REC - Telematics: DETERMINE: Water Quality and Resource Management (2)

Towards an Integrated Danube River Basin Information System Water Related Information on the World Wide Web

I. Ruzic, Environmental Specialist
Ruder Bo_kovic Institute, Center for Marine and Environmental Research, Zagreb, Croatia
Email: ruzic@olimp.irb.hr

W. Pillmann, General Secretary,
International Society for Environmental Protection, and Austrian Federal Institute for Public Health, Vienna, Austria
Email: werner.pillmann@cedar.univie.ac.at

SUMMARY

The development of environmental information and communication-related activities within the Danube River Basin has been influenced by three important events. These are the establishment of the Environmental Programme for the Danube River Basin (EPDRB), the Environmental Action Programme (EAP), and the Danube River Protection Convention (DRPC). The goals of the EPDRB are to coordinate and support water quality monitoring, data collection and assessment, and emergency response systems. Following the ratification of the DRPC, the International Commission took the responsibility for all Danube programmes. To establish efficient information flow in the Danube region, modern Telematics applications and a multi-dimensional information structure model has been introduced, enabling the development of a distributed information system within individual countries. In order to achieve this, a Danube Information System has began to be implemented using Internet technology, state-of-the-art Intranet, Extranet and open Internet information exchange on the World Wide Web.

INTRODUCTION

The Danube River Basin covers 817,000 km2 and 17 countries. It lies at the heart of Central Europe (see Figure 1).

Figure 1: The Danube River Basin (Source: City Council of Vienna)

The cumulative inflow of nutrients to the Danube River has led to the eutrophication of the river and to the pollution of its groundwater, as well as adding to the degradation of the unique Danube delta and the north-west shelf region of the Black Sea.

To reduce the pollution load, the international Environmental Programme for the Danube River Basin was established. Within this Programme, a prototype Danube Information System (DANIS) was developed and the Danube River Information Network (DRIN) for the management of water quality initiated. The development of these and other environmental information and communication activities were influenced through the establishment of the:

Environmental Programme for the Danube River Basin (1997);
Danube River Protection Convention (1994);
Environmental Action Programme (1995).

An early step in the implementation of the EPDRB Programme was to coordinate and support monitoring, data collection, assessment, emergency response systems and pre-investment studies. For this purpose, the Danube Task Force (see Figure 2 below) was established, with sub-groups for:

Monitoring, Laboratory and Information Management (MLIM);
Accident Emergency Warning Systems (AEWS);
Data Management (DM).

Figure 2: Organisational structure within the DRB Environment Programme (May 1998).

In addition to this, a trans-national network of water quality monitoring stations (TNMN) was established. This was followed by an Emission Working Group (EWG) and a special ad-hoc Working Group which was formed to assist in transferring activities from the Task Force and the Danube Programme Coordination Unit (PCU) to the International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River Basin (ICPDR) and its (Interim) Secretariate.

In addition, 13 Applied Research Programmes (ARP) were initiated to provide reliable scientific information in order to help define future environmental policies. Individual working groups have also established additional ARPs with the assistance of international consortia.

The involvement of nongovernmental organisations was realised through the establishment of the Danube Forum and NGO Grants Programme managed by the Regional Environmental Center, and respective NGO Information Systems. In an effort to raise public awareness, the brochure, Action for a Blue Danube (1995) and the Danube Watch newsletter were created. Further references to the EPDRB can be found in Fleckseder (1997), Protecting Danube River Basin Resources (Murphy, 1996, and Wingard, 1997).

BASIC PRINCIPLES OF THE DANUBE RIVER BASIN INFORMATION SYSTEM

During the Danube Applied Research Project Conference held in Sinaia, Romania in September 1997, the development of a Basinwide Information Management Project was proposed (Ruzic, Pecar-Ilic 1997). The outcome of these discussions is presented in Table 1.

Users of Information	Types of Information Needed	Sources of Information	Processing Required	Methods and Techniques
Experts and scientists Decisionmakers and managers Mass media and the general public	Primary information, monitoring Interpreted, summary information Selected interpreted information	Scientific studies, applied research projects Monitoring TNMN, AEWS, EMIS National statistics Other sources	Validation of primary information Introduction of metadata Quality assurance; updating Statistical evaluation; data analysis Modelling	Information updatability Electronic multi-media High-level integration of new technologies Statistical methods Mathematical models, visualisation

Table 1: Danube Applied Research Project Conference: Summary of Discussions (Sinaia 1997).

