Things are finally moving: just before Christmas, the draft bill for the H₂O-NRW Water Strategy for the Future was published, as announced by the Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Transport of North Rhine-Westphalia.
The paper contains 17 objectives grouped under the four thematic clusters of resilience, security, collaboration and organisation. The objectives are not to be considered in isolation, but rather as an interlocking overall concept. They are intended to complement and reinforce each other and serve as a strategic basis for decision-making in order to make water management in North Rhine-Westphalia sustainable and future-proof in the face of the challenges of climate and structural change.
The agw has been involved in the development of the strategy in various participation formats since the end of 2023 and welcomes the prioritisation of the topic of water at state level. However, it will be crucial that parallel initiatives - such as the Flood Protection Pact and the Enquete Commission on Water - are consistently integrated and dovetailed. Future-proof water management can only succeed if all relevant stakeholders work together in a coordinated and cooperative manner.
Comments on the water strategy for the future that has now been presented can be submitted until 8 February.
Further information: