European Water Partnership

Mission and Objectives

Mission

The European Water Partnership is pursuing a strategy of facillitating a multi-stakeholder approach to water policy in Europe. Its not so clear however if this approach is to include all stakeholders, including workers and domestic water users for example. More likely is the multi-stakeholder approach including only elite actors, for instance business, lobby networks, think tanks and bureaucrats.

They write how "The EWP mission is to give water one common voice in Europe. We commit to the European Water Vision and will initiate, support and enforce all actions and projects that will help to achieve the vision (aims)", see below for a discussion of the European Water Vision. Encapsulating their mission is the European Water Vision, which envisages a successful policy when "We have achieved sustainable water resource management and universal access to modern and safe water supply and sanitation because we value water in all its dimensions - in its economic, social, environmental and cultural importance . Using such benign language masks the potential implications of such an approach. Namely that the economic dimension could dominate all others and ultimately price water at a cost that is too expensive, detrimentally affecting the social, environmental and cultural dimensions.

Objectives

• Provide an open and independent forum to discuss innovative management, technological and financial solutions,
• Mobilise funding methods for water and develop new procurement approaches,
• Stimulate and support cooperation between members,
• Put water on the mainstream political and media agenda, improving awareness of the urgency of water challenges among policy makers and business,
• Promote the achievement of the Millenium Development Goals in the wider Europe and through an EU neighbourhood policy for water and the Horizon 2020 programme for the Mediterranean,
• Contribute Independently to the EU water-related initiatives,
• Promote technological and managerial innovation, developing projects to demonstrate innovative techologies and solutions, enabling these technologies to reach the market.

In trying to achieve their mission and objectives the EWP have undertaken a broad, multi-faceted strategy. A combination of conference organising, developing intiatives, a monthly newsletter, a news blog and organising the European process for the World Water Forum have ensured that the EWP have made a significant impression since their launch in 2006.

Background

According to the European Water Partnership, "The European Water Partnership has been established in 2006, borne of two major initiatives in the European water sector: the Water Supply and Sanitation Technology Platform (WSSTP) and the European Regional Process, which produced the European position at the fourth World Water Forum in Mexico in March 2006 .

Aquawareness

The Aquareness campaign, launched by the European Water Partnership, is an initiative that appears benevolent but is perhaps not quite as it seems. Outwardly, Aquawareness is a positive initiative in that its purpose is to change behaviour and practices, crossing Public, Private and Sectoral barriers, so as to conserve and sustain water for now and in the future. Inwardly the central messages of demand rather than supply management (a euphemism for the market managing supply), voluntary schemes to control water use and moreover, the strategic partners involved in designing Aquawareness all prompt concern at the motivations and consequences of this seemingly innocuous initiative.

Apparently, "The new voluntary program Aquawareness sets sights on changing behaviour and practices, shaping and integrating water into policy and strategy agendas as well as creating a water saving and efficiency culture among private, industrial, business and agricultural users. Through information, education and training a paradigm shift from supply to demand management shall be achieved" .

Aquawareness is multi faceted initiative with different strands and messages inherent within it.

Water Stewardship

The objectives of this program are to establish and provide a voluntary scheme for sustainable water use that:

• Becomes an extensively adopted instrument for sustainable water management crossing public, private and sectoral barriers
• Promotes water to become integral part of policy and business agendas
• Creates knowledge&transparency on production and consumption patterns
• Presents a common framework for assessing, implementing and communicating sustainable water management .

European Water Awareness Programme

"This program directs to introduce a water saving and water efficiency culture among political decision makers, key stakeholders and inhabitants within Europe. The basic tool to implement awareness on sustainable water use on all social and geographical levels is to make information on sustainable water use available for everybody. Improved information creates transparency on the water situation and ensures a realistic and objective decision making process on all levels. In that way, the program encourages the change of behaviour, practices or habits and supports an efficient policy making process" .

Water Vision for Europe

The Water Vision for Europe 2030 is a criticaly important document in terms of offering a clue to the motivation and value system of the European Water Partnership. Apparently developed in a multi-stakeholder process, encompassing broad and diverse interests, it is concerning in terms of the stakeholders and narrow interests involved, its content and the positive response since illicited from different institutions inside the EU.

Given the soft and bland language used in the text of the Water Vision for Europe its perhaps unsurprising that it has gained some EU support and little questioning of its real intent. Indeed, the language and rhetoric used, at times, replicates that of water campaigners. For instance there are few who would disagree with the following statement, "We treat water as our common heritage with an economic, social, environmental and cultural value for our societies. Water is not a commodity like any other one – it’s a fragile resource which can not be replaced and we protect and preserve it for future generations to sustain our societies, our economies and the environment. Water sustainability is crucial for us" .

They also say how "Water is an essential human need and we recognize the access to basic water supply and sanitation as a human right" . Despite the talk of rights and sustainability its vital to note some of the other objectives contained in this document. Arguably, these are in opposition the aims of sustainability and rights. Such as when they assert how "Water services have a price. We pay for services and for the uses and our pricing policies are guided by transparency, sustainability, efficiency as well as a social and environmental approach. We use water pricing and other economic instruments to achieve sustainable water use" .

While they see no contradiction in attaining a right to water and sustainability whilst putting an economic (appropriate) price on water there are others who do. For instance, if all of the worlds peoples have a right to water how do we provide them with necessary water if they do not have the financial means to purchase it? Moreover, if water is to be sold at a profit, or if goods made from water are sold at a profit, does this encourage responsible or incessant and irresponsible water use? Especially when companies have a legal obligation to make profit and maximise the dividend to shareholders wherever and whenever possible?

