European Council
European Council is a international organization that is part of the pulse of the water sector. Here we bring together everything it publishes on Smart Water Magazine: its news, its blogs and the events it takes part in.
European Council adopts new rules to enhance urban wastewater treatment efficiency
The Council gave the final green light for a revised EU directive on urban wastewater treatment. The revised directive extends the scope to smaller agglomerations, covers more pollutants, including micropollutants, and contributes to energy neutrality. The new rules are one of the key deliverables under the EU’s zero-pollution action plan. More agglomerations and more pollutants […]
Surface water and groundwater: Council agrees negotiating mandate to update list of pollutants
Today the Council agreed its negotiating mandate on the directive which will amend the water framework directive, the groundwater directive and the directive on environmental quality standards. The proposal updates priority substances and environmental quality standards in surface water and groundwater. The Council’s mandate sets a balance between keeping ambitious goals for the EU’s water […]
Council adopts position on new rules for more efficient treatment of urban wastewater
Today, the Council reached an agreement (‘general approach’) on a proposal to review the urban wastewater treatment directive. The revised directive is one of the key deliverables under the EU's zero-pollution action plan. While the current directive has proven highly effective in reducing water pollution and improving the treatment of wastewater discharges over the last […]
EU approves provisional deal to update quality standards of tap water
The EU is ensuring that tap water across the EU is safe to drink. Member states’ ambassadors meeting in the Council’s Permanent Representatives Committee (Coreper) confirmed the provisional agreement that was reached with the European Parliament on 18 December 2019 on a proposal to revise the drinking water directive. The endorsement clears the way for final […]
European Council approves water reuse for agricultural irrigation deal
The EU is taking new measures to reduce the risk of shortages of water for irrigating crops. The EU ambassadors of the member states today endorsed the provisional agreement which had been found with the European Parliament on a regulation which will facilitate the use of treated urban waste water for agricultural irrigation. This endorsement clears the […]
Water reuse for agricultural irrigation: European Council agrees general approach
The EU is taking new measures to reduce the risk of shortages of water for irrigating crops. The Council today agreed its position (general approach) on a regulation which facilitates the use of urban waste water for agricultural irrigation. These new rules will help Europe adapt to the consequences of climate change. The regulation, which is fully […]
Safe drinking water and sanitation: Council approves EU guidelines
On 17 June 2019 the Council adopted conclusions approving EU human rights guidelines on safe drinking water and sanitation. 2.1 billion people lack access to safely managed drinking water services and 4.5 billion people lack safely managed sanitation services in the world. Climate change will increasingly affect water availability and access. Across the globe, tensions and conflicts related to […]
Safe and clean drinking water: EU updates quality standards
The EU is ensuring that tap water across the EU is safe to drink. The Council adopted its position on the proposal to revise the drinking water directive. The proposed new rules update the quality standards drinking water must meet and introduce a cost-effective risk-based approach to monitoring water quality. They also contain new provisions on […]