Working Group D - Reporting

Working Group D - Reporting
Activity on State of the Environment Reporting / Draft Guidance on “Reporting required for assessing the state of, and trends in, the water environment at the European level”
Version final / 07.November 2007 / Summary document on state of play on SOE reporting guidance
Authors / Beate Werner (EEA); Steve Nixon (WRC); Peter Kristensen (EEA); Veronica Jaglova (ETC-WTR: Cenia), Maggie Kossida (ETC-WTR: NTUA); Anne Lyche Solheim (ETC-WTR and JRC), Jannicke Moe (ETC-WTR: NIVA)
General Comments / In the Work Programme 2005-2006 endorsed by Water Directors in December 2004, an activity on the State of the Environment was foreseen under the Working Group D on Reporting, and led by the EEA
The documents on tasks 1 and 2 and parts of the reporting sheets developed under task 3 have been endorsed by water directors in their meeting in June 2007 in Dresden as a contribution to the development of the SOE process.
This document summarises the state of the art on the parts of the SOE-work for which further work will be needed. Comments from Member Sates on the reporting sheets and the section on task 4/5 have been incorporated as received after the recent meeting of the SOE-drafting group (03.10.2008) and the WGD (08.10.2008) and has been discussed and agreed with the SCG (07.11.07)
Water Directors are asked in endorse the document as part of the batch endorsement as the outcome of the SOE-drafting group under its mandate 2005-2007
Please send comments to: Anne Lyche Solheim (); Peter Kristensen () and Beate Werner ()

Guidance on the reporting required for assessing the state of, and trends in, the water environment at the European level

The mandate of the Drafting group for the Activity on State of the Environment Reporting under Working Group D – Reporting set out 5 tasks to work until end of 2007

timetable and milestones

2005 / 2006 / 2007
Tasks
1) Clarification on reporting streams required for and contributing to SOE-assessments
2)Review of existing guidance
3) Guidance on scope of SOE-parameters
4) Guidance on data processing and handling
5) Requirements and recommendation for technical integration; review of development

Task 1

Clarification on the reporting streams required for, and contributing to, SOE assessments

This part was presented to SCG and agreed upon in November 2006

Task 2

Review of existing guidance documents

This part was presented to SCG and agreed upon in November 2006

Task 3

Guidance on scope of SOE-parameters

State of play

The first part of the Guidance was presented and agreed by SCG in their meeting 15.May 2007; the reporting sheets agreed there are marked in green. They are not included again in the following document.

The reporting sheets, which have been further discussed in the Drafting group during 2007 are marked in yellow. Those will need further discussion including also experts from other reporting processes to ensure the necessary streamlining (e.g UWWTD, EPRTR, WS&D activity and Eurostat)

Furthermore a set of reporting sheets for transitional, coastal and marine (TCM) waters marked in turquoise were drafted and presented in the Drafting group. Those need further discussion with TCM-experts as soon as the discussion on marine and coastal indicators in the Working Group on European Marine Monitoring and Assessment (EMMA) under the development of Marine Strategy Framework Directive is further developed.

Table 1 Overview of the reporting sheets, and their developmental status, proposed for SOER

