WP 5: A financing model for the Danube Region

Subsequently, a cross-border approach, incorporating stakeholders – like competent authorities, Inland Waterway Transport Companies and NGOs - along the River Danube is required.

Within 2011 a financing model including an implementation concept will be developed by external experts in cooperation with the WANDA Consortium as well as international and national stakeholders; additionally, a feasibility study on the potential use of River Information Services (RIS) for the operation of the financing model will be carried out.

However, the development of a financing model is a complex task. Apart from the framework conditions that have to be considered, a number of properties have to be defined: A fee calculation method, modalities of payment, and control mechanisms have to be drafted. Also, the administrative bodies responsible for operating and steering the financing model and the necessary information flow have to be defined.

In order to get an overview and for the determination of basis conditions  in the Danube Region, national framework conditions in Romania, Hungary, Slovakia and Austria have been investigated in detail: Currently, in most countries  the ship operators have to pay directly for the reception of oily and greasy waste. Only recently a model of indirect payment has been introduced in the Romanian Danube ports, while some larger navigation companies on the Upper Danube operate and finance their own reception and treatment facilities.

The evaluation of the international framework conditions - the CDNI waste treaty and the Recommendations of the Danube Commission - showed the importance of the polluter pays principle and the principle of indirect payment. Both principles should be applied for modern ship waste management.According to the polluter pays principle the producers of wastes are responsible for financing the disposal. On the other hand, illegal discharges shall be avoided with applying the principle of indirect payment. However, a sufficient dense network of reception stations is another important component, which has to be available.

These basic mechanisms are described in the image below: Charges are paid by the IWT businesses to an accountance which transfer money to the operators of the waste reception facilities. Subsequently, oily and greasy ship wastes can be delivered at the waste collection point.