Evaluation of management strategies under the WFD: Application of fuzzy ELECTRE method

It has been recognized that the continued deterioration of freshwater is not sustainable and also it has been realized that less modified freshwater ecosystems provide significant economic and social benefits to society. The largest water-related policy that exists at this moment in Europe is the Water Framework Directive 2000/60/EC (WFD, EC 2000) introducing a framework for a ''catchment - basin approach'' concerning integrated water management at a European level. WDF calls for at least Good Ecological Status (GES) in all surface waters by 2015 or, at the least, by 2027. If the ecological status is less than good, stakeholders have to apply Programme of Μeasures (PoMs) to manage anthropogenic pressures in order to improve ecosystem health until good status is achieved. Regarding the Greece, Kanakoudis et al. (2015) highlighted serious weak issues regarding the qualitative assessment of the RBMPs which affects the prioritization of PoMs. Furthermore, since the uncertainty in water management is clearly illustrated in the WFD (Refsgard et al. 2007) the incorporation of uncertainty methods in the planning process is considered as very important (Gottardo et al. 2011). In the context of several PoMs (alternatives) prioritization, as a part of the planning process required for the implementation of WFD is dealt in this work. Hence, a fuzzified version of the ELECTRE multicriteria method has been applied in a Mediterranean lake (Lake Pamvotis-Greece) taking into account the need of a simultaneous evaluation of heterogeneous information (biological, physico-chemical, social and economic), the need for commensurate solutions and furthermore, in order to incorporate the inherent uncertainty which appears in this kind of problems