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Many river systems in Europe have altered morphology and deteriorated ecosystems due to human interference. We demonstrate how conflicting interests of nature, society and economics in the Dutch–German Ems-Dollard system complicate achieving the nature restoration targeted by the EU Water Framework Directive. This article provides a multidisciplinary perspective on the natural characteristics of a water system and the practical implementation of regulation and policy in a transboundary setting. Important shortcomings of EU and national laws and directives are the static constraints for protection of demarcated habitats under EU directives, which do not do justice to natural hydro-morphodynamic processes.

The precautionary and prevention principles require that environmental risks should timely and adequately be regulated before potentially harmful activities are undertaken. The system of administrative environmental law provides ample instruments for such regulation. However, scientific uncertainties about environmental risks could complicate the formulation and implementation of effective environmental risk management strategies. This could lead to systemic imperfections and regulatory gaps which, in turn, undermine the system’s effectiveness and increase the need for regulatory ‘back-ups’. The system of private law is often seen as a potential back-up. In analyzing the complementary effects between both systems and using environmental risks of chemical mining activities in the (deep) subsoil as an example, this article concludes that the actual regulatory effect of tort law should not be overestimated. The complementary role of tort law in regulating environmental risks is mostly limited to the specification and on some occasions enforcement of environmental responsibilities.

The OECD Principles on Water Governance aim to contribute to good water governance. Learning and change through assessments are useful ways to strengthen water governance systems. This article presents a methodology for a learning assessment based on the OECD principles. The methodology has been applied to the Dutch Flood Protection Programme. The analysis revealed various functions of the OECD principles, from enhancing understanding to reforming the agenda, reflection and informed action. Recommendations are given on how the OECD principles can be used to come to meaningful action-oriented water governance assessments; they include contextualization, multiple methods, inclusiveness and periodic assessments.

Society is faced with a range of contemporary threats to everyday life, from natural and technological hazards, to accidents and terrorism. These are embodied within integrated emergency management arrangements, designed to enhance preparedness and response to such incidents, and in turn facilitate a prompt recovery. Such arrangements must be inherently dynamic and evolve as new threats emerge or as existing threats change. An example of the latter is the changing nature of flooding, which is projected to increase in both frequency and severity with climate change. Recognizing this evolving threat, this paper focuses on the evaluation of the effectiveness of domestic Flood Emergency Management Systems (FEMS) as components of integrated emergency management arrangements. Despite the extensive body of literature documenting success conditions of so-called effective emergency management more broadly, there have only been few attempts to construct a comprehensive evaluation framework to support objective assessment and cross-country comparison. Addressing this gap, this paper formulates an evaluation framework specifically tailored to the study of FEMS in Europe, which is then provisionally applied to the study of FEMS in England (UK), France, the Netherlands, Poland and Sweden. Important differences are observed in how FEMS have evolved in relation to differing contextual backgrounds (political, cultural, administrative and socio-economic) and exposures to flood hazard. From this provisional assessment, a number of opportunities and constraints to enhancing the effectiveness of FEMS in Europe are discerned. The evaluation framework thus serves as an important stepping stone for further in-depth inquiry, and as a valuable tool for future comparative study.

With the introduction of the Water Framework Directive in 2001, EC water law adopted both a governance approach and a river basin approach. These new approaches are characterised by a high level of proceduralisation and by dividing the EU territory into river basins. These characteristics emphasise the need for transboundary cooperation in water management, both on the international and the regional level. Although there is a long tradition of transboundary cooperation on the international level, this level has its difficulties and limits, which urges the need for regional transboundary cooperation in river basin management. There are several instruments available to shape cooperation at the regional level, but there is still little experience in cooperation between water management authorities at that level. After describing current transitions in EC water law, we explore some instruments and their possibilities for transboundary cooperation on both levels, with a slight tendency toward the regional level.