Gestion de l'eau en France Anglais_maquette 1 - OIEAU 26/10/09 15:15 Page1
Capacity building for better water management
Organization of water management in France
International Office for Water Gestion de l'eau en France Anglais_maquette 1 - OIEAU 26/10/09 15:15 Page2
Organization of water management in France Contents
Introduction 3
French water policy and its overall organization 5
l Legislative bases and fundamental principles 5
l Integrated water resources management at river basin level 8
l Concerted planning involving all the users 9
l Water policing: a governmental responsibility for compliance with regulations 10
l The “Polluter-Pays” principle and Water Agencies 11
l Knowledge and monitoring of water resources 13
l Preservation of the quality of water and aquatic environments 15
l Public information and participation 17
l Provisions of the "Grenelle for the Environment" 17
Large developments and water control 18
l Organization of project ownership 18
l Protection against floods 18
l Replenishment of low water flow and drought management 21
l Agricultural and rural water 22
l Large infrastructures and water economic development 25
Municipal drinking water supply and sanitation utilities 27
l Infrastructures 27
l Responsibilities and legislative framework 28
l Financing 30
l Principles for the management of utilities 31
l Water price and pricing 32
l Transparency of the information 33
l Vocational training 34
French experience at the service of international action 35
Conclusion 36
The International Office for Water 36
International Office for Water - June 2009 Writing: Coralie Noël - Graphic design: Frédéric Ransonnette - Translation: Gisèle Sine - Publication manager: Christiane Runel
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Organization of water management in France Introduction
bundant worldwide, but overexploit - ed and polluted by human activities, A water has become a fragile good, both in quantity and in quality. If in deve - loped countries, water pollution by domestic and industrial wastewater is better and better controlled, agricultural pollution remains alarming. As regards the quantitative aspects, the sha- ring of water resources between uses is becoming necessary more than ever, in the developed countries and elsewhere. In the developing countries, the populations suffer, above all, from the lack of safe water and from serious microbiological contamina - tions: water remains the first cause of mortality in the world with 4 million deaths per year according to WHO. According to the 2008 follow-up report of the WHO-UNICEF joint monitoring program, about one billion people in the world have no access to drinking water and more than 2 bil - lion people have no adequate sanitation. One of the Millennium Development Goals consists in reducing by 50% the per - centage of people without access to drinking water and suited sanitation (as compared to 1990) before 2015. Insofar as climate change will worsen these situations, good water management is, These stakes often compete and the prob - l human resources: to organize institu - more than ever, one of the conditions lems cannot be solved in a sectoral manner. tions, to manage services and ensure the for sustainable human development. A cross-sectoral approach is necessary: it is operation and maintenance of installa - integrated water resources manage - tions, to raise the decision-makers’ Water management must meet several fun - ment (IWRM). The geographical reality of awareness, to inform the populations, to damental challenges: water must be taken into account, at river train men. l allowing everyone to have access to basin level. drinking water and wastewater treat - This means defining an adapted institu - ment; The French experience and its positive tional and legal organization: regula - results can inspire the public authorities l preserving water resources and aquatic tions, administrative organization, agree - of other countries, although the organi - environments; ments and partnerships, management and zation must obviously be adapted to l preventing permanent and accidental action plans, financing, controls, monitoring each local situation. pollution; of the environments, etc. l preventing and managing floods and That also implies the mobilization of sig - The objective of this document is to present droughts, fighting against erosion; nificant resources: the organization of water management in l ensuring agro-food production, while l financial resources: to modernize exist - France: limiting the impacts of agriculture on the ing plants, create new developments and l French water policy environment and resources; infrastructures, establish monitoring and and its overall organization. l allowing the sustainable development of analyses networks, ensuring the opera - l Large developments industry, energy production, recreational tion, maintenance and renewal of these and water control. activities, tourism and inland waterways infrastructures; transport. l Public drinking water sup - ply and sanitation utilities.
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Organization of water management in France Introduction
French Departments Regions administrative organization France has three levels of local authorities: Municipalities, Departments, Regions. The Municipalities The Municipality is the smallest administra - tive subdivision. It is managed by a city coun - cil elected by direct universal vote every 6 years. The city counselors elect the Mayor among them. The Mayor is the chief execu - tive of the Municipality: he/she manages the The Regions France has a deconcentrated (local-level deci - budget, is the employer of the municipal sions are made by the deconcentrated servi - staff, is responsible of the community The most recent structure of French local ces of the State, closer to the local situation) (schools, town planning, social action, road gover nment, the Region has become an and decentralized organization (many res - system, school transport, household waste autonomous local community with the pon sibilities were transferred from the State collection, sanitation, etc.). France is charac - Decentralization Laws of 1982. The regional towards the local authorities). terized by a very high number of Muni cipa - counselors are elected for 6 years by univer - lities: 36,783 (data 2008). More and more sal vote. They elect the President of the “Deconcentration” often, they regroup in inter-municipality Regional Council. The latter manages the The central Government is located in Paris, cooperation bodies to share their resources. budget and staff and applies the regional but the State government is deconcentrated In the field of water, the Municipa lities are policy, focused on economic action, regional at the departmental and regional level, with responsible for the management of public planning and vocational training. There are a representative: the Prefect. The Depart- drinking water supply and sanitation utilities. 26 regions, including 4 overseas. In the field mental Prefects and the Regional Prefects are They can also contribute to contractual of water, the regions can orientate the deci - the only State authorities in the territories actions for the management of water resour - sions through planning (regional planning which they manage. The Prefect represents ces and aquatic environments (river contract and development plan), through financial the Prime Minister and each Minister. He/she for example) and to planning actions (sub- assistance (State/Regional Planning Contract), is locally the chief of all the deconcentrated basin management plans). or through the creation of regional natural services of the State. He/she is responsible for reserves. The regions take part in water The Departments law and order, the organization of the various mana gement institutions (Basin Committee, elections, and emergency relief in case of The Department is managed by the Depar - Board of Directors of the Water Agency, Local disasters. He/she is guaranteeing law enfor - temental Council. The Depar temental Coun - Water Commissions) and contribute in the cement and has a role of adviser and support selors, elected for 6 years by universal vote, application of the planning documents and to the local authorities. With regard to elect their Pre sident. The President of the contractual steps. regional planning, he/she is a negotiator of Depar temental Council is the chief executive The State Government the development contracts which are signed of the Department: he/she prepares and car - France is a democratic parliamentary State by the State government and the Regions. ries out the deliberations of the Depar temen - founded on the separation of powers: tal Council, manages the budget and staff. In the field of water, the Prefect of the Region l the executive power is shared between The Department has broad responsibilities: where the basin committee has its home the President of the Republic and the social action, building and maintenance of of fice is appointed “Basin Coordinator Pre - Prime Minister and his Government; high schools, land consolidation, organiza - fect”and is responsible for coordinating the tion of school transport, etc. France is subdi - l the legislative power is executed by the State services. He/she approves the Master vided in 101 departments (including 5 over - Parliament made up of 2 chambers: the Plan for Water Development and Mana - seas). In the field of water, the Departments National Assembly and the Senate; gement drafted by the Basin Committee and have a role in rural development, through l the judicial power is ensured by the judi - adopts the corresponding Program of Mea - financial assistance to the development of ciary, which is independent from the two sures. drinking water supply and sanitation sys - other powers. “Decentralization” tems. They can also intervene in the protec - In the field of water, policy is coordinated by The State transferred some responsibilities to tion of natural environments. A service of the Ministry in charge of Ecology and the the Municipalities, Departments and Regions, technical assistance to the Municipalities was various aspects are dealt with by an inter- which became autonomous communities, created in each Depar temental Council. ministerial body, the Inter-Ministerial Mission from a legal and financial viewpoint. for Water.
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Organization of water management in France French water policy and its overall organization
Legislative The Law of 3 January 1992, called “Water Implementation Law”, laid down the principles of true inte - of the European bases and grated water management: patrimonial Water Framework fundamental nature of water (water is the “common heri - Directive (WFD) tage of the Nation”), management balanced The European directive principles between the various water uses, overall 2000/60/EC of 23 Octo - mana gement of water in all its forms (sur - ber 2000 defines a stra - face, ground, marine, coastal water), conser - tegic framework for wa - vation of aquatic ecosystems and wetlands, ter policy for the 27 use of water as an economic resource, priori - Member States of the European Union. ty given to drinking water supply. This law It has extended to all Europe the principles of developed planning instruments on a basin basin management developed in France for scale: the SDAGE (Master Plan for Water more than 45 years. Development and Management) for large basins, the SAGE (Water Development and Objectives Management Scheme) for sub-basins. The WFD sets out an obligation of results: The European Water Framework Direc - achieving before 2015 a good overall status tive (WFD) of 23 October 2000, establi - of all waters: surface, ground and coastal shing a framework for Community action in waters. Extensions of timescales or less strin - the field of water policy, gave overall consis - gent objectives are possible, but they must tency to a well developed European legisla - be justified and submitted to public consulta - tion (about thirty directives and regulations tion. An adapted objective (good ecological The building since the 1970s). This directive sets out com - potential) can be retained for heavily modi - of the French water mon objectives, timetable and working fied water bodies from the point of view of policy: more than method for the 27 Member States of the hydromorphology. 45 years of experience European Union. It starts with a very signifi - The WFD requires improving water chemical Although some bases of the water policy go cant preamble: “Water is not a commercial quality by reversing the trend to the deterio - back to the 16th century, the current organi - product like any other but, rather, a heritage ration of groundwater quality and by redu - zation relies on a law of 1964, which was which must be protected, defended and cing the discharge of priority substances into supplemented and modernized later on. treated as such”. surface waters. The discharges must be elimi - nated before 2020 for the substances classi - The Law of 16 December 1964 organized The Law of 21 April 2004 transposed the WFD into French law. fied as “priority dangerous substances”. A water management at the level of river first list of 33 substances was adopted includ - basins. It states three essential principles, The Law on water and aquatic environ - ing metals, pesticides and hydrocarbons. which are now recognized but which were ments of 30 December 2006 renovated innovating at that time: decentralized mana - the whole water policy. Its objectives are: to Means gement at the level of the large river basins, provide the means for achieving the goals of River basin management and objectives concerted management, incentive financial the WFD, to improve the conditions of access for each water body: river basin districts, tools. For organizing dialogue and the sha - to water, to give more transparency to the sets of river basins, must be identified, inclu - ring of responsibilities, an advisory body (the operation of water utilities, and to renew the ding at the international level. A “competent Basin Committee) and an executive organiza - organization of fishing in freshwater. It also authority” must be designated for each tion (the Water Agency) were created in each brought two major advances: recognition of district. The laying down of objectives and large river basin. the right to water for everyone and taking actions to be undertaken is done at the level The Law of 29 June 1984, called “Law on into account the adapting to climate change of a new basic unit which is the “water Fishing”, organized fishing in freshwater and in water resources management. It reformed body”. fish-farming management. With this law, the financing system of the Water Agencies Planning and programming: for each dis - taking into account the aquatic environment and created the new National Agency for trict, planning relies on 3 key stages to be strongly progressed. It introduced the obliga - Water and Aquatic Environments (ONEMA). renewed every 6 years: characterization, tion of “reserved flow”, i.e. a flow considered (Note: The laws concerning water utili - Management Plan and Program of Measures. as ecological minimal flow, which is imposed ties are detailed in page 29). The state of district, or “characterization of to the dam managers, in order to guarantee the district”, accounts for the various water the functioning of the aquatic ecosystems uses and their impacts on the water status. located downstream of the dams.
