1. Agriculture and Sustainable Water Management in the EU
Agriculture and Sustainable Water Management in the EU Brussels, 8 May 2017
Mihail Dumitru Francois Wakenhut
Deputy Director General DG AGRI Director DG ENV
European Commission

2. Sustainable water management and agriculture in EU
Water is vital for agriculture, but also for
human health, energy production,
nature conservation, transport.
Pressures for sustainable management:
Northern Europe – mainly quality problems
Southern Europe – mainly quantity problems
Future:
Water demand is projected
to increase up to 16% by 2030
Pressures
The main users of water are the energy (44%), agriculture (24%), public water supply (21%), and industrial and service sector (11%).
Agriculture is the main land use in EU: > 50% of territory.
Agriculture is also identified a source of 'significant pressure' in more than 90% of RBMPs.
Nutrient loading: decreasing trend. More so for P than for N. Eutrophication still affects 22% of river and 37% of lakes monitored. 15% reduction in N inputs due to agricultural measures.
Pesticides: excessive pesticides affect 7% groundwater and 5% river monitoring stations. Declining trends observed as a result of restrictions.
Water abstraction: Over-abstraction affects 10% of surface and 20% of groundwater bodies. Abstraction for irrigation is being reduced (by 22% since 1990s), but patterns vary (more in E & N, less in S).
Leakages in distribution system reach 40% of abstracted water in some MS.
Future
Climate change will add pressure to water quality and quantity for human use and for the need to maintain water bodies in good status.
All water users in the EU will need to perform better

3. Sustainable use of pesticides Plant protection products on the market
EU Relevant Policy
Water policy
Water Framework
Directive
Nitrates Directive
Floods Directive
Pesticides policy
Sustainable use of pesticides
Plant protection products on the market
Water Framework Directive (Directive 2000/60//EC). Overall objective of Good Status by 2015 and no deterioration in status
Nitrates Directive (Directive 91/676/EEC). MS' define NVZs, Nitrates Action Programmes, waters do not exceed 50 mg/l of nitrates and are not eutrophic
Floods Directive (Directive 2007/60/EC). MS to assess and map flood risk, Flood Risk Management Plan. (I removed floods as we don’t address it in the SWD)
Pesticides policy
Sustainable use of pesticides (Directive 2009/128/EC). Reduce risks and impacts, and encourage integrated pest management (IPM) and alternative approaches. Protect the aquatic environment and drinking water. pesticides minimised or prohibited in protected areas as defined in WFD.
Plant protection products on the market (Regulation (EC) No 1107/2009). Removed many hazardous active substances from the EU market, reducing risks for users, consumers and the environment.

4. Water Framework Directive
Adopted in 2000, with overall objective- Good status for all waters by 2015
created framework that builds on earlier water/Env policy (UWWTD, DWD,ND, IED)
Nitrates Directive very important as basic measure of the WFD
Brings in requirement for abstraction controls, controls on diffuse sources of pollution (e.g. nutrients, pesticides), controls on hydromorphology, water pricing/cost recovery to help meet good status
MS susbidiarity in defining the detail of measures – but they should be in place and address the pressures to allow good status to be reached

5. WFD "Good" Status ? Good surface water status Good groundwater status
Is an expression of the quality of the structure and functioning of aquatic ecosystems including: biological, hydromorphological and chemical elements
Means meeting all environmental quality standards for chemicals set at EU level:
Good surface water status
Good chemical status + good ecological status
Good groundwater status
Good chemical status + good quantitative status
Means meeting all standards for chemicals:
quality standards set at EU level: pesticides and nitrates
threshold values: standards set at national level
Means meeting all standards for chemicals:
quality standards set at EU level: pesticides and nitrates
threshold values: standards set at national level
Means ensuring a long-term balance between abstraction and recharge, protecting as well associated surface waters and ecosystems.
Means ensuring a long-term balance between abstraction and recharge, protecting as well associated surface waters and ecosystems. 5

