Municipal Water Management Plan - Isola Vicentina

Public consultation with ordinary citizens and the main local stakeholder groups.

The Municipal Water Management Plan (MWMP) of Isola Vicentina in Italy aims at reducing the threat of floods and landslides, events that are quite common in the area and have caused significant damages in the past. The plan was adopted in 2017, after being developed at the local level with the cooperation of the Università Iuav di Venezia and the local consultancy firm Green Dev. The plan includes different nature-based solutions to prevent, protect against and prepare for floods. The plan was developed in line with the EU's Flood Directive (2007/60/EC), which focused on the dimensions prevention, protection and preparation. Through the implementation of the plan, Isola Vicentina demonstrates how ecosystem restoration of, for example, woodlands, flood plains and wetlands can play a crucial role in decreasing the threats from flood events. The plan's implementation was realized with the support of funding from the local municipality and private citizens. There was also cooperation with regional institutions to implement nature-based solutions outside of Isola Vicenta's jurisdiction.

Overview

Type of instrument:

Legislative, regulatory and strategic instruments›Overarching/cross-sectoral strategy, plan, or law

Challenges addressed

Green space management (e.g. accessibility)
Flood risk: pluvial and fluvial / soil permeability
Landslide risk

Consideration of nature-based solutions:

Given the potential positive effects of nature-based solutions on decreasing the flood risks in Isola Vicentina, the Plan outlined precise aims and objectives. With the scientific support of the Università Iuav di Venezia, very specific woodland and floodplain areas were identified in which reforestation and better drainage management could make the most effective contributions towards preventing floods. For example, a ten-hectare pilot area was identified to simulate how the preservation of woodlands can improve the resilience of the municipal territory to flooding and landslides. The Plan also highlighted the importance of raising awareness amongst the population, given that local farmers have to implement many of the policies on their land.

Targeted (peri-)urban areas:

Allotments, community gardens or agricultural areas

Green areas for water management

Good practice characteristics:

Effective

Support multifunctional NBS

Locally appropriate

Potential to be replicated / upscaled

Innovative

Inclusivity

Governance

Government body/bodies

Initiating body:

City Council of Isola Vicentina

Instrument design:

Details about how the instrument was designed:

The Plan was elaborated in a cooperation between the municipal government of Isola Vicentina, the IUAV University (which offered scientific support) and municipal and technical consultants who carried out important field work. A relevant role was also played by citizens, who was directly involved in site surveys and in the identification of the most critical target areas for nature-based solutions. The Plan was also designed in line with the EU 2007 Floods Directive.

Involvement of non-governmental actors:

Private sector, corporate, business

Researchers, university

Citizens or community groups / NGOs

Type of actor involvement:

Co-planning or co-design of instrument (e.g. boards, advisory role)

Expert task force consultation

Civil society consultation through e.g. workshops, surveys

Instrument implementation:

Type of involvement:

Through their personal experience of past floods, citizens could contribute significant insights to the process. They were thus involved through consultations and workshops in order to identify target areas for implementation and envisage locally suited flood risk reduction measures. Final measures in the Plan were selected comparing the results obtained from the hydrologic/hydraulic analysis with the citizens' priorities and feedback. Beyond the general public, targeted key stakeholder groups (such as farmers, business people and the landowners of flood-prone areas) were explicitly invited to participate in the consultations. The workshops were also used to spread flood risk awareness and train people on how to cope with extreme weather conditions.

Type of non-governmental actors involved:

Implementation of NBS (e.g. with government funds)

Citizen monitoring and review

Targeted actors:

Private: household, real estate developer, business , financial

Citizens or community groups (CBOs), NGOs

Financing

Sources of funding:

Public regional budget

Public local authority’s budget

Private citizens

Budget:

1 000 000€ - 5 000 000€

Details about instrument financing:

The cost for the elaboration of the Plan was €25.000. According to the Plan, the cost for structural protection measures range from around €2 million to €4 million. Minor interventions were paid by the municipal authority and private citizens. Major works, involving wider areas and catchments going beyond the municipal boundary, require the economic contribution of the “Alta Pianura Veneta” land reclamation authority (a public-private consortium made up of all landowners in the area of competence) and of the Veneto Region government.

Monitoring, evaluation and impacts

Achieved outcomes and impacts:

A few measures - both structural and non-structural - were already being implemented when the plan started in 2017. Specifically: (i) a management and maintenance regulation framework over small private ditches was adopted, (ii) one of the three planned water retention areas was under construction, and (iii) a ten-hectare pilot area was identified to simulate how the preservation of woodlands can improve the resilience of the municipal territory to flooding and landslides. Further impacts can not yet be assessed.

Success factors and lessons learned:

An important success factor for the Plan has been the involvement of citizens, which has helped immensely with identifying target areas for nature-based solutions. In addition, the cooperation with the Università Iuav di Venezia and the local consulting firm Green-Dev has enabled the relatively small municipality to conduct a professional scientific analysis of water flows and precipitation amounts, which facilitated the identification of target areas for nature-based solutions. The importance of the EU’s Mayors Adapt Initiative to kick-start the process has to be highlighted as well. Overall, the Plan demonstrates how cooperation and collaboration with actors from different levels makes it possible to create an effective instrument on the local level. This is particularly important in the area of the Venetian plain (and Italy in general), which is characterized by widespread fragile conditions, as evidenced by the frequency of instability and flooding phenomena. In this regard, Isola Vicentina can act as a role model for other municipalities.

Sources and further information

References

List of references:

Climate Adapt (2017): Mainstreaming adaptation in water management for flood protection in Isola Vicentina. Available at: https://ccadapt-demo.eea.europa.eu/metadata/case-studies/mainstreaming-adaptation-in-water-management-for-flood-protection-in-isola-vicentina (Accessed 26.08.2022).

Musco, F.; Rusconi, A.; Pasi, R.; pellizzaro, D.; Vettore, E.; Innocenti, A. (2017): Piano Comunale delle Acque di Isola Vicentina - Relazione idrologica ed idraulica.

Garello, V. (2019): Piano Comunale delle Acque - Interventi di Protezione Bacini - Documento di fattibilità delle alternative progettuali.

References

Photos