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Organization of water management in France French water policy and its overall organization
The characterization is also accompanied by a The directive gives a significant place to the Definition register of the protected areas being subject economic analysis: characterization, justifica - and coordination to special protections (drinking water abstrac - tion of exemptions from achieving the objec - of water policy tion areas, bathing areas, conservation of tives, optimization of the choice of invest - The Ministry responsi - natural habitats, etc.). The Member States ments, pricing. ble for water policy is must set up networks for monitoring water Public consultation: The directive increases the Ministry of Ecolo - status. They must also carry out an inter- the transparency of water policy and requires gy, Energy, Sustainable calibration of the methods for evaluating an active participation of the water stake - Development and the water status, which must allow comparing holders and the public in the development of Sea. the quality of the aquatic environments in the the management plan. It defines 3 obligato - entire European Union. A “river basin mana - This Ministry results from ry consultation periods: 2006 for the work the fusion of several ministries in 2007. This gement plan”, adopted at the end of 2009, program, 2007 for the identification of the must define the objectives to be reached in fusion was justified by the interdependence main problems and 2008 for the of the issues and the need for a completely 2015. It is supplemented by a “Program of Management Plan. Measures” which defines the necessary cross-sectoral and decompartmentalized Transposition into French law: The direc - actions to be initiated and their deadlines. approach. Today, this Ministry concentrates tive enlarges the French water management These measures can be of a legal, financial or ecology, transport, energy, habitats, the sea, principles at the European level: manage - contractual nature. They are identified for etc. It is a new approach not used up to now ment at river basin level, participation of the each river basin district, according to the in Europe and is now followed up by other water stakeholders, planning on a basin encountered problems. countries. The action of the Ministry is thus (SDAGE) and sub-basin scale (SAGE). organized around five major issues: resour - The cost recovery principle and eco - However, adaptations were needed because ces, lands and habitats; energy and climate; nomic analyses: The directive requires the directive goes further on some points: risk prevention; infrastructures, transport and accounting for the methods used for pricing objectives of result for all the aquatic environ - the sea; sustainable development. water and the application of the principle of ments, the taking into account of the socioe - recovery of the costs of water services. This The Ministry of Ecology relies on three local conomic aspects, the drafting of a Program of relay levels: means also integrating environmental costs, Measures, public participation in planning. taking into account the application of the pol - at the level of river basins: the Basin The large French river basins became districts luter-pays principle. The contributions of the Coordinator Prefect coordinates the according to the European definition, with various economic sectors are to be identified, actions of the various State services in the some reorganization to take the international by distinguishing households, industry and field of water; districts into account. The competent authority agriculture. Incentive water pricing must be for each district is the Basin Coordinator at the regional level (26 regions): the established before the end of 2010. Prefect. The Basin Committees were entrusted Regional Directorate for Environment with the revision of the SDAGEs to integrate (DIREN); this Directorate will combine the environmental objectives of “good with the Regional Directorate for Industry status” and to transform them into and the Regional Directorate for Public management plans. Each revised Works in a new cross-sectoral body, the SDAGE was supplemented by a Pro - Regional Directorate for Environment, gram of Measures. France organized a Development and Housing (DREAL) to 1st consultation in 2004 on district reinforce the regional action of the State characterization and a 2 nd consultation in sustainable development; the time - took place in 2008 and 2009 on the table of these services fusions is spread Management Plans and Programs of out over 2009, 2010 and 2011; Measures. The monitoring network at the departmental level (101 de - and the system for evaluating water par tments): various services of the State quality were supplemented. apply water policy with its regulatory and France plays an important role in the technical aspects, through “water poli - European Common Implementation cing”; let us quote in particular the Strategy (CIS) for the implementation Departmental Directorates for Public of the Framework Directive, coordi - Works and Agriculture (DDEA). nated by the European Commission. Website: It participates in several working www.developpement-durable.gouv.fr groups and actively contributes in the production of the European metho - Map of the European river basin districts dological guidance documents. 6 Gestion de l'eau en France Anglais_maquette 1 - OIEAU 26/10/09 15:15 Page7
Organization of water management in France French water policy and its overall organization
The Ministry in charge of Ecology lays down and coordinates water policy. It operates the secretariat of the Inter- ministerial Mission for Water which gathers all the ministries concerned under the authority of the Prime Minister. For example: The Ministry for Health is in charge of public health protection for the various control of water uses: the State Organization of the dialogue and uses: drinking water, mineral water, recre - entrusts part of its water policing respon - coordination of actions: It is the role of ational water, bathing water in particular, sibilities to ONEMA whose departmental the Basin Committees and Basin rainwater use, re-use of treated waste - teams control the compliance with regu - Coordinator Prefects; water, etc. For this purpose, it drafts the lations and note infringements; Mobilization of specific financial legislative and regulatory texts and local action: ONEMA organizes the resources: “water must pay for water”, defines the standards to be complied diagnosis of the status of water and pursuant to the polluter-pays and user- with, within the framework of European aquatic environments, participates in the pays principle; it is the vocation of the law. Its deconcentrated services, the planning of local water policies (SDAGE, Water Agencies to levy specific taxes; departmental directorates and regional SAGE, monitoring programs), provides directorates for health and social affairs, A multiyear planning and programming: technical support to water management are in charge of controlling compliance l planning which defines the objectives activities in the territories, for example for with these regulations. and priorities for action in the Master the restoration of aquatic environments Plans for Water Development and The Ministry in charge of Agri cul- or the conservation of fish species. ture is concerned with the needs of the Management (SDAGE) at the level of agricultural sector (irrigation, storage river basins and the Water reservoirs, etc.) and by its qualitative and Development and Management quantitative impacts on water and the Schemes (SAGE) on a sub-basin scale; ecosystems. l programming of investments in a The Ministry in charge of Ecology relies multiyear financing program estab - on the National Agency for Water lished by each Water Agency (at the level of the large river basins) and and Aquatic Environments (ONEMA), Website: www.onema.fr national organization responsible for possibly at the local level within river knowledge and monitoring of the sta - contracts (at the level of a river or a Basic principles tus of water and aquatic environments. tributary); of water management A clear distribution of responsibili - This public body was created by the Law on in France Water and Aquatic Environments of 30 ties between public authorities and December 2006. It carries out, in particular, Today, water management relies on six private operators for the manage - the assignments of the former Higher Council important basic principles: ment of municipal drinking water for Fisheries. Decentralized management at the supply and sanitation utilities: in France, drinking water supply and sanita - ONEMA is organized on 3 levels: a General level of river basins: The French water tion utilities are public services decentra - Directorate at the national level, interregional policy is defined and coordinated at the lized at the level of municipalities, which delegations and departmental services. Its national level but is decentralized at the are responsible for the choice of the budget comes from contributions of the level of the large river basins. It takes into mana gement method, either direct, or Water Agencies. account the geographical reality of the resources because “water knows no delegated management. In the case of ONEMA has 4 great assignments: administrative boundary”; delegated management by a private development of knowledge on An integrated approach: This integrat - operator, the obligations of both partners water systems: ONEMA orientates ed approach allows taking into account are clearly governed by law and are research programs; all the water uses, the needs of the defined in a contract. information on water resources, aquatic ecosystems, pollution prevention aquatic environments and their and the control of natural and accidental uses: ONEMA manages the national hazards; Water Information System (WIS);
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Organization of water management in France French water policy and its overall organization
Integrated water resources management at river basin level The basic unit for water management is the river basin. Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) at the level of river basins allows a coordinated approach: between upstream and downstream; between quantity and quality; between surface and ground waters; between the needs linked to human acti - vities and the needs of the ecosystems; between the risk prevention policies re - garding erosion, floods and droughts. There are 13 “river basin districts” in accordance with the European Water Framework Directive (WFD). For continental France: l ”Adour, Garonne, Dordogne, Charente, Charente and Aquitaine coastal rivers” dis - trict; l ”Scheldt, Somme, the Channel coastal rivers, North Sea” district; l ”Loire, Vendée and Brittany coastal rivers” district; l Rhine district; l Meuse and Sambre district; l ”Rhone and Mediterranean coastal rivers” district; l Corsica district; l ”Seine and Normandy coastal rivers” dis - trict.
Industries: - Abstraction - Discharges For overseas: France shares international rivers and Agriculture: - Abstraction l Guadeloupe; lakes with neighbouring countries: the Hydro-power - Non-point pollution l Guyana; Rhine, the Meuse, the Scheldt, the Moselle, the Leman Lake, etc. l Martinique; Domestic uses: - Drinking water l Reunion; - Waste water l Mayotte.
Needs of ecosystem Leisure: - Fishing - Bathing Taking into account all the water uses on a river basin scale 8 Gestion de l'eau en France Anglais_maquette 1 - OIEAU 26/10/09 15:15 Page9
Organization of water management in France French water policy and its overall organization
At the level Concerted ORGANIZATION OF THE RIVER BASINS THE WATER USERS of each large ● Cities planning Chairman ● Industries river basin of the Board POLLUTION ● Farmers ABSTRACTION of Directors TAX TAX involving The River Basin Committee is STATE Supervision appoints Agency chaired by a local elected official. It is Director all the users made up of representatives from local Agency’s Board of Directors WATER 10 % = Operator costs authorities (40%), users and associa - 8 State representatives AGENCY
The Governmental Administration (the State) decides of the water policy, but the latter is tions (40%) and the State (20%). The 1 Staff representative 8 representatives system of basin committees aims at POLLUTION INCREASE prepared and implemented in a concerted of local authorities OF THE WATER 8 representatives of users CONTROL manner between all the water stakeholders: ensuring stakeholders’ coordination RESOURCE and representativeness. All the users 90% of the funds are reallocated the State, local authorities and various cate - Chairman Tax election are represented: industrialists, large Rate gories of users. Basin Committee Basis regional developers, farmers, fisher - opinion “Water Parliament” Concerted planning is institu - men and fish farmers, tourism, nauti - Y
T ● Farmers, industrialists, sportmen, fishermen, associations I
tionalized at three levels: R ● Regions, departments, municipalities cal activities, electricity producers, A D I ● Personnes compétentes L
O ● Administrations At national level water suppliers, etc. S The National Water Committee is chaired The Basin Committee orientates the by a Member of Parliament nomina ted by the water policy priorities in the basin. It prepares Agency (priorities, methods for financial “POLLUTER-USER-PAYS” PRINCIPLE Prime Minister. It gathers representatives of the Master Plan for Water Deve lopment assistance) which finances the SDAGE imple - Abstraction Pollution the users, associations, local authorities and and Management (SDAGE) which is then mentation. Taxes Taxes governmental administrations, as well as approved by the State. In accordance with the WFD, the SDAGE is
qualified people and the presidents of Basin The SDAGE is a planning document: it from now on accompanied by a Program of S U Water Agency budget O
M voted by the Board of Directors Director Committees. It is consul ted on the orienta - gives the overall orientations of water mana - Measures which distributes the means (reg - O
N according to the River Basin Committee’s
O decision T
gement in the basin and the objectives to be U tions of the national water policy. It gives ulatory, financial) and the actions (water A A 6-year program
advice on the draft legal texts (laws, decrees), reached. The SDAGE is also a legal frame - 90 % policing, infrastructures, communication, Studies and Research on reforms and draft governmental action work for public policies: any administrative Aid awareness campaigns, education, pilot pro - Operation plans. decision concerning water management jects, contracts, experience sharing) allowing Monitoring Network (local regulations, programs for financial achieving the objectives of good water status ● Large developers The National Water Committee was created ● Local Authorities in 1964. Its assignments were widened by assistance, town planning documents) must in 2015. The Program of Measures is drafted ● Farmers ● Industrialists the Law of 30 December 2006: creation of a be compatible or be made compatible with by the State after advice from the Basin Consultative Committee to give advice on the the SDAGE. Committee. water price and the quality of public water The first SDAGEs were carried out pursuant to At the level supply and sanitation utilities, creation of a the Later Law of 1992 and go back to 1996. of tributaries, committee for fishing, creation of a commit - Each SDAGE was revised to become the sub-basins tee concerned with the water information “Management Plan” required by the or aquifers system. European Water Framework Directive (WFD). A Local Water Commission can be set up The number of its members was increased to The Basin Committee follows up the SDAGE to prepare a Water Development and adapt it to the evolution of the stakes and to implementation. It also gives the main orien - Management Scheme (SAGE), local adap - its new missions: new ministries became tations for the Water Agency. In particular, the tation of the SDAGE. It is composed by one members and the representation of some Basin Committee proposes an amount for the half of representatives of local authorities, by categories of users was increased. taxes levied by the Water Agency and votes one quarter of users’ representatives and by the multiyear action plan of the Water one quarter of State representatives. The Water Development and Management Group of Composition Group govern - Scheme (SAGE) is a planning document of River Basin of users Total of Group of local authorities mental which has an administrative and legal status. Committees and members administra - in continental France specialists When the SAGE is approved, the decisions tions made in the field of water by the administra - Municipa- Regions Departments Total lities tive authorities in the area concerned must be compatible, or made compatible, with the Adour-Garonne 6 20 28 54 54 27 135 Artois-Picardy 3 12 17 32 32 16 80 SAGE. This legal status does not only concern Loire-Brittany 8 29 39 76 76 38 190 the administration but also private individu - Rhine-Meuse 3 16 21 40 40 20 100 als. Rhone-Mediterranean 5 27 34 66 66 33 165 Seine-Normandy 7 29 38 74 74 37 185 9 Gestion de l'eau en France Anglais_maquette 1 - OIEAU 26/10/09 15:15 Page10
Organization of water management in France French water policy and its overall organization
Water policing: For example, concerning an authorization for abstraction, the prefect’s decree must: a governmental l define one or several abstraction quanti - responsibility ties according to the source and the hydrological context; for compliance l take into account the abstraction quantity with regulations as compared to the other uses; l comply with the provisions of the SDAGE Facilities, infrastructures, work or activities, and SAGE; which can have an impact on health, safety, l impose the measurement of abstracted water resources and aquatic ecosystems, are flows; The SAGE lays down the objectives to be regulated by what is called “water police” l set provisions for the building and main - reached (water uses, quantitative and quali - in France. The term of “water police” covers tenance of water intakes; tative protection of water resources and two aspects: a special administrative mode aquatic ecosystems, conservation of wet - and a tool for controlling compliance with l set provisions to avoid contact between lands, etc.). The SAGE plans various types of regulations. the different aquifers during drillings. Several departmental administrations are actions adapted to local stakes: peoples’ It is an administrative mode which requires information and education, river mainte - often concerned (agriculture, town planning, either a mere declaration or an admi - nance and development, drinking water sup - health, industry, environment, etc.). nistrative authorization, according to the ply, control of rain water, defense against characteristics of the project and the limits France organized coordination of these floods, pollution control, surface and ground - laid down by ministerial decrees. administrations within the “Inter-Services water protection, restoration of ecosystems Mission for Water” (MISE). This unique The decisions are made locally by the Prefect, and wetlands, etc. water body allows jointly examining docu - representative of the Governmental Admi - ments, making decisions faster in a coordi - To implement the actions planned by the nistration (State) in the Department. SAGE, the Local Water Commission can rely nated way, taking into account all the aspects on a Local Public Basin Esta blishment Water intake on a lake-reservoir of the project and all the stakes (health stan - (EPTB) or on any other group of communi - dards, town planning rules, vulnerability of ties. Indeed, for the municipalities concerned, the ecosystems, etc.). the fact of regrouping in an inter-municipal The MISE is under the authority of the body has the advantage of having a legal Departmental Prefect. This device can apply entity and of sharing financial resources to to any kind of project which can affect surface undertake studies or work on a sub-basin and ground waters: hydropower infrastruc - scale. ture, river development, gravel extraction, Contractual steps are also taken to plan and water abstraction, wastewater discharge, finance actions: should they concern a river, opening of a landfill, building of an industrial an aquifer or a bay, these steps are plant, etc. called “river contracts”, “aquifer contracts” This organization allows different administra - or “bay contracts”. tions to work together and leave sectoral As regards all these local tools logics behind . The decision is made in com - for integrated water manage - pliance with the national regulations but is ment, consult the “GEST’EAU” adapted to local stakes. It takes into account website, a reference website the objectives of the SDAGE and SAGE, developed by the International When an authorization is needed, the deci - should there be one. It takes risks into Office for Water with ONEMA sion to grant it or not is made after an inves - account according to the human activities assistance: tigation for assessing the potential impacts of concerned (for example, proximity of an www.gesteau.eaufrance.fr the project and consulting the population intake for drinking water supply or a bathing concerned. The authorization is granted for a area). defined duration, it is not final. It can be A reorganization of the State services started withdrawn or modified with a stricter pur - in 2008 and will also support coordination, pose, without allowance, should there be a insofar as several types of services will com - risk for public health (drinking water), safety bine at the departmental level and regional (floods) or aquatic environments. level .
