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We are pleased to share our 2024 Annual Report, showcasing our collective achievements and ongoing work to safeguard Europe’s water services. Despite political uncertainty and environmental setbacks, we advanced key policies, including the revised Urban Wastewater Treatment Directive, pushed for a robust PFAS ban, and continued advocating for a comprehensive Water Resilience Strategy.

Discover how our members, experts and partners are shaping a resilient, sustainable future for water in Europe.

Read the full report here.

A well-functioning water sector is increasingly becoming a matter of concern in ensuring security and preparedness in the EU. EurEau calls on the Commission to mainstream this aspect in all relevant horizontal policies. This should also apply to the future revision of the INSPIRE Directive, which, in its current Article 13, allows for the exclusion of utility facilities, such as sewage and water supply, from its scope.

A well-functioning water sector is increasingly becoming a matter of concern in ensuring security and preparedness in the EU. EurEau calls on the Commission to mainstream this aspect in all relevant horizontal policies. This should also apply to the future revision of the INSPIRE Directive, which, in its current Article 13, allows for the exclusion of utility facilities, such as sewage and water supply, from its scope.

Given the escalating pressures on water resources, aggravated by the combined impacts of climate change, pollution, rising demand, and security threats and while acknowledging the expanding financial gap the water sector needs to bridge only to ensure compliance with the (updated) sectoral EU acquis, funding for water needs to be commensurately ramped up and appropriately tailored under the next MFF in order to ensure the Member States are able to effectively absorb it.

Water is increasingly becoming a matter of security and preparedness in the EU. The water-security nexus should be understood in terms of the need to ensure the water supply and sanitation infrastructure is protected against large-scale crises. Water resilience in this regard is paramount for ensuring societal and economic stability, as stressed in the Niinistö report. The next MFF should ensure adequate financial support for implementing the measures put in place at Member States level, in line with national priorities, intended for tackling potential civil or military emergencies undermining the water sector.

BPA mainly enters the body through food, but its presence in drinking water also needs attention. While the EU ban on BPA in food contact materials is a positive step, it should be followed by a full REACH restriction, targeting BPA analogues and promoting safer alternatives. Since BPA transfers to water at higher temperatures, it should be banned from hot-water systems. The revision of BPA limits in the Drinking Water Directive should include a realistic timeline for suppliers to comply with new standards.

TFA is a very persistent, very mobile member of the PFAS group of chemicals. Due to its numerous emissions pathways, TFA is now ubiquitous in the water cycle and hard to remove by conventional water treatments. The EU should recognise the urgent necessity to stop TFA emissions to the environment as a first step towards addressing this pollution.

Because TFA is an atypical PFAS, the catch-all “PFAS Total” parameter is inadequate for TFA. A specific TFA limit value in drinking water should be set based on health-derived criteria. Where this value would require additional drinking water treatment, these costs should be borne by the polluters.

The scope of the evaluation is to assess whether the objectives of the directives have been achieved with regard to ensuring the efficient use of public funds, high level of competition in the single market, and transparency and integrity of public spending. The directives were also expected to contribute to making Europe a more green, social and innovative economy, increase SMEs’ participation in procurement procedures, reduce the administrative burden related to procurement procedures, simplify them and make more flexible. Efficient use of public funds for provision of goods and services in the water sector is key for the EurEau members to be able to ensure supply of drinking water and collection and treatment of wastewater in accordance with the highest possible standards.

In our paper – PFAS Phase Out: A Prerequisite for a Water Resilient Europe – we highlight the continued threat that PFAS pose to human health and the environment. We urge the European Commission to act now to ban these toxic chemicals.

Known as ‘forever chemicals,’ PFAS are present in our food, air, water and everyday products. Their persistence, mobility, and toxicity create far-reaching challenges for Europe’s water services.