International Association of Waterworks in the Rhine Catchment Area (IAWR)

Similar to IAWD, IAWR is an international association of waterworks in a river catchment area (Rhine). Structurally, IAWR is composed of three regional organisations: Arbeitsgemeinschaft der Wasserwerke Bodensee-Rhein (Association of Waterworks in the Lake Constance-Rhine Region, AWBR), Arbeitsgemeinschaft der Rhein-Wasserwerke (Association of Rhine Waterworks, ARW) and Vereniging van Rivierwaterbedrijven (Association of River Waterworks, RIWA). With its three member organisations, IAWR, which serves roughly 30 million persons in the Rhine catchment area, represents the interests of approx. 120 water companies from the six riparian countries Austria, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, France, Germany and Netherlands.

It is the objective of IAWR to protect the Rhine, its tributaries and the pre-Alpine lakes so that the quality of their waters will be good enough to allow drinking water to be produced using only natural methods.

Joint projects of IAWD and IAWR:

Groundwater-Memorandum 2004 
  

Requests on the Conversion of the EU-Water
Framework Directive


Danube, Meuse and Rhine -memorandum 2008 
  

International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River (ICPDR)

ICPDR was established in 1998 to implement the Danube River Protection Convention. The organisation is not only concerned with the Danube itself but takes account of the entire catchment area including tributaries and groundwater resources, in the same way as ICPDR does. The ICPDR Secretariat is domiciled in Vienna.

Since 2002, IAWD holds observer status with ICPDR. As an NGO (non-governmental organisation), IAWD may participate in all official events and meetings of ICPDR. Of course, the prime in-terest of IAWD is water quality in order to ensure durably safe, sustainable drinking water supply for the water companies in the Danube catchment area.

The highpoint of the co-operation between IAWD and ICPDR was the Ministerial Conference on

13 December 2004 to commemorate the

10th anniversary of the Danube River Protection Convention.