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Organization of water management in France French water policy and its overall organization
Coordination was also organized between The The Water Agencies contribute in invest - the Department and the river basin district. ments and help with the correct operation of The Prefect of the area, where the Basin ”Polluter-Pays” installations with financial incentives for local Committee has its home office, coordinates contracting authorities and accompany them the State policy for water policing and water principle and in the sub-basin management plans steps resources management. This Prefect is called Water Agencies and river contracts. “Basin Coordinator Prefect”. This coordi - They sign master agreements with the The Water Law of 1964 created a Water nation allows consistency of State actions Regions, Departments, communities of Agency in each large metropolitan river between the Regions and Departments con - municipalities and Local Public Basin basin. cerned and the homogeneous implementa - Establishments (EPTB). The action of the tion of the SDAGE in the entire river basin. It is an administrative public body of the Water Agencies allows strengthening colla - The Basin Coordinator Prefect has the means State, under the double supervision of the boration and dialogue between all the local needed for crisis management in particular. Ministry of Ecology and the Ministry of stakeholders. They have also a task of pu - He can take measures for limiting or stopping Finance. blic information and awareness: they water uses to deal with accidents, floods, In the Overseas Departments (DOM), this task manage a documentation service available to droughts or water scarcity. The decisions of is carried out by the “Water Offices”, crea - the public, disseminate information docu - restriction are made after dialogue with the ted more recently by the Overseas Orientation ments and provide financial support for the users. Law of 13 December 2000. actions of information on the river basins The Water Agencies and Water Offices are (financing the organizers of rivers for exam - Lake Caramany (Pyrénées-Orientales, France) financially autonomous as they have their ple). They organize the public consultations affected by drought in August 2008 own financial resources. Their field for action planned by the European Water Framework covers surface water, groundwater, coastal Directive. water and territorial waters at sea. A budget fed Organization by environmental and assignments taxation: of the Water Agencies the water taxes The Water Agency is managed by a Board of The budget of the Water Agencies is based Directors composed of representatives from on the application of the “polluter- local authorities, from the various categories pays” and “user-pays” principles. The Water of users, from the State, and from the Agency Agencies levy taxes on water abstractions staff. The Chairman of the Board of Directors and discharges from all the users who affect and the Director of the Agency are appointed water quality or modify the water regime. by the Government. They are taxes assigned to water: not The Water Agency has a highly qualified per - only are they levied on activities having an manent staff from 100 to 200 people per impact on water resources, but also the pro - The ONEMA agents control compliance agency to carry out its assignments. duct of these taxes is allocated to actions with regulations. They make an official The Water Agency has two levers for action: for water resources conservation. It is the “water pays for water” principle. report when there is infringement. Sanctions an environmental taxa tion: water are defined; they are usually administrative taxes levied on water sanctions (oblOigRaGtioAnN IZofAT coIONmp lOetFin TgH Ew oRrIVk EfoRr BASINSabstractions and the THE WATER USERS compliance with the standards or closing emission of pollutants, ● Cities Chairman ● Industries down of the facility for example). In some of the Board which are incentives; POLLUTION ● Farmers ABSTRACTION cases, penal sanctions are necessary; the offi - of Directors TAX financial assistance: TAX cial report is SthTATEen transmitted to the court and Supervision appoints Agency redistribution of the the judge can inflict a penalty, either financiaDl irector funds, collected from or a sentence of imprisonment for the most Agency’s Board of Directorsthe water users of the WATER 10 % = serious cases. Operator costs 8 State representatives basin, to support stu - AGENCY
1 Staff representative dies and mainly invest - 8 representatives ments. INCREASE of local authorities POLLUTION CONTROL OF THE WATER 8 representatives of users RESOURCE 90% of the funds are reallocated Chairman Tax election Rate Basin Committee Sources and uses of the funds of the Water Agencies Basis opinion “Water Parliament” 11 Y
T ● Farmers, industrialists, sportmen, fishermen, associations I
R ● Regions, departments, municipalities A D I ● Personnes compétentes L
O ● Administrations S
“POLLUTER-USER-PAYS” PRINCIPLE
Abstraction Pollution Taxes Taxes S
U Water Agency budget O
M voted by the Board of Directors Director O
N according to the River Basin Committee’s
O decision T U
A A 6-year program
90 % Studies and Research Aid Operation
Monitoring Network ● Large developers ● Local Authorities ● Farmers ● Industrialists ORGANIZATION OF THE RIVER BASINS THE WATER USERS ● Cities Chairman ● Industries of the Board POLLUTION ● Farmers ABSTRACTION of Directors TAX TAX STATE Supervision appoints Agency Director
Agency’s Board of Directors WATER 10 % = Operator costs 8 State representatives Gestion de l'eau enA GFranceENCY Anglais_maquette 1 - OIEAU 26/10/09 15:15 Page12
1 Staff representative
8 representatives INCREASE of local authorities POLLUTION CONTROL OF THE WATER 8 representatives of users RESOURCE 90% of the funds areO reallorcatedganization of water management in France Chairman Tax election Rate Basin Committee Basis opinion “Water Parliament” Y
T French water policy and its overall organization ● Farmers, industrialists, sportmen, fishermen, associations I
R ● Regions, departments, municipalities A D I ● Personnes compétentes L
O ● Administrations S
(metox), etc. Tax calculation is based on In each basin, the Action Plan of the “POLLUTER-USER-PAYS” PRINCIPLE a regular follow-up of the discharges. Water Agency has been drafted for a six-
Abstraction Pollution For domestic uses, the tax is calculated year period in a concerted way by the Basin Taxes Taxes for each municipality according to the Committee with the local stakeholders. This permanent and seasonal populations Plan determines priorities for financing. Each and levied through the drinking water plan is different and adapted to the basin pri - S
U Water Agency budget O bill paid by the user according to the orities. It is then validated by the Basin M voted by the Board of Directors Director O
N according to the River Basin Committee’s
O decision consumed volume measured by the Coordinator Prefect on behalf of the State. T U
A A 6-year program meter. For agricultural uses, a new tax The 9 th Action Plans of the Water Agen - 90 % Studies and Research (“tax on agricultural non-point pollu - Aid cies (2007-2012) came into force on Operation tion”) has been paid since 1st January 1st January 2007. They amount to a total of Monitoring Network 2008 by all the distributors of phytosa - ● Large developers 11.6 billion euros up to 2012 (except ● Local Authorities nitary products according to the quanti - premiums for good water treatment* paid to ● Farmers ty of dangerous or toxic substances con - ● Industrialists local authorities and contributions to the tained in the marketed products. ONEMA budget). Since the Law of 30 December 2006, the The tax rate is defined at the national level by The Law of 30 December 2006 orientated the Water Agencies have levied 7 different the Parliament. The rate is then precisely cal - 9th Action Plans of the Water Agencies taxes according to the user’s pressure on the culated and modulated by the Basin towards two major objectives: water resource: Committee according to the priorities and to make all the wastewater treatment local qualitative objectives given in the l water pollution tax, plants comply with the European “Urban SDAGE and SAGEs. l tax for modernization of the wastewater Waste Water” Directive of 1991; drainage systems, These taxes are redistributed through the to implement the European Water Action Plan of each Water Agency. l tax on non-point agricultural pollution, Framework Directive of 2000, which aims l water abstraction tax, Redistribution at achieving good ecological status for l tax for water storage in low flow periods, of the funds collected water and aquatic ecosystems. l tax on obstacle on rivers, from the water users * A premium for good water treatment is l tax for the protection of aquatic environ - The Water Agency supports the invest - paid by the Water Agency to the municipa - ments. ments made by the municipalities, industri - lity, when the installations developed allow alists, farmers or other water users to pre - avoiding the deterioration of water quality. The aim of these taxes is to integrate envi - The quality of operation of the wastewater ronmental cost, with an incentive for the serve the water resource and to improve the treatment plants is indeed neces sary to water users to support the cost related to performances of the treatment plants. It also achieve or preserve good che mical and their emission of pollutants or their abstrac - supports scientific and economic stu- physicochemical status of surface water in tion from the water resource. The tax rate is dies, as well as actions for awareness, facili - the basin. modulated according to the uses and to the tation and information in the river basins. fragility of the environment. Thus, the objective of the “abstraction tax” is to promote water saving. The amount of the tax depends on the volumes of water abstracted during the year. The rate is modu - lated according to the water use (irrigation, drinking water, industrial cooling, feeding of a canal, etc.) and according to water resource scarcity (abstraction from a balanced or unbalanced zone). As regards the “pollution tax”, it aims at pre - serving water quality. It depends on the dis - charged pollution. For industrial uses, the tax is calculated from the net annual pollution discharged into the natural environment and according to various pollution parameters: suspended solids (SS), chemical oxygen demand (COD), biological oxygen demand Source: ”The 9 th Action Plans of the Water Agencies”, (BOD5), reduced nitrogen (RN), toxic metals brochure of the Ministry for Ecology, January 2007. 12 Gestion de l'eau en France Anglais_maquette 1 - OIEAU 26/10/09 15:15 Page13
Organization of water management in France French water policy and its overall organization
The Water Agencies are public bodies of the Knowledge It is the agency in charge and is financing State which jointly work with the State, under methodologies, reference frames, national the supervision of the Ministry of Ecology, and monitoring databases, tools for data processing, and with ONEMA coordination. The Water enhancement, dissemination and reporting to Agencies were requested to reinforce their of water the European Commission. actions in several fields in particular: resources The WIS gathers all the data useful for l drinking water supply and sanitation: knowledge of water resources and Integrated water management implies know - having an action aiming more towards aquatic environments: quality, quantity, ing the resources, uses and needs. The gather - pollution prevention and treatment at regulatory data, economic data, etc. Several ing and interpretation of many data are neces - the source, accompanying the setting-up databases are related: hydrometry of rivers sary to plan the actions, to follow up their by the municipalities of protected areas and hydrology, quality of rivers and coastal implementation and to assess their effects. for drinking water intakes before 2010; waters, fish populations, piezometry and The National Water l control of non-point pollution: mobilizing groundwater quality, economic data, shellfish all the stakeholders located upstream of Information System farming areas, programs for monitoring the critical water bodies for increasing (WIS) water status, etc. actions in sensitive areas; The WIS allows mee - l management of aquatic environments: ting several needs: increasing the financing devoted to the l monitoring the status management of aquatic environments, a of the resource and prerequisite to achieving good ecological aquatic environments; status; l controlling the activi - l water scarcity and drought: pursuant to ties having impacts on the National Water Scarcity Management environmental status; Plan (see “Replenishment of low l developing the mana - water flow and drought manage - gement plans and Pro - ment” page 21), increasing actions for grams of Measures; regulating water uses according to avail - l evaluating public poli - able resources, developing innovative cies, plans and pro - solutions and mobilizing new resources grams; whenever necessary. Example of mapping available on the WIS website l reporting to the Parliament, the European The Water Agencies can also contribute in Although water-related data are plenty, they Commission or evaluation organizations international cooperation projects in the are often dispersed between many public and (OECD, European Environment Agency, field of water and sanitation up to a total private data producers and were developed Eurostat, OSPAR, etc.); value of 1% of their budget. This contribution to meet different needs. l was made possible by the Law of informing the populations of the natural 9 February 2005 dedicated to decentralized In France, the structuring of databases has risks to which they are exposed; cooperation (called “Oudin-Santini” Law). been gradual since the beginning of the l preserving the data in a perennial way Within the 9 th Action Program of the Water 1990s. In 2003, it led to the national Water and sharing them; Agencies, 120 million euros could thus be Information System (WIS). The WIS ensures l organizing public access to environmen - mobilized, between 2007 and 2012, for the harmonization, exchange and accessibili - tal information and publishing reliable actions of international common cause. ty of data. quality data; It is accessible through the web - l following up the implementation of the site: www.eaufrance.fr European directives, the European Water The National Agency for Water and Framework Directive in particular, and Aquatic environments (ONEMA) mana - reporting to the European reporting ges the system at the national level. system (Water Information System for One of its main assignments is to organize Europe - WISE). the information on water resources, aquatic environments and their uses. Assisted by an inter-basin coordination group and technical groups, ONEMA prepares the national action plan, the planning and follow-up of projects.
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Organization of water management in France French water policy and its overall organization
The WIS allows meeting three major objec - SANDRE allows an easy exchange of data The Water tives: between the various data producers by Status Assessment knowing the status of water resour - organizing interoperability between the System ce and aquatic environments; systems. Interoperability is based on techni - France developed a system for assessing the cal standards and common rules: data-gath - assessing the pressures on these quality of river waters, water bodies, ground - ering methods, principles of architecture of environments and the consequen- water and coastal water: SEQ-Water (Water the databases, etc. ces; Quality Assessment System). SEQ-Water The results of SANDRE work are orientating and evaluating public measures the water capacity to fulfill some available on the Website: policies for the protection and functions: maintenance of biological balan - restoration of aquatic environments. www.sandre.eaufrance.fr ces, production of drinking water, water- rela ted recreation and A protocol was signed in June 2003 to define sport activities, fish far - the obligations of the water stakeholders as ming, livestock wate - regards data production, conservation and ring and irrigation. availability. It also specifies the organization retained at the national level (national com - This assessment system mittee and coordination group) and at the was revised in 2006 level of each basin (basin data committee). to comply with the Its signatories are: the Ministry in charge of assessment required by Ecology, the National Agency for Water and the European Water Aquatic Environments (ONEMA), the French Framework Directive Environment Institute (IFEN), the 6 Water (WFD). Agencies for continental France and Water From now on, it meas - Offices for the overseas departments, the ures the status of the International Office for Water (IOWater), the aquatic environments, Office for Geological and Mining Research according to the type of (BRGM), the French Research Institute for the water bodies and ac - Exploitation of the Sea (Ifremer), the National Example de geographical localization cording to two compo - Institute for the industrial environment and carried out by the SANDRE nents: chemical status risks (INERIS), Electricité de France (EDF). (compared to the The WIS aims at involving all the stake - European standards on The WIS allows France to meet the holders intervening in data production, uses: bathing water, drinking water produc - requirements of European “reporting”: management, and dissemination: tion, shellfish farming, etc.) and ecological it is connected to the Water Information status compared to biological criteria. “Good l the Ministries, their departments and the System for Europe: status” is granted when the chemical status pu blic establishments they supervise; http://water.europa.eu and ecological status are good. l the local authorities, public basin esta - For groundwater, “good status” is given blishments (EPTB) and development com - WIS in figures: according to chemical quality and water panies; millions of data; quantity (balance between water abstractions l the technical, scientific and university about fifteen reference bases; and the recharge of the aquifer). cen ters; hundreds of data bases; The entire implementation of the new l the environmental and users' associa - 612 installations for data gathering, system, called the Water Status Assess - tions; including 440 measurement networks; ment System, will be completed in l the industries, operators and consulting 1,000 data producers, including 200 are 2010. firms. already partners of the WIS. The WIS architecture is based on a common In 2009, ONEMA has been in charge reference frame, the National Data of preparing a National Water Data Reference Center for Water (SANDRE), Scheme (SNDE). managed by the International Office for Water. In order to facilitate the membership of new partners, this architecture does not impose any other technological choice than complying with standards recognized at the international level on exchange formats and geographical information. 14 Gestion de l'eau en France Anglais_maquette 1 - OIEAU 26/10/09 15:15 Page15
Organization of water management in France French water policy and its overall organization
Preservation Pollution control Protection In order to limit pollution at the source, stan - of fish populations of the quality dards are applied to domestic, agricul - of water tural and industrial discharges. Specific measures are enacted in the and aquatic particularly sensitive areas, which are the environments subject of special protection. It is the case, in particular, of protection areas which must be Quality objectives set up around drinking water intakes, in order Since the Water Law of 1964, quality objec - to avoid non-point and accidental pollution tives have been set for the main rivers. They (activities are prohibited or authorized under were then integrated into the planning docu - very restrictive conditions). Particular water ments which are the SDAGE and the SAGE, policing measures are also taken for shellfish with maps of quality objectives. The quality farming areas, bathing areas, “vulnerable objectives were revised later on, according to zones” according to the Nitrates Directive, the evolution of the status of aquatic environ - “sensitive areas” according to the Directive ments and of scientific knowledge. on “Urban Waste Water”, wetlands, Natura Fish fauna is a good indicator of the status of a The quality objectives are from now on 2000 zones, etc. river. The “Law on Fishing” of 1984 obliges the based on the objective of “good status” The most fragile aquatic environments, such developers to maintain a “reserved flow” (or introduced by the European Water Fra- as marshes and ponds, low alluvial valleys, “environmental flow“) downstream of the me work Directive. estuaries, are the subject of particular protec - installations, to guarantee aquatic life and the healthiness of rivers. Good status must be reached in 2015. tions. Specific agro-environmental programs The protection of fish fauna requires proficien - In some cases, the objective of good status cy in particular techniques: cannot be achieved in 2015, for technical or are implemented there in agreement with the l fish farming development associated with economic reasons (disproportionate cost); the farmers, within the framework, in particular, the maintenance of river beds and banks, deadline is then postponed to 2021 or to of the European Community regulations. thus protecting the diversity of fish habi - 2027 at the latest. Exemptions are strictly Local authorities, farmers and industrialists, tats; governed and must be justified. The defined are incited to comply with the standards or to objectives are laid down and justified in increase the capacities for wastewater treat - l calculation of the optimal reserved flow the SDAGE for each water body of the ment. The Water Agencies financially and its application in a deficit situation; river basin district (coast, estuary, river, support the development of programs l equipment allowing the move of migrato - aquifer, etc.). France laid down an overall for controlling urban, industrial or agri - ry fish; objective of 2/3 of the water bodies with cultural pollution and for the restora - l development of inventories and observa - good status in 2015. tion of rivers. tion networks. In the 1970s, programs Fishing activities must fit in with a were initiated with the Departmental Plan for the Protection of local authorities concer - aquatic environments and fish resource ned, in particular for water Management (DPPM) implemented on a protection of Leman Lake, departmental scale and local Fish Resource Annecy Lake, Le Bourget Management Plans developed for each river. Lake, Arcachon Bay, etc. The Programs for the restoration of high - The “river contracts” also ly migratory fish initiated 25 years ago allow programming and allowed the reappearance of the salmon (the financing works to be Garonne, Dordogne, Rhine, Upper-Allier), of done on a river. the allis shad and lamprey (the Garonne, Dordogne, Rhone). In France, fish farming in freshwater annually produces 60,000 tons of fish for re-stocking and consumption, while guaranteeing a regu - lar quality supply. Fish farming is developed either in installations established in river diver - sions or in ponds.
