The Disproportionality Principle in the WFD: How to Actually Apply it?

Martín-Ortega, Julia; Psaltopoulos, Demetrios; Holen, Silje; Perni, Ángel; Skuras, Dimitris

doi:10.1201/b17309-14

Cited by 16 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 62 publications

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“…A high discount rate gives more weight to current expenses while a low discount rate favours long-term benefits. Therefore, the discount rate has an ethical dimension because it determines the extent to which the interests of future generations are taken into account (Martin-Ortega et al, 2014;Martin-Ortega et al, 2015). We also study which categories of users, criteria and thresholds were used in affordability tests.…”

Section: Additional Parametersmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…There is a rich academic literature making recommendations on how to undertake disproportionality analyses (Brouwer, 2008;Del Saz-Salazar et al, 2009;Martin-Ortega, 2012;Galioto et al, 2013;Gómez-Limón & Martin-Ortega, 2013;Martin-Ortega et al, 2014;Feuillette et al, 2016;Klauer et al, 2016;Klauer et al, 2017). While these studies differ in important ways, they have one thing in common: they acknowledge that CBA and affordability tests are multi-dimensional.…”

Section: Analytical Frameworkmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In other words, we observe diversity as to the political aspects of WFD implementation. On the other hand, EU member states rely on very different analytical tools to justify the presence of disproportionate costs , one of the conditions for an exemption clause (van der Veeren, 2010;Gómez-Limón & Martin-Ortega, 2013;Dehnhardt, 2014;Martin-Ortega et al, 2014;Feuillette et al, 2016). This suggests a high degree of diversity with regards to the methodological aspects of WFD implementation.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Existing research tends to provide broad overviews across Europe (e.g. Klauer et al, 2007;Martin-Ortega et al, 2014;Maia, 2017). Some of them are already outdated.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Justifying exemptions through policy appraisal: ecological ambitions and water policy in France and the United Kingdom

2018

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Justifying exemptions through policy appraisal: ecological ambitions and water policy in France and the United Kingdom For Water Policy AbstractThe Water Framework Directive aims to achieve good status for all water bodies in the European Union. However, exemption clauses enable member states to delay protective measures and to lower water quality objectives. The ambiguity of exemption clauses has lead to a plurality of approaches across the continent. They differ as to their political objectives, i.e. the overall ambition displayed in implementing the Directive, and to their methodological choices, i.e. the analytical tools used to justify exemptions. This article argues that those political and methodological dimensions influence each other. Relying on a framework of analysis that integrates key recommendations from the literature, we explore the usage and justification of exemptions in two countries, the United Kingdom and France. Our analysis suggests that analytical methods were often decided so as to reflect the ecological ambitions of a country, and some methodological choices seem to have had unintended consequences for water quality objectives. We conclude that economic methods should be adapted so that they take into account, rather than ignore, the political ambitions of a country in the field of water.

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Section: Additional Parametersmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Analytical Frameworkmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Existing research tends to provide broad overviews across Europe (e.g. Klauer et al, 2007;Martin-Ortega et al, 2014;Maia, 2017). Some of them are already outdated.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Justifying exemptions through policy appraisal: ecological ambitions and water policy in France and the United Kingdom

2018

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“…These studies define a number of rules and criteria upon which derogation decisions can be based and the application of which would reduce the inherent subjectivity of derogation decisions. More recently, Martin-Ortega et al (2013) [15] provided a critical review of the key challenges of the WFD's disproportionality analysis. Specifically, they propose the adoption of guiding principles for the assessment of cost disproportionality by tackling various key issues, such as the spatial and temporal scale of assessment, cost and benefit distributional effects and uncertainty.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

An Assessment of Disproportionate Costs in WFD: The Experience of Emilia-Romagna

Galioto

Marconi

Raggi

et al. 2013

Water

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This study develops a methodology for the assessment of disproportionate costs according to the Water Framework Directive guidelines. The originality of the approach lies in the focus on the interdependencies between water bodies and the consideration of the multiple interactions between measures and pressures. However, the broad architecture of the study fits into a wider assessment procedure, already developed in recent studies. Specifically, a cost effectiveness analysis, implemented to select an efficient combination of measures, is integrated with a cost benefit analysis, which allows for the evaluation of the economic feasibility of the proposed actions. This methodology is applied to the Emilia-Romagna Region (Italy). In spite of the uncertainties in the estimations of costs and benefits, the study enables the identification of areas where disproportionate costs are more likely to occur. The results show that disproportionality tends to increase from foothill regions, where most of the functional uses of regional water resources are found, to plain areas, where the sources of pressure tend to be located. Finally, the study offers policy direction for the selection of measures in the case study region.

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The Influence of Interests and Beliefs on the Use of Environmental Cost–Benefit Analysis in Water Policy: The case of German policy‐makers

Dehnhardt

2014

Env Pol Gov

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In recent decades cost-benefit analysis (CBA) and environmental benefit valuation have been assigned a significant role for environmental policy-making and have been integrated as economic tools into the EC Water Framework Directive. The primary aim of the study is to explore the role that interests of bureaucratic actors as well as their beliefs might play in the application of environmental CBA. The paper draws on different analytical approaches derived from a political economy and a policy science perspective to explain the apparent reluctance to use the results of CBA and benefit estimates in policy-making. The empirical findings of a qualitative survey among German water policy-makers reveal that the self-interested behaviour of bureaucratic actors impedes the use of CBA, but also suggest a considerable influence of beliefs that shape actors' perception of the suitability of economic valuation approaches for environmental policy-making. A differentiated view on these restraints might contribute to a reasonable use of procedural economic instruments in order to achieve environmental objectives.

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The Disproportionality Principle in the WFD: How to Actually Apply it?

Cited by 16 publications

References 62 publications

Justifying exemptions through policy appraisal: ecological ambitions and water policy in France and the United Kingdom

Justifying exemptions through policy appraisal: ecological ambitions and water policy in France and the United Kingdom

An Assessment of Disproportionate Costs in WFD: The Experience of Emilia-Romagna

The Influence of Interests and Beliefs on the Use of Environmental Cost–Benefit Analysis in Water Policy: The case of German policy‐makers

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