Water FrameworkDirective

Proposed Quality Standards

for

Surface Water Classification

A Discussion Document

For

Public Consultation

July 2007

Contents

Glossary and Definitions ……………………………………………………………..v

1 Introduction ………….…………………………………………………………….1

The Water Framework Directive …………..……………………………………….. 1

Quality Elements for Determining Ecological

Status (and Ecological Potential) ……………………………….…………… 1

Quality Elements for Determining Chemical Status ……………………….. 2

Classification Systems and Environmental Quality Standards………………. 2

State of Progress……………………………………………………………… 2

Next Steps ………………………………………………………………..3

Regulatory Impact Analysis …………………………………………………. 3

Key Questions………………………………………………………………... 3

2. The Need for Classification Schemes and Standards …………………………5

Background to Classification…………………………………………………………5

Monitoring Programme…………………………………………………………5

The Role of Surface Water Classification Schemes and standards…………………6

Biological Assessment………………………………………………... 6

Hydromorphological Assessment…………………………………………7

Chemical and Physico-chemical Assessment…………………………………7

Existing Standards …………………………………………………………… 8

Revision of Standards…………………………………………………………8

3 How Will Ecological Status, Ecological potential and Chemical Status

of Surface waters be determined ?…………………………………………………9

Normative Definitions of Ecological Status…………………………………………9

Ecological Quality Ratios…………………………………………………9

The Use of Hydromorphological Quality Elements………………………..10

The Use of Physico-chemical Quality Elements………………………..10

Calculating an Ecological Quality Ratio………………………………………..13

The “one out all out” Principle………………………………………………..15

4 Proposed Biological Classification Systems………………………………..17

Intercalibration………………………………………………………………..17

Biological Classification Systems...……………………………………………...17

River Invertebrates……………………………………………………… 18

Lake phytoplankton……………………………………………………… 18

Lake macrophytes……………………………………………………… 21

5 Developing Proposals for Physico-Chemical, Relevant Pollutants

and Chemical Standards………………………………………………………. 23

General Components (Physico-Chemical)………………………………………..23

Proposed Environmental Quality Standards (EQS)for the General Components (Physico-Chemical) Elements………………………………………………………..25

Priority Substances ………………………………………………………………..27

Environmental Quality Standards (EQS) Standards for Priority Substances………..27

Specific Relevant Pollutants………………………………………………………..30

Proposed Environmental Quality Standards (EQS) for Specific Relevant Pollutants.31

Appendix 1. The Q Scheme………………………………………………………..33

Appendix 2. General Components (Physico-chemical) Existing Standards

In use in Ireland………………………………………………. 37

Glossary and Definitions

Anthropogenic - Effects or processes caused by human activities.

Artificial Water Body (AWB) - Body of surface water created by human activity e.g. a canal.

Biological Quality Elements - Four biological quality elements – phytoplankton, other aquatic flora, benthic invertebrate fauna and fish have been specified by the WFD for inclusion in the assessment of ecological status.

Chemical Status - Chemical Status describes whether waters contain safe levels of certain chemicals that have been identified as of significant risk to or via the aquatic environment at an EU level.

Classification System - A technical procedure for assessing the status of a water body in accordance with the requirements of the Water Framework Directive (WFD).

Dangerous Substances Directive - (76/464/EEC)Council Directive of 4 May 1976 on pollution caused by certain dangerous substances discharged into the aquatic environment of the Community.

Ecological Potential - Is the status of a heavily modified or artificial waterbody.

Ecological Quality Ratio (EQR) -The relationship between the values of the biological parameters observed for a given body of surface water and the values for those parameters in the reference conditions applicable to that body. The ratio is to be expressed as a numerical value between zero and one, with high ecological status represented by values close to one and bad ecological status by values close to zero

Ecological Status - An expression of the quality of the structure and functioning of aquatic ecosystems associated with a surface water body. Biological as well as supporting hydromorphological and physico-chemical quality elements are to be used in the assessment of ecological status.