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Organization of water management in France French water policy and its overall organization
Protection of water The distant protection area is not It advises the analysis laboratories for health intended for human compulsory but it reinforces the two pre - control of water, coordinates the certification consumption ceding areas against permanent and non- procedure of hydrogeologists. The raw waters that can be used for the pro - point pollution. It corresponds to the At local level, risk control especially relies on duction of drinking water must meet very entire drainage area of the water intake. the permanent self-monitoring that the strict criteria. They must be protected from Acti vities can be regulated there. persons in charge of water production and pollution. Protection areas are compulsory to The protection areas are entered into urban supply have to carry out and on the regular protect the immediate surroundings and planning documents. health control made by the State servi - vicinity of the water intake. The raw water is then treated and the ces - departmental directorates for health Protection areas are delimited after a hydro- supplied tap water must meet many cri - and social affairs (DDASS): instruction of pro - geologic study. 3 areas with more or less teria: organoleptic parameters (color, taste, cedures for developing protection areas strong constraints are planned: odor even if they have no direct relationship around the intakes used for drinking water production, checking compliance with the to health), physicochemical characteristics, The immediate protection area authorization procedures, inspection of 2 standards concerning the substances tolerat - covers a few hundreds of m around the installations, water quality control from the intake; its goal is to prevent natural or ed up to a certain limit (fluorine, nitrates), standards concerning the toxic substances resource to the consumer’s tap, etc. Every intentional degradation of the intake and year, the control programs result in compe - the direct introduction of polluting sub - whose contents should not exceed millionth per liter (lead, chromium), standards concern - tent agents carrying out more than 310,000 stances into the abstracted water. The samplings of water. land is bought and owned by the muni - ing microbiology (bacteria, pathogenic viru - cipality. All kinds of activities are prohibi - ses), standards concerning pesticides and The 8 million analyses yearly made on ted. phytosanitary products, etc. These rigorous these samples, by approved laboratories, quality standards are based on the WHO deal with microbiological, physicochemical or The close protection area aims at pro - work and on the European directives. radiological parameters, in order to make tecting the intake from the migration of sure that the water received by the con - polluting substances from the subsoil. Its sumers complies with the surface area depends on the characteris - regulatory quality require - tics of the aquifer, the pumping flowrate, ments. All the controls ma - the vulnerability of the aquifer. Activities de, as well as the descrip - can be prohibited or authorized under tion of the production and some conditions. A compensation allo - supply systems, are integra - wance is paid to each owner or farmer ted into a computerized according to the damage caused. The national base (SISE-Wa - lands can be acquired by way of expro- ter). priation. To carry out these assign - ments, the Ministry for Health has relied for many years on the scientific exper- tise of the French Higher Council for Public Health (CSHPF). Since 1998, the Health security of the whole arrangement for risk assessment and water supply to the popu - health monitoring has been reinforced by the lation relies on monito- creation of health security agencies, ring devices which allow including the National Health Monitoring making sure that the water Institute (InVS), the French Agency for quality requirements are Environmental and Occupational Health complied with and that the Safety (AFSSET) and the French Food water production plants Safety Agency (AFSSA), the latter being and supply systems are from now on the authority in charge of sur - correctly operated. The veys in the field of drinking water. Ministry for Health defines the water quality require - ments by relying on na tio - nal expert authorities. 16 Gestion de l'eau en France Anglais_maquette 1 - OIEAU 26/10/09 15:15 Page17
Organization of water management in France French water policy and its overall organization
After inter-ministerial arbitrations within the Public Meeting for public information Government, two bills were drafted: information and the Law for programming the implemen - tation of the Grenelle for the Envi - participation ronment, called “Grenelle Law I”; In French law, access to the Law on national commitment to the information fits in with environment, called “Grenelle Law II”. the general principle of freedom of access These two laws include, in particular, provi - to administrative documents recognized sions on water management: These consultations were jointly organized by by the Law of 17 July 1978. With regard to l Prohibition of the use of phosphates in all the Basin Committee and the State (repre - the environment, there are procedures for the detergent products in 2012. sented by the Basin Coordinator Prefect). public information and consultation on deve - l Completion before 2010 of the protection lopment projects. Using some limits laid The Water Agency took care of technical areas for drinking water intakes. down in the regulations, an impact assess - coordination. Communication campaigns l Strengthened action plans to protect, ment study is necessary together with a encouraged participation: regional press, TV before 2012, the 500 most threatened public survey. spots and regional radios, posters, websites, intakes. information documents, etc. As for each con - For large developments, the Public Survey l Acceleration of compliance to standards sultation organized to apply the WFD, the procedure was set up at the beginning of the of wastewater treatment plants to achie - documents were made available to the pu blic 20th century. More recently, as regards the ve a compliance rate of 98% before 2010 for 6 months in the prefecture and at the very large development projects, the and 100% before 2011. home office of the Water Agency. They were National Commission for Public Debate l Taking into account the methods for also accompanied by a register intended for (CNDP), independent administrative autho - wastewater treatment in the instruction collecting comments. The public could also rity, was created to guarantee that public par - of building permits. send a free written contribution to the Water ticipation is complied with in the develop - l Development of rainwater and was - Agency or reply via Internet. In each basin, ment projects of national interest, since they tewater recovery and re-use while com - the follow-up of the consultation was are strong socioeconomic stakes or have sig - plying with health constraints. ensured by a specialized commission of the nificant impacts on the environment or l Installation of green belts, at least 5 Basin Committee, associating representatives regional planning. France has a long expe - meters wide, along the rivers before of the local authorities, users, associations rience in consultation procedures and all 2015, a green and blue belt to preserve and State services. the procedures were also recently supple - ecological continuity. mented to apply the Aarhus Convention and Provisions l Possibility for the Prefect of granting a the European directives. In addition to the single organization with an authorization surveys and formal consultation procedures, of the "Grenelle for withdrawal on behalf of all the irriga - qualitative tools are more and more frequen - tors in order to support joint management tly used (public opinion polls, newsgroups, for the Environment " of water abstractions. public meetings, local referendums, etc.). l Creation of new abilities of the municipa - lities for controlling the on-site sanitation In the field of water, France has developed facilities. experience in dialogue within the Basin l Obligation for the municipalities to make Committees since the Seventies. an inventory of their drinking water sup - The Government organized a great national The European Water Framework Direc - ply system and to establish a work pro - debate on the environment, in 2008, called tive (WFD) goes further: it plans several gram for improvement when the leak rate the “Grenelle for the Environment”, steps of public consultation, beyond the con - in the network is higher than a rate fixed gathering all the interested parties. The sultation of the water stakeholders. Well for each Department. debate took the form of a dialogue between before the deadline given by the WFD, France l Authorization given to public drinking 5 parties (State, local authorities, associa - has developed a vast public information water supply and sanitation utilities to tions, trade unions of employees, employers) and consultation campaign since 2005, finance development and research pro - as for the “Grenelle Agreements” which had following the characterization of each river grams to facilitate the development of put an end to the strikes of 1968. 8 working basin district. The results of this consultation new techniques, for adapting to climate groups were set up and led to proposals. showed the adhesion of the general public to change in particular. the water stakes. A 2 nd consultation on the National and regional consultations draft Management Plans and Programs of then allowed collecting comments from the Measures was organized in 2008- general public and local stakeholders. 2009. 17 Gestion de l'eau en France Anglais_maquette 1 - OIEAU 26/10/09 15:15 Page18
Organization of water management in France Large developments and water control
The control of rivers, from their spring to their The French Waterways (VNF) build and Protection mouth, led to large development pro - operate transportation infrastructures on grams designed with an integrated rivers and large canals (see for example against approach of the river systems. All the aspects the project of the Seine - Northern are taken into account: economic, technical, Europe canal in page 40). floods social, administrative and environmental. The Damage caused by floods is always very induced effects are assessed and taken into severe and can have very important econo - account (impact assessment study). The mic and human consequences. public and private partners concerned are Responsibilities consulted. Facing the flood risk, the State and local Erosion, fast floods, floods and drought are authorities have a role of prevention which as many detrimental natural phenomena and results, in particular, in information actions, a it is necessary to prevent and manage them. policy of maintenance and management of It is also necessary to organize hydropower the State-owned rivers and a planning policy. production, transport via waterways, the The local authorities are responsible for tak - storage of water in a rational way in the ing risk into account in the local urban plan - areas with chronic deficit. ning documents. The State carries out natural The Master Plans (SDAGE) and Water Risk Prevention Plans (RPP) for the most Development and Management Schemes Local Public Basin threatened municipalities. The Public Autho - (SAGE) allow taking into account all these Authorities (EPTB) rities also organized a comprehensive alarm, requirements in an integrated way. The large developments which concern seve - evacuation and emergency relief system. France has developed a long experience in ral departments have been entrusted to local However, the riparian owners of non-State the integrated development of rivers: Public Basin Authorities, for example: rivers remain the first persons in charge and l taking into account the whole catchment Public Authority for the Loire River; have the obligation of: area and the upstream/downstream inter - Interdepartmental Public Authority for the l cleaning the bed regularly to restore the actions; Dordogne (EPIDOR); river in its natural width and depth; l taking into account all the water uses and Interdepartmental Institution for the l maintaining the banks they own; the needs of the ecosystems, from a Dam-Reservoirs of the Seine River Basin. quantitative and qualitative viewpoint; l preventing blockage and debris, to main - Today, there are more than 25 EPTBs gathe - tain the natural water flow, and keeping l study and reduction of the environmental red within a national federation. impacts by integrating corrective mea - the banks clean. sures; National or regional The French system for the protection against companies l design of multi-purpose hydraulic works. floods is based on the Laws of 3 February The National Company of the Rhone 1995 (“Barnier Law”) and of 30 July 2003 Organization (CNR), a historically important national (“Bachelot Law”). operator for the management of floods of project and navigation on the Rhone as well as ownership for hydropower production. It gained a statute of private company (public limited Public Authorities have entrusted specialized company) in 2003; institutions with specific development or ma - Electricité de France (EDF), which also na gement responsibilities: became a public limited company in State-owned Public 2004; Establishments Regional Development Companies, The National Agency for Water and whose main task is to supply raw water Aquatic Environments (ONEMA) is in the areas with chronic water deficit, for responsible for fish fauna; example: The National Office for Forestry l Development Company for the Lower- (ONF) intervenes in land restoration in Rhone and Languedoc (BRL); mountains, conservation of upper river l Development Company for Gascogne basins, afforestation, management of (CACG); State and Public Authorities forests; l Canal of Provence Company (SCP). Flooding of the Rouvière dam in 2002
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Organization of water management in France Large developments and water control
Flood forecasting They transmit the information to the Prefect, The objective is twofold: urbanization control The Meteorological Center Météo-France who decides to alert the mayors of the in flood-prone areas and the preserving of of Toulouse continuously observes the pre - municipalities concerned. Each mayor then the flooding areas. cipitations. It daily publishes a four-level vigi - alerts the population and takes the necessary The PFRP is based on a zoning map which lance map, disseminated by the media. protection measures immediately. defines three zones: It processes the observations of the network For the rivers with fast flood, mainly located l the red zone where any construction is of meteorological radars ARAMIS and the in the South of France (“fast floods” or prohibited, either because of a too high measurements of the 170 weather stations of “Cevennes floods”) in the Mediterranean risk, or to support high flow attenuation; climate zone, particular monitoring is neces - the national network. l the blue zone where constructions are The ARAMIS Network is made up of sary. The SCHAPI, Central Service of only authorized provided that they com - 20 radars of the precipitations distributed Hydrometeorology and Support to ply with certain regulations, for example over the French continental territory. All the Flood Forecasting, created in June 2003 a floor height to be respected above the and also located in Toulouse, works in per - data are available 24 hours a day and reference high water level; renewed every 15 minutes on the entire manent relation with the teams of Météo- l the white zone, a zone which is not regu - territory. The ARAMIS Network allows loca - France. It gathers experts in meteorology and lated as not floodable by the reference ting precipitations (rain, snow, hail) and hydrology. This national service provides high water level. measuring their intensity in real time. It gives support to the Flood Forecasting Services essential information to the flood forecasting (SPC) and ensures a hydro-meteorological The PFRP can also prescribe or recommend services as it also provides an estimate of the watch 24 hours a day in the basins prone to structuring provisions (development of combinations of precipitations. fast floods. The SCHAPI publishes the flood sys tems reducing water logging, placing sen - vigi lance map, an information document sitive equipment out of water reach) or pro - intended for the public. visions relating to land use (fastening tanks or storing floating material). These sim - Flood Prevention ple measures, when taken, allow conside - Community protection works, such as dikes, rably reducing the damage caused by floods cannot guarantee absolute protection and on economic goods: constructions (private give a false sense of security. Prevention thus and public), industrial and commercial buil - relies on a threefold approach: reducing the dings (especially those necessary for crisis vulnerability of goods and people, redu cing management, etc.), electricity, water, commu - the seriousness of the floods, informing the nication networks, etc. populations. Reducing the vulnerability of goods and people A theoretical example of vigilance map The best means for prevention against flood risks is to avoid urbanizing the exposed Weather monitoring is supplemented by a areas. But many dwellings already exist in follow-up of the flows in most rivers in plains, these zones. The risk must thus be taken into using a network of 200 automatic data account by controlling the existing and future collection stations. This network is managed urbanization: by 23 Flood Forecasting Services (SPC). The urban planning documents These services belong to the State. The Urban Land Use Code imposes taking the risks into account in urban planning docu - ments. Thus, the Local Urban Land Use Plans (PLU) allow refusing or accepting a building permit under certain conditions, especially in flood-prone areas. The plan for flood risk prevention The Plans for Flood Risk Prevention (PFRP), established by the State, define pro - hibited zones and constructible zones with some restrictions. They can enforce acting on existing works to reduce the vulnerability of Example of a zoning map (PFRP of the Doubs) properties. The law regulates the building of works likely to become an obstacle to water The 23 flood forecasting services run-off in period of flood. 19 Gestion de l'eau en France Anglais_maquette 1 - OIEAU 26/10/09 15:15 Page20
Organization of water management in France Large developments and water control
