross-cutting Priority (CCP3 - Promoting a Joint Water Management Transition) and its dedicated task force were established, involving EUSALP Actions Groups 1, 2, 5, 6, 7 and 8.

With the European Commission’s 7th Report on the Implementation of the Water Framework Directive (WFD) and the Floods Directive (FD) (2024), emphasising the need for accelerating efforts for water protection and flood risks management to cope with “the triple planetary crisis of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution” and with efforts creating a new Water Resilience Strategy, the relevance of the topic undeniable. The urge to foster sustainable water management is also endorsed in the Declaration on integrated and sustainable water management in the Alps of the XVI Alpine Conference, which consolidates the significance of protecting and restoring water systems, as well as climate change adaptation and integrated water management in the Alpine region.

In this context, this Input Paper seeks to quantitatively analyse the needs and gaps of water management projects in the Alpine macroregion. Drawing on current projects from EU’s Interreg funding programmes in the Alpine region, the analysis examines whether and how existing initiatives address the main challenges.

The current analysis is drawn on the results of a quantitative survey of 23 ongoing projects funded by Interreg programmes across the Alpine macroregion dealing with water issues and investigates whether and how the projects address the main challenges raised by the 7th Implementation Report of the Water Framework Directive (WFD) and Floods Directive (FD).

The results reveal that projects generally contribute to implementing the recommendations emphasised by the report. However, while current projects largely support action for better governance and transboundary cooperation, efforts to tackle diffuse pollution, improve data sharing, and enhance ecological flows remain insufficient, due to short project timelines, inconsistent data standards, and fragmented institutional frameworks.

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CCP3 Input Paper "Mind the Gap in Water Management

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