About VMM
Flanders, the heart of Europe.
Flanders is one of the three Belgian regions with its own government, parliament and administration. The other two are the Brussels-Capital Region and the Walloon Region.
The Flemish Region is the Dutch-speaking part of the country and has the largest population (58%).
As a result of various state structure reforms over the last 35 years, Belgium has been transformed into a federal state, giving the regions more responsibilities. Apart from the environment, the Flemish government is also responsible for other sectors, such as the economy, employment, education and culture, agriculture, foreign trade, land planning, urban development, housing, public works...
VMM in a nutshell
The Flemish Environment Agency or VMM operates as an agency of the Flemish government for a better environment in Flanders.
The mission of VMM is to contribute to the realisation of the environmental policy objectives by reporting on the state of the environment and by preventing, limiting and reversing harmful impacts on water systems and pollution of the atmosphere, and to the realisation of the integrated water policy objectives.
VMM is an internally independent agency with powers of jurisdiction and is part of the Environment, Nature and Energy policy domain of the Flemish government.
Our head office is in Aalst. In addition, we have local offices in each province in Flanders.
What does VMM do?
Water, air and the environment. These are the three domains in which VMM is active. Within these three domains we have a wide range of responsibilities.
Our tasks are established by decree and operate according to a management agreement with the Flemish government, setting strategic and operational goals, but also ensuring a great deal of autonomy concerning how we carry out our tasks and how we develop our organisation.
VMM cooperates
at Flemish level
The Flemish government is responsible for the environment in Flanders.
Only a limited number of tasks such as product policy, protection of the North Sea and ionising radiation are still part of the federal competences.
The Flemish minister of the environment implements the environmental policy. For the preparation and implementation of the policy, the minister can count on the collaboration of an administration and a number of bodies from the Environment, Nature and Energy policy domain. More information »
The Flemish Environment Agency is one of these bodies: an IVA or internally independent agency.
In addition VMM cooperates closely with numerous organisations: the Flemish provinces, cities and municipalities, the polders and irrigation waterways, the Flemish Welfare and Health agency, the Flemish ministry of Transport and Public Works, environment and nature organisations, etc.
All of these organisations work together to optimise the environmental policy and actually improve the environment.
and internationally
The environment does not stop at the borders.
VMM therefore also has the task of cooperating at regional and international level, both inside and outside Europe. In the first place we contribute to the international policymaking and we put our experience and expertise at the service of international policy for the future. We thus act as a driving force in the development of European directives concerning water and air.
VMM is also responsible for the implementation of certain environmental obligations imposed on Belgium and Flanders by Europe. Thus, for example, we cooperate in the transposition of the Water and Air framework directives and their daughter directives into Flemish legislation.
VMM is playing an active role in the International Scheldt Commission and in the International Meuse Commission.
In the Scheldt Commission France, Federal Belgium, the Walloon Region, the Flemish Region, the Brussels Capital Region and the Netherlands - of the international Scheldt Treaty which was signed in Ghent on 3rd December 2002, work together in order to develop sustainable and integrated water management of the Scheldt river basin district.
The ISC’s top priority mission is cross-border coordination of all obligations resulting from the European Water Framework Directive and the European Directive on Flood Risk Assessment and Management. The ISC also operates a Homogeneous Monitoring Network and a Warning and Alarm System meant to deal with accidental water pollution.
The Ghent Treaty is an agreement between France, Luxembourg, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium regarding the protection of the Meuse river. This treaty lays down rules for the implementation of the European Water Framework Directive. The International Meuse Commission (IMC) was created in 2002 with the signing of the Meuse Treaty. Based in Liège, the IMC has as its most important tasks:
- coordinating the obligations of the European Water Framework Directive;
- providing advice and recommendations to parties for improved flood prevention and risk management;
- providing advice and recommendations to parties for preventing and combating water pollution (warning and alarm system).
More information in French, Dutch or German »
Furthermore, VMM reports its monitoring results concerning water, air and the environment to the European Union, the United Nations, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development…
And finally, as a dynamic organisation opening up new horizons, VMM wants to stimulate international cooperation and the exchange of knowledge: we initiate European and bilateral projects and organise exchanges and events with related foreign institutions.
VMM is involved in following projects:
- Adaptive Land use for Flood Alleviation (ALFA): more information »
- FloodResilienCity (FRC): more information »
- ScaldWIN, a project for a better water quality: more information »
- Water Adaptation is Valuable for Everybody (WAVE): more information »
- The Water Emission Inventory (WEISS): more information »