Reducing the seriousness service for “Mountainous Land Resto - The example of the "Great Seine Lakes" of floods ration” (RTM) of the National Office for After the dramatic floods which occurred in Maintenance of rivers (regular cleaning, Forestry (ONF); Paris and the Parisian area in 1910 and 1921, maintenance of banks and works, etc.) is construction work and actions for the pro - large development work was undertaken needed to avoid worsening the effect of tection and management of catchment upstream of the Seine to protect Paris floods. This maintenance is the responsibility areas: dykes, canals, dams, weirs, etc. agglomeration against floods and to reple - of the owner: the State or local authorities for After the serious floods that occurred in the nish the low flows in time of drought. 4 lake- the State-owned rivers, the riparian private South-East of France in September 2002, a reservoirs were built in the Seine and Marne owners for the rivers not State-owned. In the national Flood Prevention Plan was basins between 1949 and 1990: event of the private owners’ failing, the muni - launched in October 2002 (“Bachelot Plan l the Der-Chantecoq lake (350 million m 3) cipality can take charge at the owners’ 2003-2006”), with a national call for pro - on the Marne; expenses. jects. l the Orient lake (205 Mm 3) on the Seine; France developed a strong expertise on pro - 34 basins were selected to start action plans, l the Amance and Temple lake (170 Mm 3) tection works, fight against erosion and whose goal was to improve the information on the Aube; torrent control. of the populations, to build the operational l the Pannecière lake (80 Mm 3) on the Passive protection only consists in control - capacities of local authorities and to support Yonne. ling flooding and its consequences (example: soft techniques such as the restoration of riprap, threshold dikes, beaches of deposits, natural flooding areas. Contracts were In the case of a flood similar to that of 1910, traps for materials, spillways, etc). These pro - signed by the State and the municipalities to the lake-reservoirs would allow lowering by tections are effective when the phenomenon mobilize all the available financial resources 60 cm the height of the water level and has certain intensity, called ”design flood”. (departmental, regional, national, European). reducing by 4 billion euros the undergone When the latter is exceeded, protections can In addition to the Loire Plan, which has damage. be ineffective, even dangerous in the case of already existed since 1994, “large breaking. For example, this occurs with dikes rivers” action plans were defined that can be submerged or retarding dams on for the Rhone, the Seine, the the large rivers, whose effectiveness is low Garonne, the Meuse, etc. when there are major floods. The Barnier Law of 3 February 1995 France has approximately 7,500 km of dikes, created a fund for the prevention which protect a total surface area of about of major natu ral hazards (known 18,000 km 2 and a population of about 2 mil - as “Barnier Fund”). lion inhabitants. This fund main ly finances the expro - Because of their relief and climatic conditions, priations of the properties exposed to the mountains are particularly exposed to significant natural hazards, as well as the risk of erosion caused by freezing, snow measures for reducing the vulne- melt and storms. Special prevention and rability of goods (studies and preven - Lake Amance and Temple on the Aube restoration techniques are used in the upper tion work) and planning and information mea - The Interdepartmental Institution for the river basins in mountains, in order to stabilize sures (risk prevention plans and communica - Dam-Reservoirs of the Seine River Basin man - soils and to avoid the devastating fast floods tion actions). ages the infrastructures, regulates 800 mil - of the torrents. In this case, it is an active The building of dam-reservoirs allows an lion m 3 of water, informs the riverside resi - protection: the aim is to reduce solid trans - inter-seasonal regulation of the flows. In win - dents and the users, studies new projects to port, while directly acting on the erosion ter and spring, they limit the floods by retai - reduce the risks of flood and drought, parti- processes and their causes. ning part of the flow of flooded rivers. It is cipates in water policy through the French The following can be mentioned: “flood mitigation”. This stored water is a re - Association of the Local Public Basin revegetation of eroded areas by means of ser ve for the low water period. In summer Authorities (EPTB) and the SDAGE. It works in settling plant populations perfected by and autumn, when rains are scarce, the na - relation with the other stakeholders of the the CEMAGREF; tural river flow can be insufficient to meet the basin: Departments, Regions, Water Agency, various water uses, especially for the produc - reforestation: planting of trees and main - State governmental Services. tion of drinking water and the maintenance tenance of wooded areas by means of a of aquatic ecosystems, in the areas of high planting program (work of the National agricultural irrigation in particular. Office for Forestry - ONF); When the water level of rivers lowers in a prevention systems: barriers, rock protec - critical way, the dam-reservoirs release water: tion shields, avalanche barriers, protec - it is “the replenishment of low water”. tion against landslides, etc., built by the 20 Gestion de l'eau en France Anglais_maquette 1 - OIEAU 26/10/09 15:15 Page21
Organization of water management in France Large developments and water control
Informing the populations The status of natural disaster, opening Tools for water Although the State and the municipalities rights to guarantee, is granted by inter-minis - policing have responsibilities, the citizens can con - terial decree. It determines the areas and the The State has several legal tools within its tribute in protecting themselves effectively time periods where the disaster occurred as ”water police”: well as the nature of the damage covered by and decreasing their own vulnerability. For Declaration or authorization procedures such a purpose, it is of prime importance that the guarantee. each one knows his own exposure to flood The maximum volume, which can be abs - risk. Replenishment tracted, is given in the authorization granted The Law of 22 July 1987 (revised by the Law of low water flow to the industrialists and farmers. of 31 August 2004 on the modernization of Drought decrees civil safety) stated the citizens’ right to have and drought In the case of drought, the Prefect can provi - information on the major risks to which they management sionally limit or even prohibit abstractions by are exposed on the entire or part of the terri - a “drought decree”. Three thresholds are tory, as on the safeguard measures which Drought or too important water abstractions defined: an alarm threshold (level 1), a first concern them. at certain times of the year can cause a crisis level (level 2), an increased crisis level Drafted under the authority of the Prefect, the decrease in the river flow rates or the lowe - (level 3). The objective is to preserve the pri - Departmental Document on Major Risks ring of groundwater levels. This decrease can ority use which is the supply of drinking (DDMR) registers on a department scale all be dangerous sometimes for natural environ - water to the populations. the major risks for each municipality. It ex - ments and aquatic fauna as well as for health Replenishment of low water flows plains the phenomena and presents the safe - and water uses. guard measures. With the DDMR, the Prefect The drought issue raises two main questions: When the level of the rivers lowers signifi - presents to the Mayor the risks in his area, crisis management (in the short term, i.e. cantly, the Prefect asks the operators of infra - using 1/25.000 scale maps, and describes the how to face water scarcity) and quantitative structures to release water from the dams nature of the risks, the historical events, as water resources management (in the medium and lake-reservoirs. well as the measures taken by the State and long term, i.e. how to plan the allocation Reserved flow government. of water resources). The operators of infrastructures have to re ser - The Mayor prepares a Municipal Informa - To respond to these two aspects of the issue, ve a minimal downstream flow to guarantee tion Document on Major Risks (MIDMR), and following the important drought which aquatic life and safe rivers. which presents the prevention and local occurred in summer 2003, France developed measures taken pursuant to the Mayor’s a crisis management system, reinforced in policing powers. The MIDMR is accompanied time of drought, as well as a comprehensive by a communication and posting campaign. action plan, the Water Scarcity Mana ge - These documents are available in the city hall. ment Plan. In addition, the Law of 30 July 2003 (Bache - lot Law) relating to the prevention of techno - logical and natural risks and to the compen - sation for damages has the objective of in - creasing public information and developing a risk culture in the population. For this pur - pose, the State develops tools to provide docu mentation to the exposure to the risks which can be freely consulted by any citizen, such as the Atlases of Flood-prone Areas. Compensation The Public Authorities created a system of compulsory insurance with civil liability towards third parties and encouraged the owners to insure their own properties. A “natural disasters” compensation fund was organized (Law of 13 July 1982) based on the national common cause princi - ple. This system, rare in the world, allows providing assistance, after a public survey on the reality of the damage. Situation of the limitations of water uses on 8 August 2008 21 Gestion de l'eau en France Anglais_maquette 1 - OIEAU 26/10/09 15:15 Page22
Organization of water management in France Large developments and water control
The Water Scarcity Agricultural They have the assignment of control - Management Plan ling water. These Companies played a ma - The plan aims at planning and optimizing the and rural jor role in the development of infrastructures long-term use of water resources, which is water necessary for the improvement and security essential in the context of climate change. of raw water supply. th The Plan is structured around three lines: pri - Since the end of the 19 century, France has The SARs now manage very structuring ority given to drinking water supply, the sha - developed specific instruments for the mana- regional infrastructures: ring of water between the various uses and gement of agricultural water. More recently, l dams and water intakes in streams; tools were developed to reduce the impact of the best water optimization. l pumping stations; Some measures obviously concern agricul - agriculture on the quantity and quality of the l canals and raw water conveyance pipes ture: resource. on a regional scale; Developing water savings, Authorized Union l collective distribution networks, in irriga - Jointly managing the water resource Associations (ASA) ted areas in particular. (volu metric management was developed In 1885, France developed a legislative and by setting quotas for water abstractions), regulatory framework which allows regrou - These systems were integrated into sanita - tion and drainage projects as well as into Promoting the creation of alternative ping the farmers of the same area for resources as a last resort (when they are jointly developing and managing the irriga - land reclamation and large Regional Planning jointly managed, when they are not a tion of their lands and for drainage projects. projects. problem from an ecological viewpoint They are cooperative bodies based on They are concerted, decentralized and when the economic conditions are the participation of all the members, either mana gement tools adapted to the local acceptable). for choosing collective investments or for the situation. The expansion of drought periods has led to daily management of the irrigation utilities. Examples of SAR: the Gascogne Development an increasing demand for new water The ASAs have a statute of legal entity Company in South Pyrenees, the Lower resources for irrigation. Thus, earth dams, which enables them to represent the irriga - Rhone-Languedoc Company (BRL) in Lan gue - artificial water bodies developed at the river tors in the local or regional consultation and doc-Roussillon and the Canal of Provence basin head, have increased in the past decision bodies. The ASAs are owners of their Company on the Riviera coastline. decades. infrastructures (installations and utilities). The developments (reservoirs, canals, galle - After a policy rather focused on increasing the They can manage themselves their irrigation ries...) implemented by the SARs allowed the offer (building dams and reservoirs, increa - networks or delegate this service to an ope - creation of large community irrigated sing water pumping in rivers and aquifers), rator. Their financial management is based on areas on a wide scale: 110,000 ha in the priority is from now on given to the total cost recovery and the obligation of ha - South Pyrenees, 130,000 ha in Languedoc- regu lation of the water demand. This ving a strictly balanced budget. The system Roussillon, 68,000 ha in Provence. means better using the existing water sustainability relies on the commitments of The mana gement of collective networks is resources, reducing leaks and wastage, the landowners to guarantee the collective mainly carried out by the SARs by way of con - rationalizing irrigation and thus avoiding debt. These original associations can more - cessions. They gradually acquired a vision resorting to new resources. over have public responsibilities under the broader than the only agricultural water use; control of the State. The Plan is supervised by a National Follo w- by taking into account all the water needs in up Committee which gathers the representa - Regional Development the whole area concerned, including the sup - tives of all the stakeholders concerned, under Companies (SAR) ply of raw water to the cities, industries or to the authority of the Minister of Eco logy. A The Regional Development Companies the golf courses in their area. Committee also meets in each large basin. (SARs) were created after World War II Today, the SARs are developing very effective within the reconstruction of the national techniques for monitoring the resource avai - economy. lability 24 hours a day, for regulating the Their statute is original: article 112 of the demand according to the available water Rural Code entrusted them with missions of flows and for optimizing the sharing of the general interest, but they are under the pri - available water between competing uses: vate law of limited public companies and agricultural use, maintenance of a minimal their capital stock is mainly owned by the flow, fish life, drinking water supply, industry, local public authorities. river tourism, etc. The SARs were created in the South of France after a chronic water deficit in summers.
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Organization of water management in France Large developments and water control
The SAR is an effective operator for water Today, they balance their accounts by selling measures (the user/polluter pays principle), management by volumetric quotas. This raw water to the irrigators, municipalities, technical and organizational measures for management relies on a control of the industrialists of their area at a price which encouraging the agricultural users to save demand and consumption. Controlling the allows them reaching the economic balance water (reduction of abstractions) and to demand implies: identification of all the of their management. increase water efficiency. The recent evolu - needs, introduction of a waiting list, equity of The SAR is at the same time entrusted with a tions, especially at the European level with treatment. Controlling consumption implies: public-service mission by the State, a tool for the Water Framework Directive, imply to take installation of meters, reading and mainte - local authorities and a tool respected by the into account the scarcity of the resource when nance of these devices, adjustment of the farmers. implementing these instruments, to achieve quotas to the resource availability. These “good ecological status”. The experiment developed in France shows principles are used in a contract subject to the relevance and transferability of the Like all the significant abstractions of water, private law signed by the SAR and each SAR system. In France, the system has those for irrigation are subject to declara - user-irrigator on the basis of a quota in developed in most basins facing repeated tion or authorization procedures. m3/l/sec. Initially perceived by the irrigators as crises of water scarcity. The development of The limit values are defined according to the a constraint, the quotas and water mete ring partnerships with foreign countries (institu - type of resources, ground or surface water, were then regarded as useful then essential tionalized as in Senegal or more occasional and to the river flow. The classification in management tools. The work of the SARs is as in Morocco) illustrates the lessons learned Water Sharing Zone lowers from 80 m 3/h carried out by a team of “river supervi - from the SAR experiment that can benefit to to 8 m 3/h the limit above which the abstrac - sors” in charge of controlling the correct the water managers of these countries. tions require an authorization. operation of the meters and the level of con - sumption and by a team for the repair of the Water saving In case of drought, the “drought decrees” meters. The acceptability of management by in agriculture decided by the Prefect result in restriction or quotas relies on the creation of a dialogue Agricultural use is the first volume of water prohibition of irrigation. commission (analysis of the mana gement consumption in France, especially in period of The Water Law of 1992 requires the meter - constraints with all the users) and a comple - low water level (70-80%). Agricultural water ing of the volumes abstracted in agri - mentarity of action with the water policing demand is also the most flexible (as com - culture. Equipment with volumetric meters is services of the State. pared to domestic and industrial uses); it is an important factor for the control of water The action of the SAR thus fits in with the thus in agriculture that the potentials for sav - abstractions. At the end of 2003, France had application of the integrated manage - ing water are the highest, about 15 to 20%. a rate of equipment with meters of 71% of ment concept, especially though the moni - The first stake of the public approach is thus the irrigators’ farms accounting for 85% of toring they ensure with regard to environ - not to favor the development of irriga - the surface areas. mental flows (reserved flows). Some SARs tion in areas already structurally with complement their actions by giving advice water deficit or particularly vulnerable to farmers regarding sound water use, by to drought, by taking legal and economic carrying out agronomic experiments, and by developing technico-economic data bases related to irrigation or by managing analysis laboratories. As their capital is more and more broadly owned by local authorities, some SARs, in addition to their hydraulic activities, take action in the economic development of rural areas (rural tourism, creation of com - panies, assistance to the agricultural sector, tourist activity management). The SARs have the advantage of having a territorial vision of hydraulics and rural development at the same time. They benefit from strong relations with the local authorities and elected officials who chair the dialogue commissions. The SARs obtained subsidies and loans with interest rate subsidy from the State and local authorities when building the infrastructures.
