Webinars on watercourse planning and climate adaption
A series of webinars have been held by the Danish WaterCoG partners, KL.
Webinar: Comprehensive planning in a watercourse catchment area affected by major floods
On 24 June 2020, WaterCoG partners in Denmark, KL, held a webinar on comprehensive planning in a watercourse catchment area affected by major floods.
The webinar was held as a supplement to KL's water and nature network and as part of the work on the WaterCoGovernance project.
Comprehensive plans for Ryå
KL, together with Agriculture and Food, asked the Minister of the Environment to introduce mandatory comprehensive planning for total watercourse systems. Several municipalities have worked together on plans of this type. During this webinar, Jammerbugt Municipality and the Limfjord Council present an example.
Ryå is perhaps the flattest stream in Denmark, and the fields by the river are flooded winter after winter. Farmers are suffering heavy losses and want the river regulated.
The municipalities spend a lot of money on the maintenance of the river, and nature has a hard time. Climate change is making the problems bigger and bigger.
The municipalities around Ryå have together made a comprehensive plan, which contains a number of solutions. Many interested partners have participated in the work of creating the framework for holistic management of the watercourse system.
Department manager Henrik Damsgaard from Jammerbugt Municipality and project manager Susanne Mortensen from the Limfjord Council focuses on the background, process and challenges for comprehensive planning. They also present specific wetland projects in the river basin district.
You can watch the recording of the webinar here.
The recording begins with practical information about the settlement. The presentation starts at approx. 5 minutes inside the video.
Webinar: Commitment to Climate Adaption, through involvement in measurement programmes
On 18 June 2020, KL held a webinar on the North Holland Water Authority's work with behaviour change in farmers on the basis of their own measurements. The webinar was held as a supplement to KL's Climate Adaptation Network and as part of the work on the WaterCoGovernance project under Interreg North Sea.
Climate adaptation v. Behavior change
Climate adaptation can also be behaviour change. But it is difficult if you are forced to make changes from the outside, and especially if you do not understand why, when and how to change your behaviour.
This webinar is about how a project in the Netherlands has created change by involving the locals in a measurement programme. The webinar is aimed at everyone who works with involvement and dissemination about climate adaptation - the case is about water, but the core of the story is generic.
On the island of Texel in the Netherlands, they live off tourism and agriculture. The farmers cultivate i.e. hyacinths and tulips, which require a lot of water. Climate change threatens the industry because the island lacks fresh water. It is crucial to achieving a better water household, otherwise, the flower gardeners on the island will have to close.
The water authority in North Holland makes a simple measuring tool available to the farmers, who themselves carry out a simple measuring program. The measurements can show when and for how long they have fresh water in the canals so that the flowers can be watered. The objectives of the water authority are:
- that the measurements provide an understanding of the causes of the problem,
- that that understanding leads to acceptance of changed canal regulation, which can prevent waste of freshwater resource.
Arjen Grent, from the water authority in North Holland, is the project manager and his presentation focuses on two things:
Involvement and effect: Who measures? Why did they get interested in measuring? What do the participants say about their motivation to be part of the project? What did the water authority do? What effect has the project had on problem understanding - and on acceptance of changed regulation of the channels?
The measurements: What do they measure? How do they do it? What do they do with data? Who gets to see data? What platform can they view data on?
Follow the link to watch the webinar recording here.
The recording begins with practical information about the settlement. The presentation itself starts approx. 5 minutes inside the video.