Reporting Sheet Code / Reporting Sheet Title / Status of sheet / Reporting dates / Serial Number
1.Rivers (natural, canalised rivers and artificial canals) and lakes (natural, artificial (reservoirs) and mixed)
NUT_ORG_RV_LK / State of rivers and lakes in terms of nitrogen, phosphorus, chlorophyll-a and organic pollution determinands in water / Eionet-Water - Data Dictionary / Test ongoing based on Eionet-Water and then annually from 2008 onwards. / 1
HAZ_WAT_RV_LK / State of rivers and lakes in terms of Priority Substances and other hazardous substances in water / Eionet-Water - Data Dictionary / Test ongoing based on Eionet-Water and then annually from 2008 onwards. / 2
QNT_SW+GW / State and quantity of water resources / Reporting sheet drafted - Data Dictionary to be developed / Test in 2008 based on results of joint workshop with Eionet; Eurostat and WS&D activity. / 3
EMI_SW+GW / Loads, discharges and emissions of pollutants to surface waters / Reporting sheet drafted- Data Dictionary to developed / Test in 2008 based on results of joint workshop with Eionet; UWWTD and EPRTR reporting experts. / 4
BIO_AQU_RV / State of river water bodies in terms of biological quality elements – aquatic flora / Methodology to be developed / ?
BIO_INV_RV / State of river water bodies in terms of biological quality elements – benthic invertebrate fauna. / Reporting sheet drafted / Test in 2008 based on further discussions with ECOSTAT / 5
BIO_PHY_LK / State of lake water bodies in terms of biological quality elements – phytoplankton / Reporting sheet drafted / Test in 2008 based on further discussions with ECOSTAT / 6
BIO_AQU_LK / State of lake water bodies in terms of biological quality elements – other aquatic flora / Reporting sheet drafted / Test in 2008 based on further discussions with ECOSTAT. / 7
BIO_INV_LK / State of lake water bodies in terms of biological quality elements – benthic invertebrate fauna. / Methodology to be developed / ?
BIO_FIS_RV_LK / State of river and lake water bodies in terms of biological quality elements – fish fauna / Methodology to be developed / ?
HYD_RV_LK / State of river and lake water bodies in terms of hydrological regime / Methodology to be developed / ?
CON_RV / State of river water bodies in terms of continuity / Methodology to be developed / ?
MOR_RV_LK / State of river and lake water bodies in terms of morphological conditions / Methodology to be developed / ?
2. Groundwater
NUT_GW / State of groundwaters in terms of nitrogen / Eionet-Water - Data Dictionary / Test ongoing based on Eionet-Water and then annually from 2008 onwards. / 8
HAZ_GW / State of groundwaters in terms of hazardous substances / Eionet-Water - Data Dictionary / Test ongoing based on Eionet-Water and then annually from 2008 onwards.. / 9
SAL_GW / State of groundwaters in terms of saltwater intrusion / Eionet-Water - Data Dictionary / To be further discussed in connection with WS&D activity.
3. Transitional and coastal waters, and marine waters / ?
NUT_TW_CW
To be further developed and discussed under EMMA / State of transitional and coastal waters in terms of nitrogen, phosphorus and chlorophyll-a in water / Eionet-Water - Data Dictionary / To be further discussed with Eionet TCM experts – reporting from From 2008 onwards / 10
HAZ_WAT_TW_CW
To be further developed and discussed under EMMA / State of transitional and coastal waters in terms of Priority Substances and other hazardous substances in water / Eionet-Water - Data Dictionary / To be further discussed with Eionet TCM experts – reporting from From 2008 onwards / 11
HAZ_BTA_TW_CW
To be further developed and discussed under EMMA / State of transitional and coastal waters in terms of Priority Substances and other hazardous substances in biota / Eionet-Water - Data Dictionary / To be further discussed with Eionet TCM experts – reporting from From 2008 onwards / 12
HAZ_SED_TW_CW / State of transitional and coastal waters in terms of Priority Substances and other hazardous substances in sediment / Eionet-Water - Data Dictionary / To be further developed
BIO_PHY_TW_CW / State of transitional and coastal water bodies in terms of biological quality elements – phytoplankton / Methodology to be developed / ?
BIO_AQU_TW_CW
To be further developed and discussed under EMMA / State of transitional and coastal water bodies in terms of biological quality elements – other aquatic flora (seagrasses) / Reporting sheet drafted / To be further discussed with Eionet TCM experts – reporting from From 2008 onwards. / 13
BIO_INV_TW_CW / State of transitional and coastal water bodies in terms of biological quality elements – benthic invertebrate fauna. / Methodology to be developed / ?
BIO_TW_FIS / State of transitional water bodies in terms of biological quality elements – fish fauna / Methodology to be developed / ?
TID_TW_CW / State of transitional and coastal water bodies in terms of tidal regime / Methodology to be developed / ?
MOR_TW_CW / State of transitional and coastal waters in terms of morphological conditions / Methodology to be developed / ?
4. Geographic, supportive and interpretative information for monitoring sites, data quality (surface waters and groundwaters)
STA_CHA_PRE / Site characteristics and proxy pressure information. [Note: Proxy pressure information arising from inland sources will be derived by the EEA. Countries will be asked to validate this information.] / Eionet-water - Data Dictionary / Reported once unless information changes and/or a new site is reported / 14
GEO_INF / Geographic information / Some details on site coordinates, name of water bodies etc. already in Data Dictionary. However, information will mainly be reported for compliance purposes – Articles 5 and 8 / Reported once unless information changes and/or a new site is reported / 15
DQ / Data Quality for reported SOE data / Reporting sheet drafted / Test in 2007 based on Eionet-Water and then October 2008 and every 4 years thereafter. / 16
Serial Number / 3
Reporting Sheet Code / QNT _SW + GW
Reporting Sheet Name / State and quantity of water resources
Lead EEA / Peter Kristensen, EEA
()
Lead ETC/WTR / Maggie Kossida, NTUA