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Agro-Environmental Measures (AEM), especially the measures for “reduction of irri - gated areas” and for “reduction of irrigation water volumes”, have been implemented since the reform of the Common Agricultural Policy in 1992. But, these measures rely on the farmers’ willingness and have only very little impact when they are not taken in a col - lective way on a river basin scale. They however function as signals of the resource scarcity in the targeted areas. Eco-conditionality should increase consis - tency between water policy and agricultural policy. It consists in providing the financial assistance of the Common Agricultural Policy to irrigated areas only if the farmer complies with the obligations of the water law, inclu - ding the obligation of metering the abstrac- ted volumes. The increase in the water price contri - butes to give a signal of resource scarcity, However, the water price is not always a suf - The main water pollution of agricultural ori - although it fits in rather with logics of better ficient incentive to use water more efficiently, gin is focused on (spreading of liquid cost recovery (as the Water Framework in particular when the water invoice is only a manures of the cattle industry, phytosanitary Directive recommends it) and is seldom small share of the farmer’s production costs, products and nitrates) and all the production implemented to save the water resource. In when there is no alternative for less water- systems are concerned (animal husbandry the case of individual irrigation (30% of the consuming crops, because of technical, social and crops). Changes in cultivation prac - irrigators in the Rhone-Mediterranean- or economic constraints, or when the water tices are encouraged through sound agricul - Corsica river basin), water is not subjected to invoice is mostly made up of fixed costs. ture, biological agriculture, sustainable agri - any pricing except for the abstraction tax, that Joint management by farmers (ASA, SAR) culture contracts, assistance with the moder - all the irrigators have to pay, but the very low and with the other water users (planning nization of animal husbandry, as well as part - levels of taxation do not encourage water by SAGEs and SDAGEs, river contracts) also nership contacts signed with the farmers in saving. contribute in better managing the agricultur - the upstream sections of basins for better In the cases of collective infrastructures, pri- al use of water. protecting water intakes. cings are regrouped in two main categories: Control of pollution l “contractual” pricing is usually used caused by fertilizers when the infrastructures are of the gravi - and pesticides ty type and managed by authorized union With regard to water quality, intensive agri - associations of irrigators (ASAs). Payment culture is today a major source of pollution by is usually made according to the sub - pesticides, nitrates and phosphates. The scribed surface area, more rarely accor - problems of non-point pollution are becom - ding to the flow or to the number of ing alarming. abstractions. Contractual pricing can only have an influence on the decision to use Since 1994, the ministries in charge of agri - irrigation or not, but not on the water culture and the environment have imple - volume brought to the hectare. mented, through dialogue with the agricul - tural organizations, a Program for the l “binomial” pricing, used in networks Control of Pollution of Agricultural under pressure, includes a contractual Origin: the “PMPOA”. share and a variable share invoiced according to the effective use of the net - work by the irrigator (water volume actu - ally consumed or more rarely the surface irrigated by sprinkling).
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Organization of water management in France Large developments and water control
Large Focus on … Rotterdam), and will increase their capacity of the Seine-Northern redistributing the goods inland. The territo - infrastructures Europe canal ries thus covered will see their economic and water The project for developing the Seine- attractiveness increased. Northern Europe canal is a project on a A project for sustainable development economic European scale. This large loading gauge of the territories development canal of 106 km long between Compiègne The project of a Seine-Northern Europe canal, and Cambrai is under construction and its that has been prepared with the stakeholders Waterway commissioning is planned for 2013. It will of the territory since 1993, is accompanied by transportation represent a new system for the transportation the building of harbors that will generate and tourism of merchandises between France, Belgium, activities related to logistics, industry, The French waterways of national and the Netherlands and Germany. Waterways of tourism, etc. This multi-purpose canal will European interest are managed by a State Pu- France (VNF) coordinate this work amounting also have a hydraulic function. It will con - blic Authority of an industrial and commercial to 4.2 billion euros. tribute in controlling the floods of the Oise nature, ”Waterways of France” (V.N.F.). The Seine-Northern Europe canal aims and the Somme river and to the security of VNF manages, exploits, modernizes, builds and at linking the Paris basin to the Nord- the water supply of Northern France. develops the largest European network of Pas de Calais Region... The Seine - Northern Europe canal will allow inland waterways: 6,700 km of equipped The basins of the Seine and Nord-Pas de increasing waterways transport and canals and rivers, more than 2,000 infrastruc - Calais account for 60% of the river traffic in intermodality with an objective of sustain - tures and 40,000 hectares of public domain. France. The Seine-Northern Europe canal able development: it will allow avoiding the Its budget is now balanced by taxes. will accommodate convoys carrying up to traffic of 500,000 trucks in 2020 and redu - Expenses are billed to all the users of 4,400 tons, will offer navigation continuity cing the emissions of greenhouse gas (it will the waterway either for river transporta - between the two basins and will ensure the avoid 220,000 to 280,000 tons of CO2 in tion, the abstraction of raw water or for water development and competitiveness of river 2020 and up to 570,000 tons in 2050). discharges. State subsidies complement the transport available to the companies. It is also a driving force for economy: by budget for developing public service missions improving accessibility to the territories which are not billable to particular users but and by structuring logistics, it will in - to the whole population: crease the competitiveness of the com - l promotion of waterways as a transporta - panies and will promote the building tion means for merchandise and river of new factories. tourism; The Seine-Northern Europe canal will l technical exploitation, maintenance, deve - be a factor for the development of lopment of the network of canals: mana- many processes, the first of which is gement of the heritage and the environ - distribution logistics, agriculture and ment, improvement and development of agro-industry, making materials and the network; manufactured goods carried in con - l management of the state waterways and tainers. Divided into 4 zones of activi - water bodies; ties on the canal banks, 360 hectares ...and to the European network of harbor areas will offer multimode transport l implementation of a river transportation information system with the collection, The development of the Seine-Northern services and spaces for industry and logistics. processing, dissemination and manage - Europe canal will result in a large loading The Seine-Northern Europe canal will create ment of statistical data and the carrying gauge connection between the Seine employment for 10,000 to 11,000 peo - out of economic surveys. and the Scheldt. It was selected in April ple (including 4,000 directly on the building site), and new employment is planned for VNF has a staff of 5,000 employees intervening 2004 as a priority project of the Trans- 25,000 people before 2030 in logistics, over the entire national territory, covering an im - European Transportation Network (RTE-T) by industry and transport. portant volume of activities as concerns trans - the European Parliament and the European portation of merchandises and river tourism. This Council. It will open up the Seine basin to the With 4 yachting ports of call, 1 marina, authority is supervised by a State governmental 20,000 km long North-European waterways excep tional engineering structures to visit service: the Navigation Service. network towards Northern Europe and and suitable spaces for recreational activities, Central and Eastern Europe up to the Black An important number of small canals have such as water reservoirs, the Seine-Northern Sea, through the Rhine-Main-Danube con - been gradually transferred to local authori - Europe canal represents a high tourist deve - nection. It will be a connection with ties, to develop river tourism of local or lopment potential for the territories. the large European seaports (Le Havre, regional interest in particular. Rouen, Dunkirk, Zeebrugge, Antwerp, 25 Gestion de l'eau en France Anglais_maquette 1 - OIEAU 26/10/09 15:15 Page26
Organization of water management in France Large developments and water control
The project is designed to respect and be inte - The National Company of the Rhone Example: grated as well as possible in its environment: (CNR), created in 1933, was granted by the the Serre-Ponçon avoiding of sensitive areas, development of eco - State in 1934 the concession of the most Dam, the largest dam logical spaces, respect of the natural relief, har - powerful French river, the Rhone, to exploit in Europe! monious engineering structures and rehabilita - and develop it according to three missions: tion of rivers modified by the Northern canal… electricity production, navigation, irrigation. Water saving is a central element of the project. Electricity of France (EDF) was created in The sealing of the canal basin, the 2 reservoirs 1945 and received a concession for the and basins for saving locking water at the locks exploitation of most of the other hydropower will guarantee an optimized management of dams. Today, the exploitation of these dams water. The water supply to the canal, mainly is shared between EDF (80%) and the from the Oise, is guaranteed on the long-term National Company of the Rhone (25%). In and excludes any groundwater abstraction. The 2003, the capital of CNR was opened and its Seine-Northern Europe canal will also bring main shareholder is Suez via its Electrabel a response to floods, with a lowering of the subsidiary company. level of the flooding Oise, up to 1 meter in Since 2006, EDF has no more the monopoly northern-Compiègne region. The possibilities of of the exploitation of the hydropower dams transferring water towards the North will also of which it has the concession. At concession secure the drinking water supply to Lille region. renewals, a call for competition is obliga - More information: torily organized and private operators can be www.seine-nord-europe.com candidates. Some small hydropower stations (or micro- Hydropower power stations) were also developed to provide The devastating floods of the Durance, in Hydropower is still governed by an old Law electricity to riparian inhabitants and municipa- 1843 and 1856, led to feasibility studies of a of 1919 related to the use of hydraulic power lities. dam. The too high permeability of the soils however required to wait for the emergence and by two more recent laws, a Law of 2000 At the beginning, before World War II, the of new techniques. A century was needed to related to the modernization and develop - hydropower dams had been mostly designed concretize the project. In 1955, a Law entrus - ment of the public hydropower utility and a with the single aim of energy production. ted the development and exploitation of the Law of 2005 giving the orientations of the Today, the dams cumulate several func - dam to Electricity of France (EDF) which energy policy. tions (energy production, protection against received the concession. Work was comple - The number of French hydropower sta - floods, guarantee of reserved flows and ted in 1961. tions is the highest in the European replenishment of low water levels in the river, Union. In France, the electric power pro - water supply for irrigation, industry and drin - The “Law on the development of Serre- duced by hydraulic resources provides about king water supply, etc.). They must also Ponçon and the Lower-Durance” of 5 January 15% of the total energy and 80% of the respect the environment, with the creation 1955 showed the willingness of the legislator French renewable electric power production. of fishways, the conservation of wetlands and to associate irrigation and hydropower. Thus, starting at the reservoir, a concreted channel, This high percentage results from favorable with strict conditions concerning water relea - managed by EDF, deviates most of the river geographic conditions and from the strong ses and the draining up of the reservoirs. water to the pond of Berre. The “canal of the incentive to the public authorities during Hydropower must from now on reconcile Durance” follows the natural bed of the river World War II to build many dams and contradictory objectives: the development of and allows agricultural irrigation. The Serre- hydraulic works, most of the mining renewable energies (European Directive of 27 Ponçon dam ended the recurring droughts resources being then in occupied territory. September 2001 on electricity from renewa - and floods. There are about 400 hydropower dams of ble energies) and the achievement of good The hydropower station became essen - more than 4.5 MW in France. The oldest ecological status in rivers (European Water tial for the economic balance of the goes back to 1675. These dams belong to Framework Directive of 23 October 2000). area: it is essential for its electricity supply the State. They represent a total power of France developed a high level of technical (production of 6 billion kWh/year: i.e. the 23.5 GW and can produce 63 TW. expertise concerning safety and the equivalent of two nuclear reactors). The dam impacts of dams (monitoring methods, The State has granted concessions for the also became a tourist attraction (40% of the control organizations, studies on hazards, exploitation of these dams since the Law summer tourist frequentation in the Upper- etc.). The dams are controlled by a “dam of 16 October 1919. Alps) and it allows meeting the needs for inspectorate”, which belongs to the State, irrigation in Provence (200 million m 3 abstrac- which also has a technical department with ted/year in the lake, irrigated area: 100,000 national responsibility and an inter-ministe rial ha). committee on dams. 26 Gestion de l'eau en France Anglais_maquette 1 - OIEAU 26/10/09 15:15 Page27
Organization of water management in France Municipal drinking water supply and sanitation utilities
In France, drinking water Evolution The wastewater collecting system includes supply and sanitation of the infrastructures 280,000 km of sewers, to which are added utilities are decentrali - and equipment level 93,300 km for storm drainage. The share zed public services. Drinking water: taken by the separated sewer systems is pro - The municipalities are gressing. res ponsible for organi - There are about 17,300 wastewater zing the water utilities treatment plants with a total capacity and are owners of all the of 89 million population equivalent facilities. (pop.eq.). Three-fourth of the waste - The municipalities can directly manage them water treatment plants have been themselves through a “public authority” or built since 1990. delegate their management by temporary In 2004, 7 billion m3 of effluents were contract to a public or private operator. treated. More than half of the efflu - In the case of public-private partnerships, the Evolution of the linear of the drinking water supply ents entering a plant were treated by participation of the private sector is governed network (in thousands of km) additional treatment, called “tertiary”, by a comprehensive legislative and regula - Source: Water Directorate, Ministry of Ecology to eliminate phosphorus or nitrogen. tory framework. 99% of the French population is con - The other half was treated by “sec - ondary” treatment allowing the degradation France emphasizes the responsibility of nected to a drinking water supply net - of the organic matter. Only a very small vol - the municipalities, the necessary call for work. ume (0.8%) was only treated by simple competition for the operators, the follow-up The drinking water supply network is to-day decantation. of service quality (reports, performance indi - made up of 878,000 km of drains (in cators), the rigor of budgetary control and 1950, there was only 8% of this linear). (Source: “Public water utilities in 2004”, IFEN, January 2008). transparency for the users. Source: “Public water utilities in 2004 - drin- To support the investment effort of local king water component”, IFEN, October 2007” With a rate of community service coverage authorities, the mutual system of the Wastewater collection for drinking water supply of 99% and a sani - Water Agencies allows levying taxes and and treatment: tation rate (community and on-site) of 95%, redistributing at least 93% of them, accor - Today, the wastewater of 95% of the the first infrastructure building on the ding to the priorities (equalization) defined by population is treated (81% in community French territory is almost entirely com - the Basin Committee. sanitation, 19% in on-site sanitation). pleted. These various principles participate in the The renewal of the infrastructures good governance of water utilities. will be the main challenge in the fu - ture and will require very significant Infrastructures means. Some figures (IFEN data 2004): 2008 : 280.000 km l In 2004, the water abstractions amoun ted to 34 billion m 3 (Gm 3) including: drinking water (6 Gm 3), industry (3.6 Gm 3), irriga - tion (4.7 Gm 3), energy production and cooling of power plants (19.1 Gm 3). Evolution of the linear of the wastewater drainage 3 l Out of the 6 billion m of supplied drink - network used in continental France from 1962 to 1998 ing water, 4,45 billion m 3 were con - (IOWater study, 2002) sumed. The remainder was lost through leaks in the networks. l Domestic water consumption reaches 165 liters per day and per capita on the average.