Environmental Quality Standard (EQS)- Specifies the absolute compliance concentration or range for a water quality element in the environment failure of which will be reported to the European Commission.

General Components (physico-chemical) - Pollutantsin groups 10-12 of WFD Annex VIII.

Good Ecological Potential - Is the required status of a heavily modified or an artificial water body.

Good Status - The status achieved by a surface waterbody when both its ecological status and its chemical status are at least ‘Good’.

Groundwater - All water which is below the surface of the ground in the saturation zone and in direct contact with the ground or subsoil.

Heavily Modified Water Body (HMWB) - Body of surface water, which is substantially changed in character as a result of human activity.

High Status - The status achieved by a surface water body when there are no, or only very minor, anthropogenic alterations to the values of the physico-chemical and hydromorphological quality elements and the biological quality elements show no or only very minor evidence of distortion.

Hydromorphological Quality Elements - Hydrological regime such as water quantity and hardness and morphology such as altitude, depth and substrate type, river continuity and lake residence time and tidal regime in saline waters.

Intercalibration - A process to ensure consistency and comparability of the classification systems for sampling, measurement and assessment of the biological elements across the EU Member States. It will also establish the boundaries between high and good status and between good and moderate status for these elements.

Invertebrate (macroinvertebrate) communities - Mayflies, Stone Flies, Shrimps, Snails, Bivalves etc. present in the rivers with varying sensitivities to increasing levels of pollution.

Macrophytes – Rooted plants growing in rivers, lakes and tidal waters.

Maximum Ecological Potential (MEP) - The state where "the values of the relevant biological quality elements reflect, as far as possible, those associated with the closest comparable surface water body type, given the physical conditions which result from the artificial or heavily modified characteristics of the water body.” For example an impounded river that forms a reservoir, such as the Blessington Reservoir, will be compared with a comparable lake.

Moderate Status - The values of the biological quality elements for the surface water body deviate moderately, as a result of human activity, from the reference or undisturbed condition.

Normative Definitions -of ecological status classifications – The general definitions of high, good and moderateecological status provided for the various quality elements in Annex V of the Water Framework Directive that together define surface water ecological status. The Directive gives normative definitions of ecological status for each surface water category.

Operational Monitoring - One of three types of monitoring specified in the WFD in order to:

  • establish the status of those bodies identified as being at risk of failing to meet their environmental objectives, and
  • assess any changes in the status of such bodies resulting from the programmes of measures.

In order to assess the magnitude of the pressure to which bodies of surface water are subject, operational monitoring is to be carried out for the following quality elements which are indicative of the pressures to which the body or bodies are subjected.

  • parameters which are indicative of the biological quality element, or elements, most sensitive to the pressures to which the water bodies are subject,
  • all priority substances discharged, and other pollutants discharged in significant quantities,
  • parameters which are indicative of the hydromorphological quality element most sensitive to the pressure identified.
Phytoplankton - microscopic free-floating plants mainly present in lakes and transitional waters.

Priority Substances - Substances identified in accordance with Article 16(2) of the Water Framework Directive and listed in the Annex to the Directive

Programmes of Measures (POMs) - Protection measures that must be implemented to meet the environmental objectives of the WFD.

Protected Areas - Bodies of water identified under Article 7(1) of the WFD and all areas covered by WFD Annex IV.

Psu =Practical Salinity Units - At 15°C the salinity of freshwater is 0 and oceanic water it is 35. (The Practical Salinity Scale defines salinity in terms of the conductivity ratio of a sample to that of a solution of 32.4 g of KCl at 15°C in a 1 kg solution. A sample of seawater at 15°C with a conductivity equal to this KCl solution has a salinity of exactly 35 practical salinity units (psu).