In identifying the current and potential users of environmental information from within the Danube River Basin, all kinds of interested persons, groups, and organisations must be taken into account. In addition, the persons and groups using information and those providing information on Danube related matters are often identical. A large number of users exist in those countries where access to environmental information and public participation in environmental decisionmaking is established. Therefore we can expect that the situation may be different in individual countries.

Access to information from within an environmental information system should be as wide as possible taking into account eventual restrictions on information availability. There is a need for information concerning institutions, organisations, experts, publications, reports, projects and programmes, and standards. Monitoring information and applied research project data should include: metadata for those programs and projects from which the data is generated; financial sponsors; and be broadened to related environmental issues. In addition, spatial references should be made available, if linking with a geographic information system (GIS).

The following information is considered to be of interest with regards to DRP Convention:

Immission assessment (in-stream water quality, through MLIM-EG);
Emission assessment (pollution loads discharged into receiving waters, through EMIS-EG, in accordance with the Action Program for the Reduction of Pollution Loads);
Accident and emergencies, the warning system (through AEWS-EG, for minimising risks through preventive and control measures);
Water balance of the Danube River Basin;
Interaction between the waters (stretches of rivers, ponds and lakes);
Risks caused by floods and ice hazards;
Sustainable use of waters (through the construction and operation of hydraulic plants, transfer of waters, erosion etc.);
Results of research and development.

In general, the following sources of information could be identified: minutes of coordinating bodies and expert groups (for example MLIM, AEWS, DANIS, EMIS, ARPs), integrated environmental studies, Strategic Action Plans (SAP), Strategic Implementation Plans (SIPs), Environmental Action Plans (EAPs), information from international institutions (UNEP/GEMS, UNEP/GRID, WMO, UNESCO), national reports and studies (such as questionnaires, national reviews, National SAPs, National SIPs and National EAPs), national statistics, scientific papers, workshop and conference reports, pre-investment and pre-feasibility studies and other information sources, especially those generated by NGOs and the public media.

How and whether the information is used, depends largely on the user. But in reality, there may be significant differences in individual countries from a providers point of view. In some cases, serious problems may arise from inefficient collaboration between different government sectors. Sometimes, national focal points, country programme coordinators (CPCs) or national delegations receive insufficient government support for their activities.

INFORMATION INTEGRATION AND PRIORITIES

After the GEF/UNDP Implementation Inception Workshop (Krems, Austria 1997), a framework for the development of a Danube Information Network was initiated. On the basis of this workshop, a special study of information needs and suggestions for the integration of reliable data in a Danube river basin information system was prepared (Pillmann, Ruzic 1998). The results of this study were presented at the GEF/UNDP Danube River Basin Information Systems Workshop (Baden, Austria 1998), where the use of, and interdependencies between the information components were discussed. Furthermore the importance of communication on environmental issues and reinforcement of public awareness was recognised. An agreement concerning the priorities for the development of the Danube River Basin Information System was reached within the Framework for the Development of an Information Network, 1998. Some of the priorities include:

Identifying the internal, external, and general components of the information system (preparatory work for the EIONET organised by the European Environmental Agency serves as a good example);
Establishing efficient communication between the International Commission, MLIM, AEWS and EMIS expert groups and the Danube Water Quality Management Programme (DWQM) to avoid duplication and promote cooperation;
Establishment of an 'INTRANET' for the ICPDR's information system, which should not only serve the Secretariat in its cooperation with the respective delegations, but also all other expert bodies. (Framework for the Development of an Information Network, Fleckseder, 1998).
Improvement of the textual information system and its efficient management (DANIS and/or other existing information systems should be updated and further improved);
Establishment of dynamic WWW theme pages with downloadable information concerning the DRB including maps on different scales and selected technical information, including elements of interactive communication with users;
Establishment of training missions/courses for national information managers;
Establishment of efficient communication with the European Environmental Agency (EEA) and the Black Sea Information System (access to the EIONET should be negotiated for the Chairperson of Working Groups);
Participation at conferences including Ecoinforma, and Environmental Computer Science etc. should be planned in order to ensure access to information concerning the latest developments in information and communication technology
Preparation of a concept for accessing projects results (e.g., ARPs);
Testing of an ISDN infrastructure for the improvement of electronic communication between CPCs, national data managers and PCU-PHARE/GEF offices.

