“Karst Without Boundaries”, an international Conference and Field Seminar organized in the framework of the DIKTAS Project (Protection and Sustainable Use of the Dinaric Karst Aquifer System), was held from 11 to 15 June 2014 in Trebinje, Bosnia & Herzegovina, and Dubrovnik, Croatia.
The EU Water Framework Directive requires measures to achieve good status of all waters by 2015. In Germany, it is not the federal government that is in charge of implementation but it is the responsibility of the county. To meet the objective, transboundary exchange of experiences was promoted by broadening the range of methods and tools available to water managers. From this study, it is evident that interaction with stakeholders plays a central role.
In preparation for the new Water Law in Bulgaria, as well as the EU Water Framework Directive, the watershed council was set up as a pilot to test on-site effective and participatory approaches to river resource management in the Varbitsa River. The key lesson drawn is that participatory, open, citizen-friendly and bottom-up approaches are more efficient than top-down administrative approaches.
Country Water Partnerships organized the national consultations in Bulgaria, Romania and Slovenia between 18-21 March 2014 in Sofia, Bucharest and Ljubljana while dates are pending for Poland.
In Vietnam, there are two kinds of RBO; 1) The Management Board of River basin Planning (MBRBP), established and managed by Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) in a period from 1999-2001 in compliance with Law on Water Resources 1998. 2) The Committee for Environmental Protection of River Basin (CEPRB), established and also managed by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MONRE) during the time 2009-2010.
More than 90 participants from 15 European countries, including representatives from GWP Armenia, took part in the 11th European Youth Parliament for Water on “Water Resources Management”, hosted by and inaugurated by the Prime Minister of Armenia on 12-19 May 2013.
Unsustainable irrigation policies during the Soviet era have had devastating consequences for the Aral Sea. With the collapse of USSR, the riparian states took action and entered into agreement on Cooperation in the Joint Use and Protection of Water Resources of Interstate Significance. Furthermore, the international community took action and much attention has been devoted to re-establish the Aral Sea ecosystem. This case illustrates the importance of engaging all key stakeholders.
The Coordination and Change project of the Limpopo Basin Development Challenge (LBDC), under the leadership of FANRPAN, GWP SA and WaterNet, is organizing a one and a half day workshop on 21-22 October 2013 in Johannesburg, South Africa.