Other inputs
Status
Date
Version / 25 September 2007
7
Collation of Comments on this version

What should be reported?

Overview of freshwater resources availability for the River Basin District (RBD) (monthly -if available-, annual and long term annual average), in the format of spatially aggregated data. In case aggregated data are not available, the alternative option of reporting point data at available measurement sites within the RDB is encouraged.

Data on river flow at selected gauging stations.

Data on surface water and groundwater abstractions at a RBD level by sector and on a monthly (if available) or annual temporal scale. In case aggregated data are not available, the alternative option of reporting point data at available measurement sites within the RDB is encouraged.

It is recognised that some information may not be available in first years of reporting in the level of detail ideally required. A phased approach has therefore been adopted with summary information at the RBD level required in the first years. In case that spatially aggregated information at RBD level is not available, alternative reporting of point data (at the available measurement sites within the RBD) is encouraged. It is intended that detailed information will be available after 2010 and should be supplied by electronic means at this time.

Why is it needed?

The information will be used to formulate indicators used to assess the state and trends of the water resources and associated pressures, and monitor the progress with European policy objectives. The information needed in relation to water quantity and quality can generally be described as:

• Drivers: natural availability of water resources, hydrometeorological parameters
• Pressures: water demand, water abstraction by source and sector
• State: assessment of trends by source
• Impacts: ecosystem integrity, use value

• Responses: Are policies working towards targets? such as are the rates of extraction from our water resources sustainable over the long term and

The relevant EEA Core set indicator is:

• Use of freshwater resources (CSI 018)[1]

One particular problem is that of water scarcity which may be exacerbated in parts of Europe by the predicted changes in climate. In general there is a need for indicators describing water availability/scarcity in connection with water use and water use efficiency to assess the extent and intensity of the problem. Assessments are also made periodically on the impact of particular socio-economic sectors on water abstraction (e.g. water abstraction by agriculture) and new assessments/needs such as:

• Assessment of riverine fluxes;

• Identification and development of new statistics adapted to inland (eco)systems assessments and fragmentation issues assessment;

• Regional assessment of changes and trends (in relation to climate change) including mid and long-term evaluation of extreme events at a large scale (droughts and floods);

Such assessments will be improved by the reporting of more detailed and less aggregated data than currently collected by Eionet-Water.

It is intended that all relevant reporting initiatives are streamlined in one data flow and incorporated into WISE. For the moment Member States report data on water resource and water abstraction at country level via the "OECD/Eurostat Joint Questionnaire on the State of the Environment" (JQ). The methodology used in the EUROSTAT/OECD JQ has been used in this reporting sheet. To reflectthe spatial variability of water resources to requested information has been scaled down to each particular RBD Additional the proposed monthly time step will allow distinguishing seasonal patterns and assessing dry periods within a hydrological year

/ Look Out!
EEA is exploring the possibility of using information from other sources to fill in some of the requested information. One possible information source is the detailed climate information (precipitation and estimated evaporation) held by the European Centre for Medium range Weather Forecasting (ECMWF).

1.1.1How should it be reported?

1) Information on water resource availability (monthly -if available-, annual and long term average (LTA) values)

Data

A River Basin District assessment of water availability is proposed that would report on indicators of the status and trends in the hydrometeorological parameters and the hydrological freshwater resources budget (see annex 1 for definitions).