Quality Elements - The WFD specifies the factors, referred to as quality elements, that must be used in determining the ecological status or ecological potential and the surface water chemical status of a surface waterbody. The list of quality elements for each surface water category are divided into three groups of elements:

  • biological elements
  • hydromorphological elements
  • chemical and physico-chemical elements

Q value - Abiological water quality indexbased on the composition and abundance of invertebrate communities in rivers.It isbased on the composition and abundance of macroinvertebrate communities e.g. mayflies, stone flies, shrimps, snails, bivalves etc. present in the rivers and their varying sensitivities to increasing levels of pollution.

Reference Conditions - The condition established for each biological element in the absence of pollution or disturbance.

Regulatory Impact Analysis(RIA) - RIA is an assessment of the likely effects of new regulations. It involves a detailed analysis to:

  • ascertain whether or not the new regulation would have the desired impact.
  • identify any possible side effects or hidden costs associated with the proposed regulation
  • quantify the likely costs of compliance on the individual citizen, business and for the State.

River Basin District (RBD) - The area of land and sea, made up of one or more neighbouring river basins, together with their associated groundwaters and coastal waters, as the main unit for management of river basins.

Specific Relevant Pollutants - These are certain synthetic substances (e.g. biocides and plant protection products) and certain non-synthetic substances (e.g. metals) listed in 1 – 9 of Annex VIII of the WFD that are discharged in significant quantities to surface waters in Ireland and are not identified on the EU priority list.

Surface Water - Means all inland waters, except groundwater, and includes transitional waters and coastal waters; territorial waters are included as surface waters for the purposes of the Directive insofar as chemical status is concerned

Surface Water Status - Is the status of a surface water body, determined by the poorer of the ecological status and the chemical status.

Surveillance Monitoring - One of three types of monitoring specified in the WFD. Its objectives are to

to provide information for:

  • supplementing and validating the impact assessment procedure detailed in Annex II of WFD,
  • the efficient and effective design of future monitoring programmes,
  • the assessment of long-term changes in natural conditions, and
  • the assessment of long-term changes resulting from widespread anthropogenic activity.

Surveillance monitoring is to be carried out for each surveillance monitoring site for a period of one year during the period covered by a river basin management plan for:

  • parameters indicative of all biological quality elements,
  • parameters indicative of all hydromorphological quality elements,
  • parameters indicative of all general component (physico-chemical) quality elements,
  • priority pollutants which are discharged into the river basin or sub-basin, and
  • other pollutants discharged in significant quantities in the river basin or sub-basin.

TransitionalWaters - Bodies of surface water in the vicinity of river mouths which are partly saline in character as a result of their proximity to coastal waters but which are substantially influenced by freshwater flows.

Trigger Action Value (TAV) - A TAV is a numerical value proposed in some cases for certain parameters (e.g. phosphorus), usually in parallel with an environmental quality standard (EQS), and which provides in these cases amore stringent non-binding target than the EQS, e.g. in the case of a water bodies thought to be especially sensitive to that parameter. TAVs are also used in other situations such as in the case of the parameter ‘dissolved oxygen’ where 24-hour continuous monitoring is required to establish compliance or otherwise with the EQS in the event that the TAV value based on ‘grab-sampling’ is breached.

Water Framework Directive(WFD) - Directive 2000/60/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2000 establishing a framework for Community action in the field of water policy.

Water Policy Regulations - Irish Statutory Instruments which support the WFD. EC Water Policy Regulations (SI No. 722 of 2003) and EC Water Policy Regulations (Amendment) (SI No. 413 of 2005).

1

1.Introduction

The Water Framework Directive

An EU directive (2000/60/EC) was published and entered into force in December 2000 to provide a legislative framework to protect and improve the quality of waters, specifically -

  • rivers,
  • lakes,
  • transitional (estuarine) and coastal waters
  • groundwaters.

The directive deals also with artificial water bodies – such as canals – as well as waters whose character is substantially changed by human activity - referred to as heavily modified water bodies (HMWBs). With the exception of groundwaters, these waters covered by the directive are collectively referred to as surface waters. The directive has become commonly known as the Water Framework Directive (WFD).

A key element of WFD implementation is the establishment of River Basin Districts, and the island of Ireland has been divided into eight such districts, each comprising groups of adjoining river basins or catchments.

