Commission Secretary is an optimist for the Danube

Philip Weller, former head of WWF's Green Danuber program is now the Executive Secretary for the ICPDR. The International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River is a transnational body that was established to implement the Danube River Protection Convention. 

When did you start working on Danube-related issues and how?

I am not originally from the Danube Region - I was born in the UK but grew up in Canada. I first came to Vienna and the Danube Region in 1988 to work at the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis in 1988 before the collapse of the Iron Curtain. During that experience I was evaluating future scenarios for Europe including the waters of the Danube together with colleagues from Eastern Europe. At that time no one had any idea the political situtation would change so dramatically.

After moving to Vienna permanently in 1992 I began to work with environmental groups from Central and Eastern Europe including many who were working on Danube related issues. The connection with the Danube was intensified when I took over the Green Danube Programme of WWF in the mid 1990s. The early years of the programme were focused on protecting and restoring wetland habitats along the Danube.

In 2003 I had the honor to become the Executive Secretary of the ICPDR a position I still hold today. Every day of my working life is therefore connected with the Danube and the multitude of challenges and opportunities this region presents.

How has the situation changed today compared to when you started?

The Danube is cleaner now than when I started working on issues related to the Danube. The countries have done a lot to address the most obvious pollution problems. There is also now the Danube River Protection Convention which has created a forum for cooperation among the Danube countries in addressing water management issues. The positive spirit of cooperation that exists between governments and between all the people working to improve the conditions of the Danube is for me the most striking feature of the work.

What are the biggest opportunities or threats for the Danube, or both - depending on whether you are an optimist or a pessimist?

I am an optimist and am very excited about the possibilities that the Danube Strategy of the European Union offers to further create political attention and support for measures needed to restore and protect the Danube and above all integrate environmental considerations into development actions. The region needs to develop and it is my hope that this development will be based upon a sound respect and consideration of the natural values of the Danube which need restoration and protection. The Danube Strategy could be a turning point in changing environmental protection and Danube Water management issues from something that is thought about as an afterthought to development to something that is integrated into development strategies.

I am also very pleased that we have just completed the Danube River Basin Management Plan which sets out the steps we need to take to ensure that the good water quality conditions hoped for in the region will be achieved by the year 2015 as perscribed by the EU Water Framework Directive.

The Flood Action Plans being developed for the sub-basins of the Danube offer hope that people can be protected from damaging floods at the same time as allowing the natural fluctuations of the Danube and its tributaries to continue.