From 23 to 25 October, Italy hosts in Rome the International Summit of the Great Rivers, as the Minister of the Environment, Gian Luca Galletti, announced on 22 March at the World Water Day.

The world's first event dedicated to the largest rivers in the world, with 100 countries and about 3 billion people interested by the waterways represented, was officially presented at a press conference on October 18 at the Palazzo Chigi Press Room.

 

*Francesca Paolucci

From October 23 to 25, at the Sala Protomoteca of the Campidoglio in Rome, Italy will host the international summit of the Great Rivers, the first to involve the larger river basins and water courses in the world for a total of 100 countries and about 3 billion people interested by the areas covered by the rivers.

The aim of the meeting is to support the international dialogue on climate change challenges, natural phenomena and water access conflicts, delicate and complex issues of international importance, on which to develop a common strategy and to maintain a global climate and environmental order. For this reason, the Rome Declaration will be signed to seal international engagement on the topics covered by the summit.

Canada has a leading place in hydrographic matter, holding 7% of the freshwater reserves and the third glacier complex, after Antarctica and Greenland. Among its four main water basins, Canada is present at the Conference, with a delegation from Quebec, led by the Emissary to Climate Change, representing the Saint Lawrence River (about 1200 km long), part of the Maritime Navigation System of North America. From Montréal to Lake Erie (between the Great Lakes of North America is the fourth by extension) covers the portion of the St. Lawrence Seaway system, crossing the provinces of Québec and Ontario is the part of the border between the United States and Canada. The St. Lawrence River is very important at geographic, hydrological and economic level for both countries, as it constitutes a major commercial artery in North America, from the Atlantic to the heart of the United States and today, by its ports, a dense transport network multimodal route through which you can reach the entire North American continent.

Québec, on this occasion, actively participates in Canadian interests in the international field, opening to the world their own policies on navigation and water management. The experience that the Canadian French-speaking province will be able to share in the summit is particularly valuable in a global climate change management and activation of preferential resilience policies by the exchange of know-how and information on sustainable water management, also in consideration of the flood phenomena that occurred last spring in the valley of the St. Lawrence River and the importance that the Government of Québec has attributed to Climate Diplomacy.

This is also demonstrated by the Québec government's decision to propose a specific figure, the Emissary to Climate Change, to deepen international climate change action to encourage partnerships in the world.

 

Philippe Couillard, Prime Minister of Quebec, has created an ambitious strategic plan, Maritime Strategy, introduced in Italy in the spring of 2015, during the official visit of Prime Minister for the 50th anniversary of the Québec representation in Rome. The first project in the province's history dedicated to the sustainable growth of the maritime economy and prepared to face the challenges and seize business opportunities.

The program has a medium to long-term perspective, from 2015 to 2030, and has already provided a strategic action plan for the period from 2015 to 2020. The Canadian foresight and planning capabilities are the basis of the project, which provides important objectives for the economic, political and social well-being of the province. The Government of Couillard wanted to develop a balanced system of policies aimed at protecting the Québec marine ecosystem and its rivers, as well as promoting the quality and quantity of opportunities arising from these resources. In particular, it aims to increase investments, encourage tourism projects, increase the levels of employment, extend and improve industrial and port areas, support training and research for specific careers and ultimately attract international economic interest.

At World's Large Rivers Conference, the Italy-Canada relations confirm their vitality also in the environmental field by sharing the geographic and economic experiences of the watercourses represented in order to give concrete follow-up to international agreements on issues of protection and environmental growth (e.g. Paris agreements on climate change of 2015) and create a concerted and far-sighted action.

 

As a host country of the meeting, but also as a traditional promoter and actor of striking initiatives on the management of marine resources and rivers that will be proposed during the works, Italy with the Ministry of the Environment will present a project aimed at spreading a new water culture, for the protection and enhancement of water resources: 'AquaMadre'. The initiative arises from the need to harmonize the indicators and standards of hydrogeological risk areas and to safeguard ecosystems and watercourses.

 

The Ministry of the Environment has identified AquaMadre as a reference brand for all cultural and awareness-raising initiatives on water related issues, a catalyst for joint actions that will interface with the relevant authorities, favoring also the transfer of a scientific, technical, informational Know-how and best practices.

The creation of this new brand comes from the idea of the lawyer Walter Mazzitti, co-ordinator of the Summit and International Water Policy Expert, who has been involved in many important water management tasks at national and international level, including the Presidency of the European Water Task Force the Middle East Peace Process; Presidency from 1994 to 2000 on the appointment of the Council of Ministers, the Supervisory Committee on the Use of Water Resources, in implementation of the reform of the National Water Service (Galli Law); Councilor of the Minister of the Environment from 1996 to 1998 and many other mandates that have contributed to strengthening his expertise in this area.

The Ministry of the Environment will also set up an Observatory on the River Contracts for a concerted governance action in the catchment areas, bringing together public and private figures who are committed to work on a shared action plan and to sign terms of an agreement in the name of the protection of the territories and of the water resource. The Observatory will have the task of supervising the management of such contracts, following its evolution and verifying its proper application, placing the Ministry itself in the national leadership role.

The participation at the Meeting of the Great Rivers of the World, is for all the countries represented, an opportunity for sharing international intent and cooperation. It is also an important opportunity for the private sectors concerned to establish a transnational connection through the creation of global business networks aimed at producing business opportunities and integrating knowledge and skills in the sector. In this regard, meetings between business groups were planned.

 

* Coordination and research Centro Studi Italia-Canada