Abstract
The EU countries are obliged to harmonize their legislation in the field of flood protection, and thus torrential floods, in accordance with the Water Framework Directive (WFD) which was adopted in 2000. Two EU countries, Austria and Italy, and three Western Balkan countries were selected for the strategic and legal framework of torrential flood control: Serbia, North Macedonia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina. In addition to the legal framework of torrential flood control in EU countries, policies and strategies related to this area were studied for comparative analysis with non-EU countries. The strategic framework for the protection of water resources, and in particular torrential flood protection, is lacking in all Western Balkan countries. The aim of this chapter is to determine the directions of future strategic directions and torrential flood control policies in the Western Balkans based on the experiences of EU countries, advantages and disadvantages of the existing strategic, and legal frameworks.
TopIntroduction
As a result of natural and anthropogenic factors, with the increasingly expressive impact of climate change, torrential floods occur in European countries, causing extensive material damage and the loss of human lives. In addition to intensifying flood protection work, the need for legal regulation and their harmonization with the countries of the region and the EU (Nikolić Popadić, 2020).
The most important document of the European Union related to water resources and flood control are Directive 2000/60/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2000 establishing a framework for Community action in the field of water policy as amended by Decision 455/2001/EC and Directives 2008/32/EC, 2008/105/EC, 2009/31/EC and 2013/39/EU (Water Framework Directive, WFD) and Directive2007/60/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2007 on the assessment and management of flood risks.
Water resources are crucial for life, society, economy, and environmental sustainability. Water protection is, therefore, one of the priority areas regulated in EU legislation from the 1970s. An early beginning, the European water legislation had some problems in the efficiency of their implementation, such as the low acceptance rate by the target groups, disparity noted between the level of governance (watersheds and administrative boundaries), and the fact that directives are based on standards that regulate certain segments, but no problems as a whole (Boeuf & Fritsch, 2016).
WFD, adopted in December 2020 to achieve a good water status until 2027, transform the EU water policy from the fragmented regulatory framework to a holistic approach that integrates ecological, economic, and social functions through the entire river basin (Kallis, 2005; Fritsch & Benson, 2020).
Floods Directive (2007/60/EC) has been established a framework for assessing and managing flood risks, represents a new approach to flood management, that is closely coordinated with the WFD. It encourages setting targets and defining measures to flood risk maps. Flood risk maps are tools combining flood hazard formulates country-specific physical interventions after a long process of assessing the flood hazards and risks described in the Directive. The interventions are then defined in a flood management plan, which is the final step of the planning process (Dragović et al., 2016).
Key Terms in this Chapter
Floods Directive: Directive 2007/60/EC is the EU flood directive on the assessment and management of flood risks. Protecting the community from the risk and impact of flooding is at the heart of the European Floods Directive (2007/60/EC). Introduced in 2009, the Floods Directive provides a new approach to managing flood risk on a catchment-wide scale.
Torrential Flood: A flood caused by heavy or excessive rainfall in a short period of time, (generally less than 6 hours) that occurred in a small watershed characterized by a steep slope and intensive erosion processes.
Law on Water: The basic legal document in the field of water management, which regulates the legal status of water, integrated water management, management of water facilities and water land, sources, and methods of financing water activities as well as and other issues of importance to water management.
Forest Law: This Law regulates the conservation, protection, planning, cultivation, use, and management of forests and forest land, including all necessary rules and requirements defining the control over the implementation of provided rules, monitoring, inspection, as well as other issues relevant to forests and forest land and areas.
Watershed Management: The process of implementing land-use practices and water management practices to protect and improve the quality of the water and other natural resources within a watershed by managing the use of those resources in a comprehensive manner.
Strategy: It is defined as a general plan of action with the purpose of achieving specific, clearly defined goals.
Soil Protection Act: This act defines important functions of soil and its degradation processes, such as soil erosion, reduction of organic matter content, loss of soil biodiversity, soil contamination, salinization, soil compaction, blocking of its functions, and high hydrogeological risks (floods and landslides). Also, it defines measures and responsibilities for reducing degradation processes.
Water Framework Directive: Directive 2000/60/EC of the European Parliament and Council is a legislative approach established for managing and protecting water, based not on national or political boundaries but on natural geographical and hydrological formations: river basins.
Law: A normative act of the state which is passed by its legislative body according to the decision procedure. Laws regulate social relations in all areas of life. By law, social rules are transformed into norms, which are binding for all citizens.