The WFD requires that the status of each of the surface waters is determined through the assessment of:

  • ecological status or, in the case of artificial and heavily modified water bodies, ecological potential, and
  • chemical status

This document sets out how ecological status, ecological potential and chemical status of surface waters will be determined in the implementation of the WFD in Ireland. This process involves the examination of key general features of environmental quality, termed the quality elements.

Quality Elements for Determining Ecological Status (and Ecological Potential)

There are four quality elements to be considered for each surface water category, in order to assess its ecological status (or ecological potential); they are as follows:

  • biological quality elements
  • general components (physico chemical)
  • specific relevant pollutants
  • hydromorphological elements - dealing with water flows, physical characteristics, etc.

Thus, perhaps unexpectedly, the determination of ecological status includes not just the biological quality elements but also elements requiring certain chemical, physico-chemical and physical measurements. The WFD includes these elements as supporting elements to the biological elements. These four groupings of elements used to determine ecological status are set out in greater detail later in this document.

It may be noted that the quality elements to determine the ecological potential of heavily modified and artificial waterbodies are to be those relevant to whichever of the four surface water categories the heavily modified and artificial waterbody most closely resembles.

Quality Elements for Determining Chemical Status

The determination of chemical status is made using a separate suite of

  • chemicalelements

The chemical elements comprise a suite of priority substances. The list of priority substances has been established at the EU level.

Classification Systems and Environmental Quality Standards

WFD classification systems and environmental quality standards (EQS) are being developed by the Environmental Protection Agency for the purpose of assessing the ecological status of surface waters in Ireland using these suites of quality elements. The main purpose of this document is to form the basis for public consultation on classification systems and standards. In particular, the classification systems developed to date for

biological quality elements

are described herein.

Listings of proposed EQSs for the following elements:

general components (physico-chemical) and

specific relevant pollutants

are presented in tables at the end of the document and comment is invited on all of these. Proposals for hydromorphological EQSs will be the subject of public consultation at a later date.

Also included are the environmental quality standards for priority substances as proposed by the European Commission.

State of Progress

Significant progress has been made on many fronts in the implementation of the WFD in Ireland. The full suite of classification systems required to deal with the biological quality elements is not yet complete, however, as the EU wide intercalibration exercise has not been finalised. Three biological systems have been completed and intercalibrated to date.

Work is still ongoing on the hydromorphological systems.

For the general components (physico-chemical) and specific relevant pollutants, draft EQS values have being prepared by the EPA as noted above.

Next Steps

Following this consultation process, the EPA will make recommendations to the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government in relation to the classification systems for the three biological quality elements and the proposed EQS values for the general components (physico-chemical), the specific relevant pollutants, prepared in the initial phase of EQS development. The recommendations will serve as an input to the making of further Regulations by the Minister to give statutory effect to measures for implementation of the Water Framework Directive and the draft EQS values, proposed by the European Commission, for priority substances.

The classification systems and proposed EQS values set out in this document for the chemical substances will, together with the assessments of the biological elements and supporting hydromorphological elements (WFD Annex V) provide the basis for classifying surface water status and will serve to underpin the measures to be implemented for controlling emissions, discharges and losses of these substances to water.

Regulatory Impact Analysis

To assist in the public consultation on the proposed surface water classification systems and to assess the likely effects of classification regulations (e.g. the potential level of non-compliance and the subsequent costs of achieving compliance) a screening Regulatory Impact Analysis (RIA) is included with this document. The screening RIA relates to the proposed EQS values for general components (physico-chemical), specific relevant pollutants and priority substances is included with this document. A full RIA, using this screening RIA as its basis, is being prepared and is due for completion by the end of September 2007.

Key Questions

The EPA would like to get the views of interested parties on the proposed standards prior to making recommendations to the Minister for the Environment Heritage and Local Government and in particular would wish to ascertain the following:

a)Are the standards set at an appropriate level?

b)Is the basis for their derivation clear and appropriate?