Wastewater treatment by size of wastewater treatment plant in 2004 - Source : FP2E, February 2008 27 Gestion de l'eau en France Anglais_maquette 1 - OIEAU 26/10/09 15:15 Page28
Organization of water management in France Municipal drinking water supply and sanitation utilities
Responsibilities The municipalities The municipalities organize the public have the choice and legislative water services of the management framework In France, the municipalities have taken method charge of organizing public drinking The municipalities can: The State defines water supply and sanitation services l either directly manage the utility them - general rules since 1885. selves (public authority or direct manage - and guarantees The Law on water and the aquatic environ - ment); common cause ments of 30 December 2006 extended the l or hand over management to a spe cia - As the responsibility for water and sanitation responsibilities of the municipalities: lized operator, which can be public or utilities is local, the State has primarily a role l concerning on-site sanitation: control and private (delegated management). This of regulator. It lays down the general rules rehabilitation of the on-site sanitation delegation is governed by a contract for the management of utilities at the nation - facilities and creation of a Public On-site having a predetermined duration. al level: laws, decrees, etc. It sets the envi - Sanitation Service (SPANC); The elected officials of the Municipal Council ronmental and public health standards, con - l regarding rain water drainage: possibility or of the inter-municipal body make this trols the quality of the supplied drinking of establishing a specific local tax (0.20 choice according to the local situation and water (see page 16), takes care of water euro/m 2 maximum) on waterproofed sur - based on a report presenting the document policing (authorization for abstraction and faces to finance work [in parallel, the law containing the nature of the services provi - discharge, controls), supervises the relations created a tax credit for the private owners ded by the delegated operator. between local authorities and private compa - to finance work for the collection of rain Whichever management option they choose, nies (public-private partnership), makes sure water and softened the regulation in the municipalities are always owners of all that transparency for the users is complied order to allow its use, but only for uses the facilities and always remain answerable to with, guarantees common cause between external to the dwelling (watering, wash - the final users. They set the tariffs in parti cular. users and access to water for everybody. It ing of cars, etc.), for reasons of public There are 3 main management controls the accounts of the public drinking health.] methods: water supply and sanitation utilities, whether Direct management directly managed or delegated. The drinking water supply and sanitation uti - or by a “public authority” lities are local public utilities, for 36,783 municipalities, there are 29,000 water The municipality has complete responsibility utilities : 12,400 for drinking water supply for investments, the operation of the water and 16,700 for sanitation (IFEN-SCEES 2007, utility and for relations with the users. The staff data 2004). members of the public authority are municipal employees with civil servant status. Direct The management of the utility may be carried management by a public authority concerns out: large towns whose technical servi ces are high - directly by the municipality itself, ly structured or small rural communities. by regrouping municipalities (inter-muni - cipality).
For drinking water supply, inter-municipality Since the Decentralization Laws of 1982 and is predominant: ¾ of the municipalities are 1983, the State has no more a prior control regrouped within inter-municipality bodies. on water utilities, but only a post-audit For sanitation, only 44% of the municipalities control: it controls the legality of public pro - are regrouped. For 20 years, the develop - curements and, generally speaking, of all the ment of inter-municipalities has had a signifi - activities of local authorities (Prefecture); it cant impact on the management of water checks compliance with technical standards utilities, by allowing a pooling of human (Departmental Directorates of Agriculture, resources and technical means. Public Works, Health and Social Affairs); it controls the accounts (Regional Court of Accounts, Competition Council).
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Organization of water management in France Municipal drinking water supply and sanitation utilities
Delegated management the payment of the operator which will be Focus on… The municipality delegates the management included in the water price to be paid by the regulation of all or part of the public water supply utility the users; of public drinking to a public or private industrial company the formula of this payment variation; water supply within contracts with predetermined duration. end-of-contract conditions for the hand - and sanitation utilities "Affermage" (leasing) and concession are the ing-over of the installations and “to- be- Decentralization Laws of 1982 and 1983: two types of contracts that are usually used. returned goods”. these laws organized the decentralization of "Affermage" is the most frequently used. This contract states the precise contractual the State towards local authorities: the local l With "affermage", a leasing contract, obligations and distributes the risks between executive power was transferred from the Pre - the municipality makes and directly the co-contractors, who will have usually to fect (State representative) towards the elected officials (departemental council and regional finances investments and only entrusts work as partners for 10 to 20 years. The ave - council). the operation of installations to the ope - rage duration of the contracts is 11 years rator. The latter's services are paid by (source: TNS Sofres - MEEDM study on the Law n° 92-125 of 6 February 1992, called billing the water price. The operator procedures for the delegation of public drin- "ATR Law": the law on the Local Administra - tion of the Republic (Administration Territoriale levies, on behalf of the owner municipa - king water supply and sanitation services de la République – ATR) created two new Pu - lity, the amounts corresponding to expen - made in 2006). diture of technical depreciation cost and blic bodies for Inter-municipal Cooperation The contract is awarded within a strict regu - financial amortization; (Etablissements Publics de Coopération Inter - latory framework guaranteeing a call for communale - EPCI) with their own taxation: l with concession, the operator builds competition with an obligatory transparency. the Community of Municipalities and the Com - the facilities and operates them at its own On the average, there are about 700 calls munity of Cities, responsible for economic expense, taking full reimbursement from for competition made for contracts each development and regional planning. the water price. The municipality receives year in France. Law n° 93-122 of 29 January 1993, no payment. The candidate operator called "Sapin Law": this law, relating to the must assess which investments it is pre - prevention of corruption and to the trans - pared to make. parency of economic life and public proce - In both cases, the risk of deficit (or benefit) is dures, does not only exclusively concerns assumed by the operator and at the end of the water management, but had a considerable contract, the operator will hand the network impact on the governance practices of all the and installations, the operating software, the public utilities. It lays down, in the case of de - customers’ file back to the municipality. legating of a public utility, the obligation of a This delegated management system call for competition for the companies. The has largely proven reliable for several introduction of an invitation to tender proce - centuries of its existence in France. The big dure ended the tacit renewal of contracts. companies of the water sector (Veolia, Suez Law n° 95-101 of 2 February 1995, called Lyonnaise des Eaux, Saur) as well as the "Barnier Law": this law on the increase of small to medium-sized enterprises (SME) environmental protection lays down the obli - developed great know-how and carried out gation of an annual public report of the Mayor research, which place the French water on the price and quality of the drinking water industry as the very first worldwide. supply and sanitation services. The Barnier Law also sets the duration of the delegating of Mixed management In 2007, in France, drinking water supply public utilities and prohibits the practice of was mainly implemented under delegat - There are a lot of intermediate possibilities “import duties” which were traditionally paid ed management (72% of the covered users) between direct and delegated management, by the delegated company for having the right and sanitation was more and more often proving the flexibility of the French sys - to operate the public water utility. entrusted to private operators (55% of the users tem. For instance, municipalities can operate Law n°95-127 of 8 February 1995, called in 2007 as compared to only 35% in 1997). drinking water production plants by them - "Mazeaud Law": this law relating to the de - When a municipality decides to require the selves and only delegate supply. Another legating of public utilities plans a reporting by services of a private operator, it will be example, the commercial aspect, i.e. relations the delegated company, which must give the within a multiyear contract after a call for with users (invoicing and recovery) is more accounts of all the operations related to the competition. This contract defines: and more often entrusted to a specialized execution of the delegating and include an operator. the duration, which must not be tacitly analysis of the service quality. The report must renewable; be supplied with a financial and technical appendix allowing the public authority to the terms of references of the expected appreciate the conditions of the contract services; implementation. 29 Gestion de l'eau en France Anglais_maquette 1 - OIEAU 26/10/09 15:15 Page30
Organization of water management in France Municipal drinking water supply and sanitation utilities
Law n°99-586 of 12 July 1999, called Financing Financial assistance "Chevènement Law": this law, on the from the Water strengthening and simplification of inter- In the special case of a concession, the oper - Agencies municipal cooperation, laid down a new ator finds the funds that are not covered by framework for inter-municipal partnership and public funds. In the other cases (affermage, Assistance to local authorities for investments involved a local evolution of the water utilities. public authority, etc...), the municipalities in drinking water supply and sanitation is the The number of bodies was reduced, inter- have to gather the funds necessary to build main expenditure of the Water Agencies. municipal financial common cause increased the installations. In most cases, the munici - This assistance amounts to 8.3 billion and the operating rules were standardized. palities make directly the investments, by euros, i.e. 72% of the total amount of Four bodies were created or reinforced: the resorting to loans from specialized banks. the 9 th Action Programs (2007-2012): Urban Community, the Community of Agglo- Some figures 2.8 for wastewater treatment plants merations, the Community of Municipalities on financial flows (including 379 M € for urban-rural com - and the inter-municipal Syndicate. mon cause); On the whole, the expenditure of the water Law n° 2002-276 of 27 February 2002 on sector almost amounted to 20 billion euros in 2.4 for sanitation networks (including neighborhood democracy: this law obliges 2005 (“environmental economics in 2005”, 263 M € for urban-rural common cause); informing and consulting the users on the IFEN, 2007): 11.7 for sanitation and 8.2 for 1.9 for treatment premiums and assis - management of public utilities. It increases the drinking water supply. These figures add up tance for wastewater treatment perfor- role of the advisory commissions of local pu - the expenditure of the public drinking water mance; blic utilities (CCSPL) which involve elected offi - supply and sanitation utilities, the expenses 1.2 for drinking water supply (including cials and representatives of associations. for on-site sanitation, the expenditure for 334 M € for urban-rural common cause). These commissions must be consulted on any water supply and treatment in industrial and The financing system by the Water Agencies project for the creation of a public utility, agricultural activities. should its management be delegated or car - contributed to improve the networks and ried out by a public authority. With regard to public drinking water supply installations while allowing accelerating and sanitation utilities, expenditure is Law n°2006-1772 of 30 December 2006 investments and amortization. This allowed cove red by the water bill paid by the on water and aquatic environments: this up grading the French infras tructures users: 11.8 billion euros in 2006, inclu - law especially reinforced all the tools for water and reducing pollution. The initial objec - ding 7 billion for drinking water and 4.8 bil - policy. In particular, it increased the responsi - tive was indeed to increase the number of lion for sanitation. bilities of the municipalities as regards on-site urban and industrial wastewater treatment sanitation (control, maintenance, rehabilita - The total invoice of 11.8 billion euros, all plants: the French territory counted 300 tion, the owners having to reimburse the taxes included, paid by the users is distrib - wastewater treatment plants in 1966, there municipality). The municipality has the possi - uted as follows: are 17,300 today. After 1990, the Water bility of creating a new Public On-site Sanita - l 629 M € for the State (VAT and tax repaid Agencies increased assistance to build sewe - tion Service (SPANC). to VNF); rage systems in order to improve the waste - water input to the treatment plants. As Decrees of 2 May 2007: these texts define l 2,993 M € for local authorities (for the regards drinking water supply, the Water the performance indicators which must appear services managed by a “public authority”); Agencies intensified the financing of inter - in the Mayor’s annual report on the price and l 1,445 M € for the Water Agencies (taxes connections and reservoirs after the drought quality of the public drinking water supply and later repaid in the form of assistance). of 1976, in order to recharge low water sanitation services. l 6,753 M € for the delegated operators levels and to decrease water cut-offs in low The Water Framework Directive (WFD) of (for the services under “delegated man - water periods. 23 October 2000: as regards utilities, the agement“), 2,022 M € of which (about WFD introduced incentive pricing before 2010 30%) are repaid to the local authorities; and the recovery of the costs of the services related to water use for all the Member States of the European Union. The ISO TC 224 standards: work of the ISO TC 224 Technical Committee, chaired by France, led to the adoption of three interna - tional standards on 1st December 2007. They provide guidelines on the management, eval - uation and improvement of drinking water supply and sanitation utilities.
Example of a water bill 30 Gestion de l'eau en France Anglais_maquette 1 - OIEAU 26/10/09 15:15 Page31
Organization of water management in France Municipal drinking water supply and sanitation utilities
Public assistance This “town and country” common cause fund A budget reserved mechanisms was set up in 1954 and operated until 2006. for drinking water supply 3 There are various mechanisms of public assis - The FNDAE levied a tax on each invoiced m and sanitation tance to avoid a sudden increase in the water of drinking water. (“water pays for water”) The budgetary and accounting instruction price, which the user could find unbearable. The collected sums regarding water supply and sanitation utili - Support to underprivileged were redistributed in ties, the M49 instruction, published in people each Department to 1990, has been applicable since 1 st January Household expenses related to water are very subsidize the invest - 1997 to all utilities, either delegated opera - low in France: they account for 0.8% of their ments of rural munici - tors or public authorities. It limits transfers budget on the average, a stable rate for 10 palities. The FNDAE between the main budget of the municipali - years (2.4% for telecommunications, 3.8% budget amounted to ties and their “water and sanitation” budget. for gas and electricity). The rate of unpaid about 144 M € each bills is also very low (less than 1% in the year. In 1997, the It imposes establishing a specific budget dele gated services). But common cause is FNDAE extended its action to agricultural pol - reserved for drinking water supply and essential to help a growing number of citi - lution control for an amount of 22 M € per sanitation. It is an instrument for trans - zens to face their problems. year. Rural facilities were greatly upgraded. parency and sound budgetary management. The Mutual Housing Fund (FSL), created The FNDAE does not exist any more at the na - Thus, the practice which consists in fixing in 1990, is managed by each Department. It tional level, but at the level of each basin part tariffs at a level higher than the one which allows helping underprivileged people to of the subsidies of the Water Agencies are still allows balancing the utility budget, with the face their expenditure related to their directed towards urban - rural common aim of feeding the general budget of the dwelling: water, electricity, gas, telephone. In cause. municipality by the transfer of surpluses, is particular, it allows maintaining the from now on impossible. Similarly, the oppo - water supply and dealing with the Principles site situation, where the general budget of water invoice thanks to close cooperation the municipality (i.e. the income tax paid by between the departmental services and the for the the taxpayers) financed the water budget is water companies. management prohibited today. In 2008, the water companies processed Responsible users: about 33,500 files related to the FSL, as com - of utilities cost recovery pared to 30,800 in 2007. To comply with the new European and A balanced budget The water bill can be totally or partially dealt national environmental and health standards, Accounting laws and instructions guarantee a with. Financing is jointly ensured by the to meet the increasingly higher users’ require - sound budgetary management of the public Department (Departemental Council) and the ments, it is necessary to build new facilities, water supply and sanitation utilities. water company concerned. The water com - to ensure their maintenance, modernization panies take charge of the bill share which Public water supply and sanitation utilities and management. This has a cost, the price should be due to them (approximately 40%). must balance their budget between of which the users must agree to pay. The They can also give up the possible expenses income and expenditure, whatever the cost of the water service must be of closing down and reopening up the con - management method chosen. covered by the water users alone. This nection. The Department takes charge of the As regards expenditure, this budget includes: cost recovery principle, which already existed taxes levied for other organizations (State, repayment of loans and bank interests, ope - in France, was reinforced to apply the Water Agency, local authorities, etc). ration and management costs, maintenance European Water Framework Directive (WFD). This means adding up all the costs of the Support to rural and repair costs, the cost of technical depre - services related to water use, including costs municipalities ciation of installations to renew them when they become obsolete. for the environment and water resources. The Regions and Departments support the in - vestment efforts of rural municipalities, from Special attention must be paid to operation: Transparency their own budgets and under certain regula - technologies have become complex and The accounts are checked by the delegating tions. This can either be in the form of subsi - require well-trained technical and administra - authority. They are also controlled by finan - dies, or interest rebates on loans. tive personnel. cial jurisdictions. In addition, the budgetary In France, personnel cost is the first expendi - documents and the contracts are all accessi - The National Fund for Rural Water Sup - ture (38 % of overall costs, i.e. 55% of ope - ble to the public, upon request. Finally, a ply (FNDAE) : this fund, although it does not rating costs) while investments only represent yearly report is published and advisory exist any more, is interesting because it 30 % of the total costs on the average . commissions of users are created. played an historic role in France and can inspire other countries.
