The document discusses the elements and role of monitoring in river basin management plans according to the EU Water Framework Directive. It explains that monitoring is important for verifying understanding of water bodies, identifying current and potential future issues, and tracking the effects of management measures. Monitoring includes both surveillance monitoring of all water bodies every six years and more frequent operational monitoring of bodies at risk. Quality assurance is essential to ensure relevance, procedures, training, and data accessibility. Risk-based monitoring is recommended, with denser monitoring in areas facing higher pressures like agriculture, population, and contaminated sites.

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Support of Water Policy Reforms
towards Integrated Water Resources Management
DATA AND MONITORING TO INFORM
WATER MANAGEMENT
ELEMENTS AND ROLE OF MONITORING IN
RIVER BASIN MANAGEMENT PLANS
Christoph Leitner, Minsk, 25 April 2018

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CONTENT
 Objectives and principles of River Basin Management
Planning
 Purpose and elements of WFD monitoring
 Quality assurance
 Example
 Summary
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OBJECTIVES AND PRINCIPLES OF
RIVER BASIN MANAGEMENT
PLANNING
3

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IMPORTANCE OF WFD MONITORING
• Verify the conceptual understanding of GWB.
• Show the current situation.
• Identify problems (risk assessment).
• Identify trends and risk of failing compliance (look into the future).
• Identify long-term changes (natural, anthropogenic).
• Demonstrate compliance with legal provisions, incl. environmental
objectives (look back on performance).
• Help focusing efforts (monitoring, measures, research, …).
• Verify effects of measures – track progress.
• Amend permits and authorisations.
• Provide information for decision makers and the general public.
• Report to other administrations/on international obligations.
4
 Overview
 Status

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WATER FRAMEWORK DIRECTIVE - MAIN GOALS
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Groundwater
 Chemical status
 Quantitative status
 No upward trend of
chemicals  if yes,
then trend reversal
Surface waters
 Ecological status
 Biological component: algae, macrophytes,
macroinvertebrates, fishes
 Hydromorphological component
 Physical, chemical component
 Chemical status
 compliance with all EU quality standards
established for chemical substances
Innovation: integrated management of surface and groundwater
at the EU level, inter alia
2015: Good status for all waters

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WATER MANAGEMENT IN A CYCLIC PROCEDURE
Source: European Commission, 2008:
Groundwater Protection in Europe

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Review
update
every 6
years
with public
participation
2003
2004
2006
2009
Identification of River Basin Districts
Nomination of competent authorities
Delineation of water bodies
Characterisation
Pressures/Impacts - Risk assessment
Monitoring programmes
River Basin Management Plan
Status and trend assessment
Programme of Measures
Good Status2015

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PURPOSE AND ELEMENTS
OF WFD MONITORING
8

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PURPOSE OF WFD MONITORING
• Verify the conceptual understanding of GWB.
• Show the current situation.
• Identify problems (risk assessment).
• Identify trends and risk of failing compliance (look into the future).
• Identify long-term changes (natural, anthropogenic).
• Demonstrate compliance with legal provisions, incl. environmental
objectives (look back on performance).
• Help focusing efforts (monitoring, measures, research, …).
• Verify effects of measures – track progress.
• Amend permits and authorisations.
• Provide information for decision makers and the general public.
• Report to other administrations/on international obligations.
9
 Overview
 Status

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CONCEPTUAL MODEL
Source:
CIS Technical Report No. 9 on
groundwater associated aquatic ecosystems, modified Hinsby et al., 2008, 2012
CONCEPTUAL MODEL

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Source:
CIS Guidance No. 7 on
Monitoring under the WFD.