EVALUATION OF EXISTING INFORMATION SYSTEMS

One of the major achievements of the Baden Workshop in 1998 was the evaluation of existing information systems and those newly developed. The workshop participants evaluated the strengths, weaknesses, costs of implementation, and maintenance of existing and planned systems. Among existing systems enlisted were:

DANIS - a textual information system, established within the Environmental Programme for the Danube River Basin (http://www.ceit.sk/wwwisis/danis.htm);
DBIN - a collaborative project for the development of a prototype information network for the Danube River Basin (http://www.syslab.ceu.hu/... (not accessible to the public). This project is based on Infodanube - the first prototype of an environmental information system, developed by the Regional Environmental Center for Central and Eastern Europe;
GRID Hungary - the regional GRID centre for Central and East European countries which serves an example of a national water quality information system (http://www.gridbp.meh.hu);
AUSTRIAN Water Quality Information System - available on the Internet Web page of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry and the Federal Environmental Agency; and an example of a complete national water quality information system (http://www.ubavie.gv.at/info/wasser/Was_home.htm);
CROATIAN Water Quality Information System - a new information system with TNMN-DRB detailed data from Croatia available under: http://faust.irb.hr/~pecar/danube/danube.htm. Croatia is currently acting as a central point for integrating and maintaining basin wide TNMN data for water quality;
CEDAR - The Central European Data Request Facility http://www.cedar.univie.ac.at

A wide variety of national information centres exist within the different Danube countries. Water quality and water quantity data in different countries are the responsibility of different authorities. In general, individual countries develop their own information systems. As a result some countries have difficulties in transferring their national data to international and harmonised systems. Several national, regional, and inter-regional organisations are also involved in the development of environmental information systems, some of which are involved in other trans-national river basin networks (e.g., The Rhine, Elbe and Odra).

Additional projects proposed within the Danube region include:

ARGE Donauländer - proposal for a Water Management Information System;
DAKOWAMIS - a study which will prepare a water management information system for the Danube countries with particular emphasis on GIS;
ADONIS - a Geo-information system for waterway administrative authorities (to be launched in Germany, Austria, and Slovakia).

INFORMATION SYSTEM MODEL

Ideally, every information system should be developed on the basis of a conceptual model. The conceptual model should then be mapped into a logical structure and, the relational physical representation could be designed based on the available information and communication infrastructure. Such an approach has been initiated within the EPDRB Programme for collection, exchange and management of transnational monitoring data using the DEFF System (Lack, 1997).

The comprehensive information system for the Danube River Basin is complex because it includes administrative data, as well as data covering Programme management, project organisation, results, and the dissemination of information to interested parties.

In defining a structure for a comprehensive information system for the Environmental Programme of the Danube River Basin, (which could be applied to other international river basins) a multi-dimensional diagram has been developed (Ruzic, Pecar-Ilic, 1998)

The top level of this multi-dimensional diagram (see Table 2) represents the general organisational structure within which the information flow is conducted. This structure is based on the following rationale: countries are exposed to environmental problems which can cause harmful consequences. In order to resolve these problems, governments make decisions and raise public awareness. At the same time governments ask their official representatives (for example, ministries) to take some measures to deal with those problems. They form coordinating bodies to design action plans in an attempt to resolve such problems. Coordinating bodies select managers and experts for their support in designing and implementing action plans through concrete projects. Managers and experts support coordinating bodies and each other in preparing action plans, as well as in implementing and executing concrete projects, thereby producing results which are then reported and documented. The elements of the information system structure can be visualised as individual fields represented by the top level of the multi-dimensional diagram. The detailed structure of every field can then be expanded into further dimensions. This method was developed to define the structure of the Danube River Basin Information System.

Countries	Environmental Problems	Harmful Consequences
Governments	Decisions	Public Awareness
Representatives	Coordination Bodies	Action Plans
Managers	Experts	Projects
Support Activities	Reporting and Documentation	Results

Table 2: Organisational Structure of the DRB Information System. (I. Ruzic and J. Pecar-Ilic, 1998).

TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS

Information Dissemination and Electronic Communication

Dissemination of information is always subject to certain rules and restrictions. Therefore the information system should be designed as a system of layers with different levels of confidentiality (internal, external, and general components). An example of such a development is the EIONET of the European Environmental Agency, where users are grouped in distinct levels with different rights of information access (Saaremaa, 1997).