A clue perhaps to the motivation of this document is given when one peruses the list of participants and signatories. Initiated and co-ordinated by the [European Water Partnership] the list reads like a who's who of companies in which water plays a central part, either in supply or use, in their operations. They do not represent Civil Society in Europe or the Citizenry of Europe. In the main, with one or two tokenistic exceptions, this is a paper for business written by business.

Participants and Signatories

• Aquafed
• Austrian Chamber of Commerce
• Austrian Ministry of Environment
• Breivoll
• CEJA
• Coca Cola Europe
• Coca Cola HBC
• CSR Europe
• DHI
• DOW
• European Commission – DG Environment
• European Landowners Organizastion (ELO
• European Parliament
• EUREAU
• EWA
• French Water Partnership
• German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety
• GIG
• Global Nature Fund
• IBM
• ICLEI
• Institute of Advanced Studies on Sustainability
• IWA
• Ministry of Environment and Spatial Planning, Republic of Slovenia
• Netherlands Water Partnership
• P&G
• Quest Ltd.
• Valenciana Region
• Solidarity Water Europe
• TNO Science and Industry
• Tuscany Region
• WBCSD/Alcan
• Weber Shandwick
• WECF
• Women for Water Partnership
• WWF EPO

EU Involvement and support

As shown above the European Union through the European Commission DG-Environment is a signatory of the 'Water Vision for Europe 2030'. Alongside corporations, by their involvement, they confirmed their belief in the price mechanism being the best way to regulate water use and sustainable water practices. EC DG-Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas said "“Aquawareness is an excellent and timely initiative, responding directly to the challenges highlighted in the Commission’s Communication and its necessary follow-up with all stakeholders" .

Others in EU institutions have also been involved with the European Water Partnership in promoting the Aquawareness campaign and the accompanying vision statement 'Water Vision for Europe 2030'. The European Water Partnership describe how the launch of the Vision and Aquawareness took place "On Monday, 30th June 2008 the European Water Vision and Aquawareness, the European water awareness and water stewardship programme, were launched at the European Parliament in Brussels, Belgium. Both, the Vision and Aquawareness, were initiated by the EWP and developed in close cooperation with MEP Dr. Richard Seeber as well as with wide ranging stakeholders" .

The President of the European Parliament Hans-Gert Pottering remarked “In the name of the European Parliament I strongly welcome the initiatives that have been launched in this conference today: the European water vision for the twenty first century and the Aquawareness programme! Awareness of the current water situation in the Europe Union and its challenges, as well as a vision for the future of Europe's water, are crucial drivers in order to strive for a sustainable water management.” .

Peter Gammeltoft (Acting Director DG Environment, Directorate D, European Commission) took part in a high-level discussion of the vision for Europe alongside others such as Richard Seeber (MEP), Pekka Personen (Secretary- General COPA-COGECA), Tony Baynes (Director of Public Affairs Coca Cola HBC), [[Tony Long]] (Director WWF EPO), Sharon Nunes (Vice President Big Green Innovations IBM), Mitja Bricelj (State Secretary for Environment, Republic of Slovenia).

The aspirations of the EU are best explained by they themselves. They explain their strategy in their 2007 Activities Report.

"Over the year the EWP has been able to further improve our relations with the European Institutions to better be able to raise water on the political agenda. Within the European Parliament the EWP has co-initiated a concrete process to make surewater gets the place on the political level it deserves. Three parallel activities have been started: the European Water Forum, which was set up by MEP Cristina Gutierrez-Cortines and the Dolphin Group, which will be an informal platform for current and former MEP’s to discuss water issues. Furthermore, following the recent Communication on Water Scarcity and Droughts the European Parliament represented by the rapporteur Dr. Seeber wishes to react to this communication with a broad based initiative report which looks at the key strategic challenges. For this purpose Dr. Seeber, started a close cooperation with the EWP. Of course, most of the other activities and initiatives described below also aim to have political implications. The EWP will coordinate the regional process for the fifth World Water Forum, which includes a political process; it took part in the European Solidarity Week for Water, which aims to initiate an ongoing dialogue on water in Europe; it will co-organise a high-level policy dialogue on “EU Sanitation policies and practices in the 2008 International Year of Sanitation”, etc. All these activities contribute to the goal of the EWP to raise water on the political agenda" .

EWP Media

The European Water Partnership are quite prolific in terms of their news output to stakeholders, members, policy-makers etc. News outlets include a section of EWP NEWS; an EWP NEWSLETTER; a specialised EUROPEAN WATER NEWS newsletter and a blog titled BLUE GOLD.

Blue Gold Blog

The Blue Gold Blog is managed by James Dorsey of Quest Ltd on behalf of the European Water Partnership.

Conferences

The European Water Partnership has, alongside the influential Think Tank Friends of Europe, organised three Policy Summits since 2006.

The Policy Summit in 2006 was titled 'THE WORLD’S WATER CRISIS TURNING THE TIDE - POLICIES FOR THE FUTURE'. Co-organised with Friends of Europe it was also supported by Veolia Environnement and the Water Supply and Sanitation Technology Platform (WSSTP). For the report of this conference seeWORLD’S WATER CRISIS TURNING THE TIDE - POLICIES FOR THE FUTURE'.

The 2007 Policy Summit was entitled 'Water Security; Does Europe have a strategy?'. It was again Co-organised with Friends of Europe, i was also supported by Water Supply and Sanitation Technology Platform (WSSTP), the Co-operative Programme on Water and Climate and Dow Europe. The Media partner was Europe’s World. For the report of the conference see Water Security - Does Europe Have a strategy.

The 2008 Policy Summit was titled 'Saving Europe's Water: Its Place in the EU's Green Strategy'. Co-sponsored by Coca-Cola and Veolia ot was again co-organised by Friends of Europe.