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RISK ASSESSMENT – LOOK FORWARD
STATUS ASSESSMENT – LOOK BACK
RISK means: Is there a risk that the good status cannot be achieved at the
end of the planning period?
Source: CIS Guidance Document No. 18 on
groundwater status and trend assessment

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CHEMICAL MONITORING - KEY PRINCIPLES
Selection of sites - Multi-purpose monitoring
 Conceptual understanding
 Practical considerations (long-term access to sites, existing sites)
Selection of parameters
 Risk assessment and pressures/impact analysis
Selection of monitoring frequency
 Water vulnerability and pollutant behaviour
Sampling and Analysis
 Sampling methods and sample handling
 Field and laboratory measurement

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WFD MONITORING
Surveillance monitoring
 Screening of all water bodies
 At least once every 6 years
 To validate risk
 To assess long term trends
Operational monitoring
 Focused at water bodies at risk
 At least 1/year
 Parameters causing risk
 To assess trends and trend reversal
 To establish status & changes
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Surveillance
monitoring
Operational
Operational
Operational
Operational
Operational
+ Investigative monitoring

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WFD MONITORING PROGRAMMES AND
PURPOSE OF MONITORING

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Surveillance monitoring
Surface
water body
wetland

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Operational monitoring
wetland
Surface
water body

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 holistic approach  consideration of the whole aquatic ecosystem
(including hydromorphological alterations)
 chemical and ecological status
(monitoring of chemical and biological quality elements)
 worst case principle (one out, all out)
SURFACE WATER QUALITY WFD MONITORING
chemical
status
ecological status
biological
component
physio-chemical
component
hydromorpho-
logical
component
 fish
 makrozoo-
benthos
 makrophytes &
phytobenthos
 phytoplankton
 temperature
 oxygen budget
 nutrient
concentration
 salinity
 acidity
specific pollutants
(synth. & non- synth.)
 hydrological
regime
 ecological
passage (fish)
 morphology
Priority
substances
(Directive 2008/105/EC)
AT: Ordinance on
chemcial quality
uniform quality
standards
AT: Ordinance
on ecological quality
typespecific quality
standards

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POINTS TO CONSIDER
 Not just one-off investment, but ongoing effort
 Sampling, sample analysis, data management, analysis &
assessment etc.
 Capacities, procedures
 Responsibilities
 Budgets
 Necessity of long time series – continuity

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QUALITY ASSURANCE
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QUALITY ASSURANCE - WHICH DIMENSION IS
MOST IMPORTANT?
 Purpose of monitoring is clear?
 Relevance of monitored
substance?
 Monitoring network and density?
 Training of staff?
 Sampling and analytical
procedures?
 Location and time of sampling?
 Laboratory and sampling
equipment?
 Availability and accessibility of
data?
 …….
Sampling
Relevanceofsubstance
Availabilityofdata
Equipment
Laboratory
Trainedstaff
Accessibility
Monitoringdesign

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RISK-ORIENTED MONITORING
EXAMPLE: GROUNDWATER, AUSTRIA
22

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FOCUSED GW MONITORING
 Porous, shallow: High network density - high frequency.
 Karst: Low network density - high monitoring frequency.
 Deep groundwater: Low network density - low frequency.
 Groundwater bodies at risk:
High monitoring density - high monitoring frequency.
23

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Example ‚Alpine valley‘
 Intensive agriculture
 High population density
 Infrastructure (road, railway)
 Waste water treatment plants
 Industry
 Contaminated sites

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GROUNDWATER MONITORING DENSITY
Valley
74 sites
220 km²
Mountains
104 sites
9,500 km²

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Example ‚porous groundwater body‘
 Intensive agriculture
 Many water abstractions
 Artificial groundwater recharge
 Contaminated sites
 Gravel mining

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SUMMARY
27

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PURPOSE OF WFD MONITORING
• Verify the conceptual understanding of GWB.
• Show the current situation.
• Identify problems (risk assessment).
• Identify trends and risk of failing compliance (look into the future).
• Identify long-term changes (natural, anthropogenic).
• Demonstrate compliance with legal provisions, incl. environmental
objectives (look back on performance).
• Help focusing efforts (monitoring, measures, research, …).
• Verify effects of measures – track progress.
• Amend permits and authorisations.
• Provide information for decision makers and the general public.
• Report to other administrations/on international obligations.
28
 Overview
 Status

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for Eastern Partnership
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Support of Water Policy Reforms
towards Integrated Water Resources Management
ELEMENTS AND ROLE OF MONITORING IN
RIVER BASIN MANAGEMENT PLANS
THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION
Christoph Leitner, Minsk, 25 April 2018