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Karlsruhe, 22 March 2020. The ERM coalition has adopted the European River Memorandum 2020 (ERM). The ERM Coalition comprises the associations of drinking water suppliers in the major European river basins of the Danube, Elbe, Meuse, Scheldt, Ruhr and Rhine, inhabited by 188 million depend on clean drinking water. In the memorandum, the suppliers set out target values for watercourses, which are indispensable as minimum quality standards for a sustainable drinking water supply.

Prof. Dr. Matthias Maier, President of the International Association of Waterworks in the Rhine Basin, IAWR, points out the current situation of drinking water suppliers: “The greatest threat to the long-term provision of clean, natural drinking water is the contamination of water resources with chemicals. A large number of substances are introduced into the water cycle by human activities. From the water suppliers‘ point of view, the inputs are not sufficiently controlled. In some cases, the substances can only be removed to a limited extent with existing drinking water treatment technologies. Climate change is changing the water cycle, therefore the remaining drinking water resources must be protected more intensively in order to adapt.“

Maier emphasises what is now imperative: “If we do not act now, this development will lead to a widespread introduction of cost- and energy-intensive and thus climate-damaging end-of-pipe technologies in waterworks. This is not a solution in the sense of future generations, but an unacceptable paradigm shift away from the prevention of pollution to the acceptance of pollution at its source. This contradicts the objectives and recitals of the European Water Framework Directive“.

In the European River Memorandum, the coalition partners derive strategies that are required to meet the target values. For effective water protection, politicians and administration must implement consistent measures: transparency in the discharge of substances, strict approval criteria for chemicals, and making those responsible for micro-pollutants accountable.

A first success in the sense of the ERM coalition could already be achieved on 13 February 2020 at the Rhine Ministerial Conference in Amsterdam. The responsible ministers of the European riparian states agreed on the “Rhine 2040” programme, in which a concrete reduction objective for micro-pollutants of at least 30 percent by 2040 for the first time was set, with a review and, if necessary, increase after 6 years.

“The ‘Rhine 2040‘ programme is a starting signal in the spirit of the ERM and must become a model for all European river basins. Only in this way can we secure drinking water resources for the next generation,” the coalition partners agree.

Soon, the Catharijnesingel near TivoliVredenburg will see the arrival of a giant plastic whale made of five tonnes of litter that was polluting the ocean near Hawaii. The Faculty of Law, Economics and Governance of Utrecht University has arranged for the piece to come to Utrecht for a period of six months. ‘This whale is a symbol for our research into sustainable water management.’

Marleen van Rijswick, Professor of European and national water law and programme leader for the Utrecht Centre for Water, Oceans and Sustainability Law, first saw the piece titled Skyscraper when she visited the city of Bruges to attend a conference on sustainability. Impressed by the 11-metre high structure, she started looking into ways of moving it to Utrecht.

Eventually, and with help from six different partners who were all equally excited by the look of the whale and its message, she made it happen. Assembly of the plastic whale will start in late December, and the official unveiling will take place on 17 January. Afterwards, a variety of events and lectures will be organised that centre on the whale and its relevant themes (click here to view the complete programme). During its stay in Utrecht, everyone will be able to take a look at it.

Skyscraper is a work of art created by the American StudioKCA agency that allows the makers to call attention to the issue of plastic waste that is polluting the oceans. ‘The piece is a great fit for our research into the sustainable use of rivers and oceans’, says Van Rijswick. Utrecht University does quite a bit of research into the causes and the harmful effects of the great amounts of plastic waste. Van Rijswick, for instance, is researching how ecosystems can be protected by a source-based approach that prevents rivers from becoming polluted and oceans from becoming a plastic soup. Seline Trevisanut is researching how the law can contribute to more sustainable ocean use. Alex Oude Elferink is on the Scientific Advisory Board of The Ocean Cleanup. Oceanographer Erik van Sebille is mapping just how plastic waste moves throughout the ocean. And the Faculty of Science is working on the development of plastic made of biomaterials.

Four floors high

Van Rijswick: ‘Not only is the whale a great fit for our research, it’s also a cool way to make people aware of the fact that we really need to take action on this front. The piece is about as high as a four-story building, so it’s sure to stand out. It even looks quite cheerful – until you examine it properly and recognise where all the plastic came from, that is. It’s quite a clever concept by the artist.’

Until recently, the artwork was set up in Bruges for the 2018 Bruges Triennial. Utrecht will be Skyscraper‘s second destination. Next summer, it will travel onwards to Paris and from there to many other cities around the world.

RIWA-Rhine

RIWA-Rhine sponsors the arrival of the whale in Utrecht, because we want to gain attention for plastic that enters the sea through the rivers.

 

 

This project was made possible both financially and practically with the aid of the Province of Utrecht, the Municipality of Utrecht, the Stichtse Rijnlanden Water Authority, RIWA (the Association of River water companies), the a.s.r. insurance company and the Sweco engineering advisory agency.