This book deals with voluntary approaches between farmers and water suppliers as an instrument to meet environmental standards, impacted by agricultural activities, more economically efficient and environmentally effective than by exclusive application of alternative instruments including command-and-control approaches. The book is based largely on the results of the research project 'Co-operative Agreements in Agriculture as an Instrument to Improve the Economic Efficiency and Economic Effectiveness of the European Water Policy', which was supplemented for specific issues by key experts. The research was partly funded by the European Commission under the Specific RTD Programme in the Field of Environment and Climate (Contract No. ENV4-CT98-0782) and partly by the Ministry of Agriculture, Nature Management and Fisheries in the Netherlands, the Environment Agency in England and Wales, the UK Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, and the Government of the German Bundesland North Rhine Westphalia. Additional funds for preparing the book were obtained from the Ministry of Agriculture, Nature Management and Fisheries in the Netherlands. The financial and technical support received from the different organisations is gratefully acknowledged. The editors appreciate very much the efforts the authors have made in preparing their contributions for the book and for the secretarial assistance provided by Mrs. Tessa van Dongen from LEI who took responsibility for guiding the publication process and preparing the chapters of the book. We also appreciate the support given by Mrs. Henny Hoogervorst and Mrs. Gloria Verhey (Kluwer Academic Publishers).

From the reviews:

"CAs are voluntary agreements negotiated between farmers and water suppliers . This is a very empirical and concrete book, providing very useful documentation of the European experience with CAs since the 1990s. For those working on water and environment issues in other parts of the world, notably the developing world, this book provides interesting insight into how the process of the internalisation of environmental concerns into national, regional and local water policy and practice is happening in Europe." (Peter P. Mollinga, Quarterly Journal of International Agriculture, Vol. 45 (4), 2006)

Inhalt
I: Governance and Water-related Agri-environmental Policy.- 1. Introduction.- 2. The concept of resource users' self-governance.- II: Co-operative Agreements in the European Union.- 3. Occurrence of co-operative agreements.- 4. Achievements of co-operative agreements.- 5. Co-operative agreements versus other instruments.- III: Co-operative Agreements: Assessment at National Level.- 6. Germany: Searching for strategies to provide pure water.- 7. France: Improved farming practices in water catchment areas.- 8. The Netherlands: from compensation to legal constraints.- 9. United Kingdom: Financial and cultural constraints.- IV: Co-operative Agreements in the Broader Policy Framework.- 10. Instruments that promote co-operative agreements.- 11. Water utility farmer co-operation in the US.- 12. Co-operative agreements in the context of EU policy.