This regional information will be spatially aggregated on RBD level, and temporally on a yearly, seasonal or monthly basis. The scaling down to RBD will enable assessment of the spatial variability of water resources. The proposed monthly time step will allow distinguishing seasonal patterns and assessing dry periods within a hydrological year, as well as investigating additional indices such as the “Dry season flow index, WRI” which requires data from the dry season. Finally, it will allow the EEA to produce water accounts (data needs: calculable catchment, rainfall data, discharge data, abstraction and return flow data). Recognizing that this information –spatial aggregation at RBD scale- may not be currently available by the MS, the alternative option of reporting point data (not aggregated) at sites within the RBD where these point measurements are available is also encouraged. When this option is selected though, it needs to be clearly stated in the MS reporting and the coordinates of the measurement points must accurately be reported, in order to avoid duplication or misinterpretation of the data.

Some additional data will be collected on surface water storage volume for the natural or man-made reservoirs in the RBD. These will allow for comprehensive and integrated analyses of the water resources’ availability trends over long-term and deeper assessment of water scarcity issues.

Run-off at selected gauging stations

To provide a more complete national picture and assess additional hydrological trends, such as flood patterns, changes in the 7-day low flow etc., daily streamflow data will be requested for selected gauging stations.

Determinands

Water Resources Availability
A. Hydrometeorological Parameters
Determinant / Spatial Scale / Temporal Scale
Precipitation (P) / RBD
(* alt. point measurements) / Monthly (if available)
annual
long term annual average (LTAA)
Actual Evapotranspiration (ETa) / RBD
(* alt. point measurements) / Monthly (if available)
annual
long term annual average (LTAA)
Internal flow (D = P - ETa) / RBD
(* alt. point measurements) / Monthly (if available)
annual
long term annual average (LTAA)
Actual external inflow (Qi)
* only for national sub-catchments of international RBD / RBD
(* alt. point measurements) / Monthly (if available)
annual
long term annual average (LTAA)
Total actual outflow (Qo = Qo,s + Qo,n)
of which Qo,s into the sea
of which Qo,n into neighbouring territories (only for national sub-catchments of international RBD) / RBD
(* alt. point measurements) / Monthly (if available)
annual
long term annual average (LTAA)
B. Surface Water
Streamflow / GS / daily
monthly
Surface water Reservoir storage (natural and man-made) / R / Monthly (if available)
annual
long term annual average (LTAA)
C. Groundwater
Groundwater level / MAS
(* alt. point measurements) / Monthly (if available)
annual
Changes in groundwater storage / MAS
(* alt. point measurements) / Monthly (if available)
annual
long term annual average (LTAA)
D. Additional water resources
Desalinated water / RBD / Monthly (if available)
annual
long term annual average (LTAA)
Water imports / RBD / Monthly (if available)
annual
long term annual average (LTAA)
Note: RBD = River Basin District
GS = Selected Gauging station
R = Reservoir
MAS = Major Aquifer System
* alternative point-measurements option when aggregated data at RBD scale are not available by the MS

River flow at selected gauging stations

Data is required for each of the selected river flow gauging stations (see next section).

• Daily data for the representative gauging stations. A minimum of 10 years continuous measurements is desirable;

• Each representative gauging station and year should be described by a set of summary statistics such as mean, maximum (with date), mean annual minimum flow (MAM), etc.;

• Long-term statisticsat the representative gauging stations.: long-term monthly and yearly averages (series length indicated) and frequency distribution of flow

Station selection and information

A selection (subset) of river discharge gauging stations:

• Representative selection of gauging stations for the River Basin District such as downstream stations at the main catchments and main tributaries. Stations may also be selected to describe natural flow such as stations unaffected by reservoirs or water abstractions. One gauging station 1000 km2 may be used as an indicative density. In complex terrain information from more gauging stations may be provided.

• Type of river discharge gauging station (e.g. measurement or warning; stations with natural flow, for calculation of fluxes (code list to be established));

• Unique site code for linking quantity data with hydrosystem segment (and water body information if already reported for compliance purposes - see SOER sheet “Geographic Information”).

• Geographic and other details of gauging stations if not already reported for compliance purposes (see SOER sheet “Geographic Information” for details). - provided once per station unless there are changes between reporting periods.

• Physical characteristics of the selected river discharge gauging stations (see SOER sheet “STA_CHA_PRE” for details) - provided once per station unless there are changes between reporting periods.

• Information on the duration of the records at the selected gauging stations and on the quality of data reported (provisional, doubtful, validated), and if relevant, information on any changes in calibration curves.

2. Data on surface water and groundwater abstractions at a RBD level