6. Status of EU waters (2009) 2 biggest pressures
Diffuse sources causing nutrient enrichment in most of the Member States having the worst ecological status
Hydro
-morphological
pressures causing
altered habitats/ flows
RBMPs expected to deliver 10 % overall improvement in status by 2015

7. Implementation challenges
Insufficient basic measures - e.g. ND measures not sufficient, lack of controls on phosphates, insufficient abstraction controls (particularly groundwater), revision of old permits not done, insufficient implementation of water pricing/cost recovery in agriculture sector to incentivise efficient use (EAC)
Many reasons behind implementation gaps (knowledge, resources, governance, reluctance to increase regulation, lack of funding to support measures)
Funding of supplementary measures- EAFRD – links not always made, ambition + targeting of measures not always ideal

8. CAP & Water Pillar I
Cross-compliance: compulsory to all farmers.
Water-relevant:
Directly: respect of Nitrates Directive; buffer
strips; irrigation; prevention of groundwater
pollution
Indirectly: measures for limiting erosion,
landscape features or pesticides,
Green Direct Payment: indirect effects on water. Condition for 30% of direct payment.
Crop diversification; ecological focus areas: 5% arable land; permanent grassland; equivalent measures.
Cross-compliance: compulsory to all farmers. Water related:
SMR 1 on Nitrates Directive;
SMR 10 on Plant Protection Products
GAEC 1 (buffer strips); 2 (irrigation); & 3 (groundwater pollution).
Indirectly, GAEC5 (limiting erosion), GAEC 7 (landscape features), or SMR 10 (pesticides)

9. CAP & Water Pillar II
Rural development – strategic programming with environmental, social, economic sustainability aims.
Irrigation investments (Art. 46) +
AECM + Ex ante conditionalities
Relevant measures include also
non-agricultural water management
(drinking, waste water, floods)
Target: 15% of agricultural and 4.3% of forestry land under contracts to improve water management.
Two water-specific focus areas:
4a. water management (fertilisers, pesticides)
5b efficiency in water use by agriculture

10. Challenges Delayed legislation/ shortcomings in programming;
Need for cross-sectorial coordination;
Investment funding;
Diffuse nature (many actors);
Transfer of knowledge, good practice and techniques;
Fallacious confrontation - economic vs. environmental goals.
Delayed implementation of Water-related legislation / shortcomings in contents (RBMPs, NAPs).
Insufficient coordination of RBMPs provisions with RDPs, NAPs (nitrates, pesticides).
Lack of funding: potential not used /competing priorities in programming 2nd Pillar funds.
Diffuse and widespread nature of the problems (many actors) – need for better information management and knowledge transfer. Awareness and capacity of farmers to implement measures. Need for knowledge and good practice transfer.

11. Conclusions Persisting implementation challenges need to be addressed;
Policy tools in place are adequate for the short-medium term; focus needs to be on improved implementation
Investment needs must be mapped out and addressed, including with innovative financial instruments;
Knowledge and innovation transfer and dissemination need a boost;
Cross-sectorial cooperation between water and agriculture authorities is crucial.
focus needs to be on improved implementation – added

12. DG ENV + AGRI cooperation on water
Cooperation AGRI – ENV on Water
DG ENV + AGRI cooperation on water
An initiative of ENV & AGRI commissioners;
Aligned with current Commission priority to improve integration across policy sectors;
A cooperation framework for ensuring sustainable use
of water resources in EU policy
by encouraging
dialogue and seeking win-win
solutions at all levels of
governance.
DG ENV + AGRI cooperation on water – cooperation rather than "taskforce" as it doesn’t really have an official function
seeking win-win
solutions - added into last bullet

13. Ongoing initiatives
"Commission Staff Working Document on Agriculture and Sustainable Water Management in the EU" – describes the situation + basis for a detailed work plan.
Meeting of Water Directors and Agricultural Directors –opportunity for cross-sectorial information exchanges that will feed into taking forward actions suggested by the SWD.
Informal AGRIFISH Council (22-23 May 2017) under the Maltese Presidency – a high level discussion/orientation debate on water and agriculture, informed by the SWD + discussions with you today
TFW removed
Additions in red

14. Thank you!