The focus of this study was to provide a general overview of the use of water pricing and water allocation policies in Europe. To lay the foundation for analysing the impacts of these policies on water use in agriculture, the project first carried out an extensive literature review on the economic theory and concepts behind water pricing and water allocation policy and what this implies for the agriculture sector. The work to provide an overview of policies in the EU agriculture sector presented the current state of the art in all EU Member States. To analyse the impacts of water pricing and water allocation policies, the team carried out 7 case studies in cooperation with national experts, including 2 case studies from outside Europe (Mexico and Australia). The case study work helped to identify good practices by analysing the factors, both positive and negative, influencing these policies and the direct and indirect impacts of their implementation. Based on this work, policy recommendations were developed for European river basins and further implementation of the Water Framework Directive. Fresh Thoughts undertook the case on a sub-basin of the Danube River in Romania and was the task lead on the development of policy recommendations.
Read the full report and annexes of the study.