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Organization of water management in France Municipal drinking water supply and sanitation utilities
Water price After a period of very high increase in the fixed pricing, which does not depend water price in the years 1980-2000, this evo - on the volume consumed. This may and pricing lution settled insofar as most of the invest - exceptionally be authorized in two special ments necessary for compliance of the instal - cases: “when the water resource is natu - The water price lations with the standards had been rally abundant and only a very small made. For 10 years, the average number of users are linked up to the Average composition 14 % of a water bill increase in the water price has slowed mains”, or “when the municipality usual - down with rates close to the inflation, ly has strong variations of its population”. Drinking water ranging between - 0.4% and 3.5% per The invoice then remains unchanged Sanitation 40 % Taxes year. whether consumption is null or strong. The water bill covers: Although the costs of the water utilities are primarily fixed (80% to 95% of the costs of The cost (investment + operation) the utilities are fixed and do not depend on of the drinking water supply ser- the supplied volumes), the fixed share of the vice; 46 % bill only represents about 17% on the ave - The cost (investment + operation) rage. Source : IFEN, March 2007 of the sanitation service; The taxes collected by the Water Agen - Social aspects In 2004, the domestic water bill (drinking cies; In France on the whole, the part of the water water + sanitation + taxes) amounted to VAT and various taxes. supply service expenditure has remained 177 euros per capita and per annum and the marginal and stable since 1996: 0.8% of average cost of one m 3 of water amounted to The tariff structure the household budget. 3 euros (“The domestic water bill in 2004”,). In France, today, the water bill compulsorily But common cause provisions were estab - On the average, the water and sanitation includes: lished to support the poorest people (see price represented one euro per day and l a fixed part: “the subscription”, which the Mutual Housing Fund page 31). fami ly. gives right to drinking water and to sani - The Law of 30 December 2006 also intro - tation according to the case. It is justified The water price is estimated locally. It duced new provisions: in theory to cover the fixed overhead can vary a lot from one municipal territory to l it reaffirmed the right of access to drin - costs of management of the facilities. The another because the costs supported by the king water for all; amount of the subscription strongly varies utility depend on local characteristics: l it very strictly supervised water cut-offs in depending on the municipalities. On the case of non-payment; l nature of the resource (spring, river, average, the subscription amounted to l it created a common cause fund which groundwater), its accessibility, its avai - 56 euros per annum in 2004. The fixed allows helping the poorest users: while lability, its quality requiring more or less part of the water price is defined by me - strictly respecting the balanced budget thorough treatments; thods laid down by ministerial decree. principle, this “social” expenditure must l nature of the dwellings to be covered l a variable part which strictly depends be supported by the social budget distinct (urban or rural areas, tourist areas, etc.); on the consumed volume measured with from the municipality responsible for the l number of inhabitants to be served; the meter (in any construction of new service; l investments already made by the munici - building, a cold water meter must be l the joint guarantees and the deposits that pality, the level of maintenance, the rate installed in each flat as well as a meter in have been required until now when chosen for technical renewal or compli - the common parts; for the already built opening a subscription are from now on ance of equipment with the standards; buildings, the individualization of water prohibited. The deposits paid until now supply contracts and necessary work are l management method chosen by the must be repaid within 2 years. possible by vote of the majority of the municipality (management by a public members of the joint ownership syndi - authority or by a private company); cate). l planning of investments over a more or There are several ways of setting tariffs: less long duration; pricing by consumption bracket, l quality of the service provided to the cus - which is either progressive or regressive: tomers, etc. in the first case, the price per m 3 rises with the increase of the consumption bracket in which the user is. In the second case, the price goes down when the user passes from a consumption bracket to another. 32 Gestion de l'eau en France Anglais_maquette 1 - OIEAU 26/10/09 15:15 Page33
Organization of water management in France Municipal drinking water supply and sanitation utilities
Transparency of improving public access to informa - An information system makes the locally tion: giving more explanations on the published indicators available at the national the information water price and on the provided service. level. It allows access to all the public data on water supply and sanitation utilities and Informing the users: Each drinking water supply utility will be described by indicators related to water qua - allows comparing similar service performan - reports of the mayor lity, continuity of the service provided to the ces. This supervising tool allows the munici - and delegated consumers, or resource protection even. palities organizing services to follow the evo - operator Each sanitation utility will be described by lution of their performances from one year to The law requires transparency on the public indicators on the conformity rate of the dis - the other. It offers the users greater trans - utility management by the municipality and charges, on knowledge index and patrimo - parency on the management of the utilities. delegated operator. nial management of the network. Each on- www.eaufrance.fr The mayor must draw up and publish a site sanitation facility will also be concerned, yearly report on the price and quality of with a specific indicator. the water services, with precise details on completed, ongoing and planned work, as This regulation on performance indicators is well as on the debt. This report is presented the result of a collective step and seve- by the Mayor to the City Council or by the ral years of dialogue between ministries, President of the Public Inter-municipal local authorities, public and private opera - Cooperation Authority to its deliberative tors, associations, experts. assembly. The report must be presented, for The public water supply and sanitation utili - the utilities managed by a public authority ties are the first local utilities to have a and for the delegated utilities. It is then made common indicator system in France. available to the public. Reciprocally, the delegated operator must This evaluation of the provided services draw up a report on the contract execu - allows the users to: Users’ consultation: tion before 1 st June at the latest each year: advisory commissions l be informed on the quality of the provi - accounts regarding all the actions related to ded service; The users are associated to the management the execution of the delegating of the public of public utilities. l understand the price evolution; utility, analysis of the service quality, appen - At the local level, an advisory commis - dix allowing the delegating authority to l be able to intervene in a constructive sion of local public utilities is created appreciate the conditions for implementation way. for each utility. Every year, it examines the of the public service. The managers of facilities to: various above mentioned reports, as well as Performance l have indicators allowing identifying, a progress report for the utilities managed by indicators quantifying and qualifying malfunctions; a local authority. It is also consulted for st Since 1 January 2008, a new regulation l have elements to communicate; advice on any project for delegating manage - (decree n° 2007-675 of 2 May 2007) has ment of a public utility or for creating a pu blic l lay down precise quantitative and quali - authority with financial autonomy. requested to public and private operators to tative objectives, to identify the improve - publish performance indicators, which, since ments to be brought to the service. At the national level, a national adviso - 2009, must appear in the Mayor’s yearly ry authority on water supply and sanitation report on the price and quality of the water The local authorities to: utilities was created within the National supply and sanitation services. l have a tool for following up the technical Water Committee. The objective is twofold: management of the facilities; Budgetary control implementing services with a pro- l anticipate investments and renewals; by financial gress approach: to make service qua - l have elements for evaluating service qua - jurisdictions lity progressing with a follow-up by per - lity; Regional Courts of Accounts control the formance indicators corresponding to l be able to evaluate the status of the as - budgetary management of utilities. Gover - 3 aspects of sustainable development: sets; nance of drinking water supply and sanita - environmental, economic, social. A l control the utility management; tion utilities became a real matter of interest methodological guide and descriptive l lay down recommendations and objec - to the society, the political and economic sheets for each indicator are available on tives. stakes of which are important. the website “Eau dans la Ville” created by the Ministry of Ecology and the International Office for Water: www.eaudanslaville.fr
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Organization of water management in France Municipal drinking water supply and sanitation utilities
Vocational IOWater takes care of the secretariat of the International Network of Water training Training Centers (NWTC), created in 2008: The technicality of water professions requires www.ricfme.org very precise skills and more and more qualifi - cations. All the technical and administra - IOWater provides assistance to assess tive staffs must be well trained in basic training needs, to build local training training and continuing vocational trai- capacities and to establish financing ning. mechanisms, three items essential for the In France, the National Water Training good operation of professional training. Center (CNFME), located in Limoges - La Sou - Access to specialized documentation terraine and managed by the International and data is also part of capacity buil - Office for Water (IOWater), is at the core of ding. France contributes in the effort of shar - continuing vocational training of the water sec - More than 1,200 organizations have their ing sources of information through the Euro- tor. The CNFME has existed since 1978 and employees trained by IOWater: public and Mediterranean Water Information and trains about 6,500 people with all kinds of private operators of drinking water supply Documentation System (EMWIS) asso - qualifications each year, using practical and sanitation utilities, consulting firms, ciating 27 countries of the European Union teaching in real working situation. The equipment suppliers, industrialists, etc. and the Mediterranean Basin. CNFME proposes: IOWater carried out specific training projects IOWater is one of the three technical opera - l a catalogue of 845 training courses per for local authorities (Lyon, Lille, SIAAP, etc.), tors of EMWIS, in cooperation with its Italian year; large private groups (VEOLIA, Suez Lyonnaise and Spanish partners. l technical units for practical work in real des Eaux) in France and abroad: FES It is also a partner of the African Water situation, such a site being unique in (Switzerland), SONEDE (Tunisia), ADE Information System (AWIS). Europe (drin king water treatment, waste - (Algeria), ONEP (Morocco), REGIDESO (Congo water collecting systems, wastewater RD), ICRC (Geneva), etc. treatment plant, etc.) ; This arrangement today inspires many coun - l tailored training programs adapted upon tries, which want to reinforce their own trai - its customers’ request: need assessment, ning facilities. This led to cooperation projects evaluation of the staffs’ abilities, training with IOWater to create or develop national plans, personalized work-linked training; water training centers abroad: after the l training days for elected officials and peo - first success of the creation of Gdansk Water ple in charge of local authorities, in rela - Foundation in Poland, the Mexican Training tion with their responsibilities regarding Center for Drinking Water Supply and water or waste (more than 10,000 elec - Sanitation jointly promoted and financed by ted officials attended these training days the French and Mexican Governments is an during the last 10 years); excellent example of this collaboration, l trainers’ training and design of teaching as well as cooperation projects carried out in documentation; South Africa, Algeria, Morocco, Kenya, l distance training via the Internet: Nigeria, Romania, Tunisia, Burkina Faso, “e-learning”; Venezuela, Brazil, Libya, etc. l systems for measuring the gained know - IOWater also carried out the feasibility study ledge. of the Riyadh training center in Saudi Arabia.
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Organization of water management in France French experience at the service of international action
Water: A pioneer law The municipalities and their group - one of the priorities at the service ings started decentralized cooperation of French cooperation of decentralized actions a long time ago. These actions policy for development cooperation: the Law can be extended and strengthened by the Law of 9 February 2005. France is one of the first donors in the of 9 February 2005 water sector. On the average, it devoted This law, called “Oudin-Santini Law”, allows The Water Agencies carry out or finan - 228 M € per year to bilateral assistance in the French local authorities and Water ce international common cause activities 2006-2007 (OECD figures) and about 100 Agencies to levy up to 1% of the incomes pursuant to the Law of 9 February 2005. M€ per year to multilateral assistance (2001- from water and sanitation utilities to The small, medium-sized companies 2003 averages). It had a water action finance actions of international com - or great groups developed a know-how plan adopted by the G8 in Evian (2003). mon cause. which is recognized by the international community. French assistance All the categories The Non-Governmental Organi za- has doubled of stakeholders tions (NGOs) are active in development, in the water sector develop actions environmental protection and emergency In 2005, France made the water sector of international response. one of the 7 priority sectors of its coop - common cause The scientific and research organiza - eration policy for achieving the Millen- The State: the Ministry for Foreign and tions play an active part. nium Development Goals (MDGs). European Affairs coordinates the inter- The International Office for Water It has given itself a multiyear reference strat - ministerial strategy in relation with the (IOWater) carries out cooperation pro - egy for water and sanitation. This strategy Ministry of Finance with which it shares jects specialized in institutional reforms, confirms the objective of doubling its assis - the supervision of the French Develop - the management of information systems tance in the water sector, in Africa in particu - ment Agency, the Ministries of Ecology, and continuing vocational training. lar, which had been announced in Evian. Agriculture and Health provide their insti - This water and sanitation strategy plans that tutional and technical expertise and this doubling will prioritize: sanitation, access finance targeted cooperation projects. to water for underprivileged populations in The French Development Agency rural, semi-urban and peri-urban areas, water (AFD ) is the central operator of French resources protection and development based official development assistance. It con - on integrated and efficient management tributes in the financing of development (management at the level of national and projects by subsidies or loans. transboundary river basins, water savings, water quality, irrigation). The financing of infrastructures is accompa - nied by actions for: l assisting governments in defining nation - al water policies and reforms; l organizing concerted and sustainable water resource management at the level of river basins; l increasing capacity building through training at all levels (decision-makers, engineers, technicians, etc); l involving the local stakeholders and more particularly the local authorities as being responsible for drinking water supply and sanitation utilities and thus reinforcing the local contracting authorities; l developing multi-partnerships (State, local authorities, NGOs, the civil society, private operators). Creation of a Users’ Committee, Prey Tok vVillage, Battambang Province, Cambodia (IOWater project, December 2005)
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Organization of water management in France Conclusion
ommon cause between all the stake - l application of the polluter-pays principle But, of course, while this system is efficiently holders is necessary to meet the chal - and the Water Agencies’ role of econom - operating in France, it cannot be exported as C lenges of water management and the ic mutualization; such to other countries. On the other hand, impacts of climate change. l local public responsibility for water supply the methods developed in France can help The lessons that can be learned from the and sanitation utilities; the countries, which wish it, to reinforce their French experience are: l experience feedback from the various water resources management at the national, l integrated water management at the methods used for managing water utili - regional or local level and to develop interna - level of river basins; ties, either managed by a public authori - tional coordination for transboundary water l decentralization of water management; ty or by a delegated private company; resources management. l participative management, involving all l transparency in the operation of services the stakeholders and the public; and information to the users. The International Office for Water
The International Office for Water assistance in training engineering to Mediterranean Water Information System), as (IOWater) was created in 1991 to assist define national training systems, assess well as in Europe, Africa (African Water all the countries wanting to modernize the training needs of the services and Information System - AWIS) and Latin America. their water management, by inspiring draw up training plans, create and deve - Since 1994, IOWater has taken care of themselves from, in particular, the public lop local training centers abroad as in the Permanent Technical Secretariat of organization that France has developed with South Africa, Algeria, Saudi Arabia, Kenya, the International Network of Basin effectiveness for nearly one century. For this Laos, Mexico, Nigeria, Poland, Vietnam Organizations (INBO) which structure reason, it intervenes abroad in the following (feasibility study, design of the buildings experience sharing between basin organiza - fields in particular: and educational units, drawing up of tions worldwide. training programs, training of trainers). integrated river basin management and IOWater developed recognized abilities in development; IOWater is entrusted with the secreta - institutional organization, advice and profes - governance of public drinking water sup - riat of the International Network of sional training. With its Department of ply and sanitation utilities; Water Training Centers (INWTC). International Cooperation based at Sophia- restructuring of organizations in charge of IOWater manages the National Antipolis, it can provide assistance to water development and collective irriga - Information and Documentation Center carry out the reforms and capacity tion; on Water which contributes to the public building needed in all the countries access to information in the field of water which wish its assistance. implementation of the European Water (documentary bases, development of web - Directives, Pre-accession Twinning Arran - IOWater is a founder member of the French sites, data management, studies, strategic gements and Neighborhood Policy; Water Partnership (FWP) which gathers watch, syntheses, etc.). the French water stakeholders and coordi - vocational training and the creation of IOWater helps to set up water information nates their participation in the international Water Training Centers abroad; systems in the Mediterranean (Euro- events such as the World Water Forums. creation of Water Information Systems and databases. IOWater manages the French National Water Training Center - CNFME (6,500 trainees and 845 training courses each year) in Limoges - La Souterraine. It proposes: continuing professional training courses for decision makers, managers of utilities, The French National technicians, HRDs, trainers, etc; Water Training Center
International Office for Water - 21, rue de Madrid - 75008 Paris - FRANCE Tel.: +33 1 44 90 88 60 - Fax: +33 1 40 08 01 45 - Email : [email protected] - Web : www.iowater.org
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