WFD revision – First contribution from the wastewater sector (EU2) EU2 – Milan meeting

EurEau.Water Matters.eureau.org What has been good/successfull ~WFD puts aquatic environment on the political agenda, including wastewater ~WFD raises public awareness on the status of the water bodies ~WFD has a basin approach -> necessity to have partnerships, WW sector is seen as a partner by other stakeholders ~WFD is a “result oriented” policy -> more flexibility on the measures to implement it (<> UWWTD) ~WFD improves the knowledge on water bodies and on contributions of the different sectors (households, industry, agriculture) to the water bodies status ~WFD increases the awareness on micro-pollutants and stresses the need for control at source (source of innovation) ~WFD is a driver for improvement and innovation, jobs, growth, …

EurEau.Water Matters.eureau.org Not good, not feasible ~Timing of WFD doesn’t fit ~with long procedures (EIA, public procurement) ~with budget availability ~with natural recovery -> 2027 end date not realistic ~“Compliance with WFD” is a complex problem : not white and black, compliance must look at trends and at all inputs of the stakeholders ~One-out-all-out principle regarding status, showing no progress --> could give a bad image of the WW sector ~Adding continuously new parameters or strengthening standards  give the impression to never reach the objectives  “the higher you put the bar, higher is the risk to pass under” ~No real contribution of other sectors (eg. agriculture, industry) ~No coherence with other European policies (CAP, pesticides and REACH)

EurEau.Water Matters.eureau.org Possible but possibly delayed ~Uncertainties on the link between measures and quality (results) -> need for research ~Stormwater management still questioning (need for research and solutions for CSOs) ~Better links to be established between water and urban planning ~Diffuse pollution to be better addressed (agriculture) ~More information on the use of exemptions needed (eg. possible exemptions on chemicals status)

EurEau.Water Matters.eureau.org Benefits for customers/consumers ~Better environment and quality of life ~Greater public understanding of aquatic environment and impact of their behaviour on the river status ~Public participation (democratic process)

EurEau.Water Matters.eureau.org Conclusions and proposals from EU2 Conclusions. WFD is a driver for a better knowledge of the impact of human activities on the aquatic environment. It sets objectives (maybe sometimes unrealistic) and launches processes of improvement. There is a need to use the revision process to improve the effectiveness of WFD in the light of what has been already done. Proposals ~Extend WFD to 1 or 2 additional cycles ~To review the one-out all-out principle (to keep the confidence of the European citizens, we must show to our customers that we are able to make good decisions to protect environment) ~To better match the chemical parameters with ecological status ~Better definitions of the exemptions

EurEau.Water Matters.eureau.org Thank you for your attention