Some of these aspects are defined by the Danube River Protection Convention and were clearly expressed by the International Commission and its Secretariate. A new approach could be proposed under the aegis of the Convention on Access to Environmental Information and Public Participation in Environmental Decisionmaking, which was signed in late June, 1998 at the Environment Ministerial Conference in Aarhus, Denmark (Zirm, Pillmann 1996).

High demand for relatively small amounts of information can be serviced by a centralised system which can be commonly updated. However, distributed systems cannot be avoided in the long run. For this reason, advanced software tools could be utilised which can integrate distributed relational databases (RDBMS) and geographic information systems (GIS), with efficient access to WWW facilities. For example: the distributed system of the EIONET, or the integration of environmental information in the Environment Agency, Austria.

Given the present state of information technology, dynamic implementation should be used wherever possible. Static implementation on a WWW infrastructure requires that every new element must be constructed by re-linking all individual components once again (even if they have not all been changed). In dynamic systems, the editing and updating of information can be performed on individual components only where changes are necessary.

To ensure the protection of original information and the internal components of the integrated information system, it should be connected via an Intranet (physically isolated system), while the external components should be connected via an Extranet (program control isolated system). In this case, individual nodes could be accessed through a system of passwords and other program tools. The general components of the information system should be connected via standard open Internet facilities. The efficient use of these technologies is limited by the speed of communication. A suitable solution would be the ISDN (Integrated Service Digital Network) system which in the future will be upgraded to an ATM (Asynchronous Transfer Mode) high speed network. The use of satellite communication could also be considered, and is already utilised by the AEWS system.

REFERENCES

Action for a Blue Danube. Arquus-Publishing Comp., Vienna 1995

Convention on cooperation for the Protection and Sustainable Use of the River Danube (Danube River Protection Convention), 1994

Danube Strategic Action Plan Implementation Programme 1996-99. Danube PCU, Vienna 1996

EPDRB/MLIM Final Report Vol. 4, EC PHARE Studies,1994

Fleckseder H.: Internationale Bemühungen zum Schutz der Donau. Schriftenreihe des Bundesamtes für Wasserwirtschaft, Bd.4, Wien 1997

Framework for the Development of an Information Network for the International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River (ICPDR). Report and Results from The GEF/UNDP Danube River Information Workshop, March 23-25, 1998, Baden, Austria. Danube Programme Coordination Unit Vienna, 1998

Lack T.: The work of the Monitoring, Laboratory and Information Management Sub -Group (MLIM-SG). In: I.L. Murphy (Ed.) Protecting Danube River Resources, Kluwer Acad. Publ., pp. 127-134, 1997.

PCU for EPDRB Programme, Annual Report 1996. Danube PCU, Vienna 1997

Pillmann W., Kahn D.J.: Distributed Environmental Data Compendia. Proceedings 12th IFIP World Computer Congress (Madrid), Elsevier, North Holland, 1992

Pillmann W., Ruzic I.: Danube River Basin Information Assessment - Study of Information Needs and Suggestions for Integration of Reliable Data in a Danube River Basin Information System. (Danube PCU, Vienna 1998) Protecting Danube River Basin Resources - Ensuring Assess to Water Quality Data and Information.

Murphy I. L. (ed.) NATO ASI Series 2 - Environment, Vol. 24. Kluwer Academic Publisher, Dordrecht, NL 1997 Ruzic I., Pecar-Ilic J.: 1^st Applied Research Conference, SINAIA (Rumania) Sept. 1997

Ruzic I., Hak N., Pecar-Ilic J.: World Wide Web Pages for Transnational Monitoring Network of the Danube River Basin in Croatia, Version active on May 28, 1997. (http://faust.irb.hr/-pecar/danube/danube.html)

Wingård B.: Danube Environmental Programme Current Information-Related Activities and Outline for Future Strategies, IHP Danube Regional Co-operation Meeting Working Session on Regional Cooperation, Graz, Aug. 30. 1996, 12 pp.

Zirm K., Pillmann W.: The Principle of Free Access to Environmental Information. In: Internet for Environmental Communication. Environmental Agency, Vienna 1996

REC * PROGRAMS * TELEMATICS * DETERMINE