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1. Project title:
Gestion Intégrée de la Haine Méridionale (Integrated Management of the Southern Haine)
2. Operators:
- Hauts-Pays Nature Park
- "Valenciennes Métropole" Metropolitan District
- Province of Hainaut – A.S.B.L. Hainaut-Développement
 3. Context:
The southern Haine basin includes the land on the left bank of the Haine and extends from the lower Trouille basin to the Hogneau-Rhônelle lower basin, taking in the lower Honnelles basin. Its area is 787 km², 350 km² of which is in France and 437 km² in Belgium.
The territorial aspect of the southern Haine basin is the fact that each drainage basin is cut across by a border. There are two river contracts operating on the southern Haine basin: in France, the Rhônelle-Aunelle-Hogneau river contract, and in Belgium Trouille basin river contract.
Both the managers of the waterways and those involved in the river contracts are handicapped when it comes to surveys and development by the fact that part of the drainage basin of the water courses is in the neighbouring country. Coherence is made even more difficult by certain main water courses moving in and out between countries and back.
Floods are regular events, which means that overall flow control is required, and integrated development over the whole of the border area. In addition, the natural environments linked with the water courses are very rich and diversified throughout the territory. These should be preserved by proper management and, if necessary restored.
4. Aims of projects:
The Framework Directive on water obliges the countries of Europe to set up integrated management of drainage basins: this essentially means reconciling all the natural processes and human activities affecting the water cycle in the given drainage basin. The main characteristic of the water directive, which determines all the other aspects of the text, is the use of the drainage basins as a basic unit for all water source planning and management actions. The Directive recognises that water respects the physical and hydrological limits of the basins, not political or administrative frontiers. Mainly through the development and implementation of drainage basin management plans, the Directive has a general aim of achieving the "good condition" objective for all European surface and underground waters in 15 years (the 2015 horizon).
This project should make it possible to create joint integrated water course management tools for the whole of the southern Haine drainage basin, which would be an efficient tool to assist in technical decision making, and the setting up of joint development schemes for the border basin.
The project will provide for exchanges of hydraulic and hydrological data and information on biodiversity.
It will contribute to harmonising the river contracts by bringing the data gathered and the surveys carried out into line. This harmony will also be effective for the water course managers.
By means of awareness actions, the project should enable the public to understand the developments which will be proposed to prevent flooding, contribute to improving the quality of the environment, and take account of the sustainable development of the water course ecosystem.
The specific final aims of the project are identification of the hydraulic problems found in the basin, definition of the strategic guidelines for management of the water and the river ecosystem and the preparation of development proposals for the head of the basin making it possible to retain the water and participate in biological and landscape improvements.
These developments should be carried out in cooperation with the local population (farmers, urban planning officials, water course managers, etc.).
5. Objectives:
Objective 1: To ensure concerted management of the waters
- To create a hydraulic flow management tool by:
- installing an automatic, reliable alert system with a data exchange protocol
- implementing a hydraulic simulation tool to study the improvement scenarios
- establishing potential storage zones
- To create a management tool within the framework of the work involved on the water courses.
- To map the major bed flood areas, a tool necessary for the local authorities and water course managers.
Objective 2: To increase the biodiversity
- To draw up an Inventory of the natural heritage linked with the water courses and prepare a reference list including, in addition to the sites of great interest (in particular Natura 2000), the zones to be restored and the appropriate methods of management.
- To pilot developments along the water courses, in particular with reference to agricultural problems (cattle access, turning space, etc.).
Objective 3: To improve the use of the water
- To management of the materials extracted from the water coruses to select the method of treatment and detection of any pollution.
Objective 4: To awaken awareness and provide information
- To make the populace aware of the sustainable development of the water coruse ecosystem.
- To obtain agreement and participation of the population and local authorities in the actions started and the proposed works.
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