IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v15y2023i8p6491-d1120913.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Wetland Contracts as Sustainable Governance Tools: A Review of the Output of the Interreg Project CREW “Coordinated Wetland Management in Italy-Croatia Cross Border Region”

Author

Listed:
  • Maria Giulia Cantaluppi

    (Department of Architecture and Art, Università Iuav di Venezia, 30135 Venice, Italy)

  • Marta De Marchi

    (Department of Architecture and Art, Università Iuav di Venezia, 30135 Venice, Italy)

  • Michela Pace

    (Department of Architecture and Art, Università Iuav di Venezia, 30135 Venice, Italy)

  • Maria Chiara Tosi

    (Department of Architecture and Art, Università Iuav di Venezia, 30135 Venice, Italy)

Abstract

Wetlands are complex ecosystems, considered among the most productive environments in the world. They contain important biodiversity hotspots, provide the resources on which countless plant and animal species depend and perform important environmental and economic functions. Wetlands reduce flooding events, improve water quality and represent a valuable cultural and natural heritage. The European Directive (2000/60/EC) requires fostering an integrated approach to wetland management through collaborative governance processes. The Wetland Contract is a tool that has been developed and implemented in order to promote the sustainable governance of water systems. Among the Mediterranean countries, Italy and Croatia count on a rich variety of coastal wetlands that, together with the plants and animals that inhabit and pass through them, constitute an extremely valuable natural heritage. This paper presents and discusses the results of the Interreg Project CREW that, between 2018–2021, contributed to the drafting of seven new Wetland Contracts. Through a comparative reading, the aim is to understand, on the one hand, how the different Contracts have responded individually to a shared programme based on European requirements; on the other hand, the aim is also to bring similar experiences closer together to assess their overall potential on an international scale. The article shows how the constant exchange between CREW partners and the continuous updating on ongoing activities, methodologies and proposed solutions in the seven target areas facilitated the construction of a shared cross-border strategy for wetland governance. The comparison also highlights some principles considered fundamental by all partners (protection and enhancement; integrated governance; awareness-raising and learning) that have served the construction of a transnational Observatory, aimed at monitoring, sharing practices and able to guide the formation of future Wetland Contracts.

