Information in support of water management in the North Baltic River Basin District, Sweden

Project leader: Berit Balfors, Monica Hammer

Participants: Andrew Quin

Key words: Information, information system, water management, Water Framework Directive, North Baltic Sea River Basin District

Project Period: 2011 – 2012

Funding: Richerts Stiftelse

Project description

Water resources management is an information-intensive endeavour. In the North Baltic River Basin District (RBD) in Sweden, implementation of the EU Water Framework Directive (WFD) is in full swing. In order to support WFD implementation, as well as meet some of its requirements, water-related data and information is collected, stored, processed, reported and used by numerous government authorities and other actors involved. In this study, we investigate how the information requirements of the WFD have been implemented in the North Baltic Sea RBD. Then we evaluate how water-related information supports water management action. In this case, the action being supported is the programme of measures, which is required by the WFD and should help to ensure the protection and sustainable use of water bodies. A preliminary picture of how Sweden met the WFD information requirements was used as a basis for discussion in a number of interviews. The results from the interviews were complemented with a document review and then analysed in order to understand how Sweden has met the WFD requirements, appreciate the challenges being faced and evaluate how information supports water management action.

Publications

Hammer, M., Balfors, B., Mörtberg, U., Petersson, M. and Quin, A. 2011. Governance of Water Resources in the Phase of Change : A Case Study of the Implementation of the EU Water Framework Directive in Sweden. AMBIO 40: 210-220.

Quin, A. 2012. Information, systems and water management: Information systems which support water management . PhD Thesis, LWR, KTH.