At the end of October, the European Commission presented proposals for stricter rules on pollutants in ambient air, surface water, groundwater and urban waste water treatment.
Clean air and water are essential for human and environmental health. Air pollution is the biggest environmental threat to health and a major cause of chronic diseases including stroke, cancer and diabetes. Nearly 300,000 Europeans die prematurely each year from air pollution alone. It also threatens the environment through acidification, eutrophication and damage to forests, ecosystems and agricultural crops.
All the new air and water quality rules provide a clear return on investment in terms of health benefits, energy savings, food production, industry and biodiversity. Based on experience with the implementation of existing legislation, the Commission proposes to lower the permitted levels of pollutants and improve the enforcement of the rules to ensure that pollution reduction targets are more often achieved in practice. Today’s proposals are a key step forward in achieving the European Green Deal’s zero pollution target of living in an environment free from harmful pollution by 2050.
The revision will ensure that people suffering health damages from air pollution have the right to be compensated in the case of a violation of EU air quality rules. They will also have the right to be represented by non-governmental organisation through collective actions for damage compensation. The proposal will also bring more clarity on access to justice, effective penalties, and better public information on air quality.
Better and more cost-effective treatment of urban wastewater
The revised Urban Wastewater Treatment Directive will help Europeans benefit from cleaner rivers, lakes, groundwaters and seas, while making wastewater treatment more cost-effective. To make the best possible use of wastewater as a resource, it is proposed to aim for energy-neutrality of the sector by 2040, and improve the quality of sludge to allow for more reuse contributing thus to a more circular economy.
Several improvements will support health and environmental protection. These include obligations to recover nutrients from wastewater, new standards for micropollutants and new monitoring requirements for microplastics. Obligations to treat water will be extended to smaller municipalities with 1,000 inhabitants.
As 92% toxic micro-pollutants found in EU wastewaters come from pharmaceuticals and cosmetics, a new Extended Producer Responsibility scheme will require producers to pay for the cost of removing them. This is in line with the ‘polluter pays’ principle and it will also incentivise research and innovation into toxic-free products, as well as making financing of wastewater treatment fairer.
The wastewater sector has significant untapped renewable energy production potential, for example from biogas.
The changes are estimated to increase costs by 3.8% (to €3.8 billion a year in 2040) for a benefit of over €6.6 billion a year, with a positive cost-benefit ratio in each Member State.
Protection of surface and groundwater against new pollutants
Based on up-to-date scientific evidence, the Commission is proposing to update lists of water pollutants to be more strictly controlled in surface waters and groundwater. 25 substances with well-documented problematic effects on nature and human health (e.g. pesticides, pharmaceuticals, antibiotics, etc.) will be added to the lists.
In addition, standards for 16 pollutants already covered by the rules, including heavy metals and industrial chemicals, will be updated (mostly tightened) and four pollutants that are no longer an EU-wide threat will be removed.
Source: European commission
