The integration of water issues in comprehensive municipal planning : A comparison of organization and practice in Sweden and the Netherlands

The water environment is facing many threats, waters are polluted, ecosystems destroyed andclimate change is causing more problems related to flooding and droughts. For a long time,these water problems have been addressed separately. Although there have been improvementsin how water is managed, for example through advanced wastewater treatment, in order toaddress water problems thoroughly, the use of integrated water management has been advocatedas the solution. This integration can refer to the consideration of the different components of thewater system, the connection between the water system, social and economic factors and to thelink between the water management and other policy sectors. The EU Water FrameworkDirective has further stressed the importance of an integrated approach to water management.The connection between spatial planning and water management has been recognized as beingof special importance. By considering water aspects in spatial planning it is possible to preventnegative effects on the water system. This study focuses on the practice of comprehensivemunicipal planning and the integration of water issues in that process. Based on interviews anda literature review it tries to find answers on how the organization of the spatial planning andwater management systems contribute to that integration and what other factors are ofrelevance. The situation in Sweden is compared with the situation in the Netherlands. Thiscomparison shows that water issues are of great importance in Dutch spatial planning. This canbe explained by the historical battle against water, since a large part of the Netherlands issituated below sea level. In contrast to the Swedish situation, several organizational levels haveresponsibilities in water planning and there is the presence of a strong water institution, theWater Boards. A requirement to carry out a Water Assessment for spatial plans has been aninitiative to further raise the integration of water issues in spatial planning. Although it appearsthat the Netherlands have better prerequisites to integrate water in spatial planning, thecomparison with Sweden shows that other factors and uncertainties at the local level are quitesimilar. Solutions for integration have been proposed, for example the development ofmunicipal water plans. In two case studies, local efforts to promote the integration of waterissues in planning are further discussed