Implementing the Water Framework Directive and the Quest for the Cost Allocation of Measures for Diffuse Water Pollution by Agriculture. The Polluter Pays or Gets Paid?

One of the core principles of the Water Framework Directive (WFD) is the ‘polluter pays’ –principle (article 9). The directive states that “member states shall take account of the principle of recovery of the costs of water services, including environmental and resource costs (…)” and in accordance in particular with the polluter pays principle. This is mostly considered in terms of the general recovery of services provided and the financial systems involved in this. In this contribution we trace the principle specifically for the problem of diffuse pollution of surface water by agriculture, referring to nutrients and pesticides, as this falls under ‘environmental and resource costs’. Diffuse pollution can be seen as a ‘wicked problem’ as it is sometimes difficult to exactly ‘prove’ who is the source of pollution, who is responsible in terms of different policies (fertiliser- or manure policies, agricultural policies for pesticides, etc.) and how to address these problems in terms of practical measures. We investigate in a broad country comparison what member states do in terms of programmes of measures for nutrients and pesticides, what the nature of measures generally is (source-based or effect-based), what programmes these measures are part of and who is finally paying for these measures. This ‘quest’ leads to many questions on the way: who actually is considered the polluter (farmer, consumer, tax payer?), to what extent are subsidy programs used to compensate costs for the farmer and water manager? Is there an open discussion on the cost recovery of measures for surface water in light of nutrients and pesticides –pollution and what is the rationale justifying distribution and allocation of costs? There is a variety of measures possible, which also leads to a variety of stakeholders paying for the costs involved: the consumer, the farmer, the tax payer through compensation, the regional or national water managers and stakeholders or Europe, through development- and subsidy programmes. Our aim is the make more explicit what argumentation – or lack of argumentation- is to be found in the paying for diffuse water pollution.