The Impact of the Water Framework Directive on Diffuse Pollution Control: the Case of Ditch Network Maintenance in Finnish Forests

Abstract

<p>The Water Framework Directive sets the aim to achieve and maintain the good status of surface and<br>ground water by 2015. In general the water quality has improved in Finland during the last centuries<br>but especially diffuse pollution is still a problem. Ditch network maintenance is a typical example<br>of a source of diffuse pollution where cumulative effects of several projects are the main cause of<br>water pollution. This article examines Finnish regulation concerning ditch network maintenance and<br>evaluates how well it meets the aim of achieving and maintaining the good quality of surface waters.<br>The article highlights that while Finnish legislation seems to work relatively well for individual projects,<br>there are flaws in the law and in practice that do not enable authorities to take cumulative effects<br>properly into account. The results suggest that the Water Framework Directive has not yet been<br>quite comprehensively implemented into Finnish legislation.<br></p>