|
As President of the ICPDR, I took great pleasure in helping to cut the
ICPDR’s tenth birthday cake during Danube Day celebrations on June
29 in Vienna. As the pictures and stories in this issue of Danube Watch
make clear, Danube Day was celebrated in many different ways throughout
the entire Danube River Basin.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank those people and organisations
that invested enormous time and energy to make this first Danube Day a
remarkable success. It is my sincere belief that Danube issues must be
brought closer to the people and that the feeling of ‘Danube Solidarity’
is crucial to raise understanding of the technical measures needed to
secure the ‘good ecological status’ of Danube water, as called
for by the EU Water Framework Directive (WFD).
The experts of the ICPDR are currently finalising the Roof Report, which
is a comprehensive analysis of the status of the Danube River Basin, as
required by the WFD. This comprehensive and consistent analysis of the
most international river basin in the world is a major achievement for
the ICPDR. I am especially grateful for the efforts and interest by the
Danube countries that do not have a legal obligation to fulfil this directive.
The successful completion of this first step towards implementing the
WFD will be essential for guiding our work in the future.
As outlined on page 23, the ICPDR will hold its first Ministerial Meeting
for all ministers responsible for the sustainable management of the Danube
River Basin. At this event, which also marks ten years of cooperation
under the Danube River Protection Convention, ministers will receive and
discuss key documents, such as the Roof Report and the Action Programme
for Sustainable Flood Prevention of the Danube River Basin.
This Ministerial Meeting will provide an opportunity to further develop
strategies for addressing the challenges ahead of us. However, this meeting
will also offer the possibility to look back and appreciate the progress
that has been made over the past ten years. We can all be very pleased
with the accomplishments we have achieved; Danube cooperation can be seen
as model to the world!
Catherine Day,
Director General of the
Directorate General for
the Environment of the
European Commission
|
