Action 32001 - Water Quantity Management (WQM)

Can we predict or prevent floods and droughts and will those disasters be worse under a changed climate?

Recent local and transnational disasters have demonstrated to the European Commission and the Member States of the European Union the paramount importance of efficient risk management. The prevention of and response to such natural disasters call more and more for the pooling of efforts and competencies from different thematic sectors and technical disciplines of the individual EU Member States towards a common action.

The WQM Action focuses on the development of a better capacity for early warning, monitoring and damage assessment systems for weather-driven natural hazards, as well as for tools for assessing climate change effects, land-use change effects, risk mapping and adaptation (prevention and reduction) to extreme events driven by the current climate and expected changes in climate. Modelling is given specific attention with respect to the occurrence of natural events such as floods and droughts, for example in support of the Flood Action Programme. The Action is geared towards the provision of direct support to the Community civil protection mechanism (MIC) and to interventions by the Solidarity Fund. It is also linked to the development of the Global Monitoring for Environment and Security (GMES) services.

Models and systems developed within this Action include:

¤ LISFLOOD – a catchment hydrological modelling system

¤ EFAS – the European Flood Alert System

¤ MOLAND – a land use simulation model

Specific objectives of the Action

• Pre-operational testing, finalisation and transfer of the European Flood Alert System (EFAS).
• Development and testing of a Flood Watch System for Europe.
• Multi Natural Risk Mapping (floods, droughts and forest fires), including providing support to the Flood Directive.
• European urban and regional land-use scenarios effects on weather-driven natural hazards.
• Assessment of climate change effects on weather-driven natural hazards in Europe.
• Enlargement and Integration.
• Exploratory Research.

The Action runs the European Flood Alert System in a pre-operational testing mode, providing a pan-European early flood warning twice a day, seven days per week. These early warnings are communicated to a network of National Hydrological Services (NHS), which are responsible for instigating further action.

The Action contributes to several FP6 and FP7 research projects such as: SAFER, IMPRINTS, KulturRisk, GLOWASIS, PREVIEW, FloodSite, ADAM, GEOLAND, ORCHESTRA, SCENARIO, PLUREL. 

More information can be found on the FLOODS Portal.

Main customers

- DG Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection (ECHO)

- DG Environment

- DG Regional Policy

- DG Enterprise and Industry 

- European Environmental Agency (EEA)

- Members States National and Regional Hydrological Services (EFAS MoU network)

- International River Basin Commissions (IKSO/ICPER, IKSD/ICPDR)

EU Legislation and Documents supported by this Action

- Proposal for a European Flood Directive (COM(2006) 15)

- Community Mechanism for Civil Protection (COM 2004/277/EC)

- Water Framework Directive (COM 2000/60/EC)

- ICPDR Flood Action Plan (IC/082)

- IKSE Flood Action Plan

- Cohesion policy (Structural Funds 2007-2013)

- Communication on Winning the Battle Against Global Climate Change (COM(2005) 35)

- Communication on Limiting Global Climate Change to 2 degrees Celsius - The way ahead for
   2020 and beyond (COM(2007) 2)

- Thematic Strategy on the Urban Environment. Communication From the Commission to the
   Council and the European Parliament (Sec(2006) 16)

- European Regional Development Fund. Regulation (EC) No 1080/2006 of the European
  Parliament and of the Council.

Contact Info

Ad de Roo - Tel.: +39-0332-786240 E-mail: ad.de-roo(at)jrc.ec.europa.eu