Suggested Citation

  • Maria Giulia Cantaluppi & Marta De Marchi & Michela Pace & Maria Chiara Tosi, 2023. "Wetland Contracts as Sustainable Governance Tools: A Review of the Output of the Interreg Project CREW “Coordinated Wetland Management in Italy-Croatia Cross Border Region”," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(8), pages 1-18, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:15:y:2023:i:8:p:6491-:d:1120913
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/15/8/6491/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/15/8/6491/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Donatella Cialdea & Chiara Pompei, 2022. "An overview of the River Contract tool: new aims in planning and protected areas issues," European Planning Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 30(4), pages 684-704, April.
    2. Rutgerd Boelens & Jaime Hoogesteger & Erik Swyngedouw & Jeroen Vos & Philippus Wester, 2016. "Hydrosocial territories: a political ecology perspective," Water International, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 41(1), pages 1-14, January.
    3. Sipesihle Booi & Syden Mishi & Oddgeir Andersen, 2022. "Ecosystem Services: A Systematic Review of Provisioning and Cultural Ecosystem Services in Estuaries," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(12), pages 1-29, June.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Daniele T. P. Souza & Eugenia A. Kuhn & Arjen E. J. Wals & Pedro R. Jacobi, 2020. "Learning in, with, and through the Territory: Territory-Based Learning as a Catalyst for Urban Sustainability," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(7), pages 1-19, April.
    2. Sandra Ricart & Antonio M. Rico-Amorós, 2022. "Can agriculture and conservation be compatible in a coastal wetland? Balancing stakeholders’ narratives and interactions in the management of El Hondo Natural Park, Spain," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 39(2), pages 589-604, June.
    3. Buchs, Arnaud & Calvo-Mendieta, Iratxe & Petit, Olivier & Roman, Philippe, 2021. "Challenging the ecological economics of water: Social and political perspectives," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 190(C).
    4. Angela Colucci, 2023. "Resilience Practices Contribution Enabling European Landscape Policy Innovation and Implementation," Land, MDPI, vol. 12(3), pages 1-15, March.
    5. Filippo Menga & Michael K. Goodman, 2022. "The High Priests of Global Development: Capitalism, Religion and the Political Economy of Sacrifice in a Celebrity‐led Water Charity," Development and Change, International Institute of Social Studies, vol. 53(4), pages 705-735, July.
    6. William Skinner & Georgina Drew & Douglas K. Bardsley, 2023. "“Half a flood’s no good”: flooding, viticulture, and hydrosocial terroir in a South Australian wine region," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 40(2), pages 549-564, June.
    7. Guoqiang Wang & Tianjian Yang & Mengmeng Zhao & Ting Li & Cai Zhang & Qinghua Chen & Xinyue Wen & Lirong Dang, 2023. "Natural Nitrogen-Bearing and Phosphorus-Bearing Nanoparticles in Surface Sediments of the Pearl River Estuary, China: Implications for Nitrogen and Phosphorus Cycling in Estuarine and Coastal Ecosyste," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(19), pages 1-17, September.
    8. Astrid B Stensrud, 2019. "The social embeddedness of hydraulic engineers in the regulation of water and infrastructure in Peru," Environment and Planning C, , vol. 37(7), pages 1235-1251, November.
    9. Leonhard Klinck & Kingsley K. Ayisi & Johannes Isselstein, 2022. "Drought-Induced Challenges and Different Responses by Smallholder and Semicommercial Livestock Farmers in Semiarid Limpopo, South Africa—An Indicator-Based Assessment," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(14), pages 1-14, July.
    10. Nygren, Anja, 2021. "Water and power, water’s power: State-making and socionature shaping volatile rivers and riverine people in Mexico," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 146(C).
    11. Rossana Manosalvas & Jaime Hoogesteger & Rutgerd Boelens, 2023. "Imaginaries of place in territorialization processes: Transforming the Oyacachi páramos through nature conservation and water transfers in the Ecuadorian highlands," Environment and Planning C, , vol. 41(5), pages 1010-1028, August.
    12. Jichuan Sheng & Xiao Han, 2023. "Constructing payments for ecosystem services hydrosocial territories through assemblage practices: China’s Xin’an river basin eco-compensation pilot," Environment and Planning C, , vol. 41(2), pages 375-391, March.
    13. Claudio Rafael Mariano Baigún & Priscilla Gail Minotti, 2021. "Conserving the Paraguay-Paraná Fluvial Corridor in the XXI Century: Conflicts, Threats, and Challenges," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(9), pages 1-28, May.
    14. Nassif, Marie-Helene & Tawfik, Mohamed, 2022. "Toward a more harmonious planning and governance of agricultural water reuse: guidelines, practices and obstacles," IWMI Books, Reports H051744, International Water Management Institute.
    15. Mason, Michael, 2022. "Infrastructure under pressure: water management and state-making in Southern Iraq," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 114909, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    16. Anahí Urquiza & Marco Billi, 2020. "Water markets and social–ecological resilience to water stress in the context of climate change: an analysis of the Limarí Basin, Chile," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 22(3), pages 1929-1951, March.
    17. Srivastwa, Amit Kumar & Kabra, Asmita, 2023. "Socio-spatial Infrastructures: Drinking Water Supply and Formation of Unequal Socio-technological Relations in Rural Southern Bihar," Ecology, Economy and Society - the INSEE Journal, Indian Society of Ecological Economics (INSEE), vol. 6(02), July.
    18. repec:hal:journl:hal-04193775 is not listed on IDEAS
    19. Van Assche, Kristof & Birchall, Jeff & Gruezmacher, Monica, 2022. "Arctic and northern community governance: The need for local planning and design as resilience strategy," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 117(C).
    20. Sarah Rogers & Mark Wang, 2020. "Producing a Chinese hydrosocial territory: A river of clean water flows north from Danjiangkou," Environment and Planning C, , vol. 38(7-8), pages 1308-1327, November.
    21. Schoderer, Mirja & Ott, Marlen, 2022. "Contested water- and miningscapes – Explaining the high intensity of water and mining conflicts in a meta-study," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 154(C).

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:15:y:2023:i:8:p:6491-:d:1120913. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.