Commission's report on #WaterQuality and #FloodRiskManagement – improvements are there, but more needs to be done

The Commission has published its assessment of how member states have implemented EU water legislation, highlighting successes and shortcomings. The six-yearly implementation report evaluates both member states' River Basin Management Plans and Flood Risk Management Plans for the period 2015 to 2021.

Environment, Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Commissioner Karmenu Vella said: “EU water law is a considerable success, but there is still much to do. Most of Europe's 130,000 water bodies are falling short of the high standards we need. I am calling on member states to step up their efforts and ensure we deliver the quality that citizens need and nature requires, as soon as possible.”

The findings show that although in a number of member states the right policy measures were taken and a number of financial investments made, in many, river basins improvements in water quality will still take some time. The path towards full compliance with the objectives of EU water legislation before the final 2027 deadline is thus still challenging.

On the issue of flood management, the report confirms that all member states have fundamentally embraced the concept of flood risk management, although the quality of the results varies. Achieving the key objective of reducing the potential adverse consequences from significant flooding will require greater efforts from member states in subsequent cycles. More information is available here. The report and Annex to it with recommendations to member states are available here.

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