Улучшит ли новая стратегия управление водными ресурсами в Европе?
Треть территории ЕС страдает от нехватки воды, а в условиях загрязнения воды и высокого спроса на неё требуется больше инвестиций и инноваций. Мы рассмотрим плюсы и минусы предложений, содержащихся в новой Европейской стратегии устойчивости водных ресурсов.
ЧИТАТЬ ДАЛЕЕ : http://ru.euronews.com/2025/06/17/uluchshit-li-novaya-strategiya-upravlenie-vodnymi-resursami-v-evrope
Подписывайтесь: Euronews можно смотреть на Dailymotion на 12 языках
01:00Currently, 30% of the EU suffers from water scarcity due to prolonged droughts.
01:06Meanwhile, devastating floods cost 325 billion euros in damage between 1980 and 2023.
01:13The European Water Resilience Strategy aims to reduce water pollution, prevent waste and make water accessible to all.
01:21With this strategy, the European Commission promises to help member states better implement the 2000 Water Framework Directive and 3 related laws.
01:32Let's hear what Europeans think about the public management of this precious common good.
01:37The weather may be working very much when it comes to the consumption.
01:43Every year we can say that from one or two rainy days, if there are not these, we will certainly face a problem.
01:53And there is a great possibility of falling a large percentage of our business.
01:56I hope my parents still have enough water potable and sweet water to be able to live.
02:04So, I think it has to do with the level of pollution and more to manage the pollution that exists in the water.
02:11And to talk about the people who treat water with these companies.
02:16Euronews reporter Amandine S. will help us decode this issue.
02:21One of the main topics that the European Commission wants to address is water pollution,
02:26particularly with chemicals called PFAS or forever pollutants.
02:31What is at stake?
02:32So, PFAS are substances dubbed forever pollutants because they don't easily break down.
02:37So, they tend to accumulate over time in the environment.
02:39And the problem is that research has shown that exposure to certain types of PFAS causes serious health problems.
02:48So, the Commission is planning to launch a public-private partnership to support innovation to clean up pollution from PFAS and other chemicals.
02:57The Polluter Pays principle will be applied.
03:00So, it means that public funding would be used only for the sites where it has not been possible to identify who is responsible for the pollution.
03:08Industry and agriculture are two sectors that use a lot of fresh water and also contribute to water pollution with chemicals.
03:17So, will the strategy address those problems?
03:21So, when it comes to water quantity, the Commission is calling member states to improve water efficiency by at least 10% by 2030.
03:29So, for instance, in the agriculture sector, water efficiency could be improved through precision farming, drip irrigation, water reuse,
03:38or by using more climate-resistant crops, according to the strategy.
03:43And when it comes to the industry, the Commission is, for instance, looking at the water consumption of data centers.
03:49And it's also planning to launch another public-private partnership to develop innovative methods for dry cooling.
03:57NGOs and Europe's Green Party say that this strategy is far from giving concrete answers to the problems.
04:05What are they suggesting to be done?
04:08So, it's important to keep in mind that the Greens and some NGOs have criticized this strategy for lacking clear legal requirements,
04:15since it is non-binding, and for not providing dedicated funding.
04:20So, that's one point.
04:20Second, they are stressing that it fails to tackle pollution at source.
04:25So, they are calling for strict management of fertilizers and chemicals.
04:30According to the European Commission, around 55 billion euros is spent on water investments across Europe,
04:37but there is an annual gap of 23 billion euros to solve the problems.
04:40To address this gap, the EU's executive will allocate a larger share of the cohesion funds,
04:47which are intended for less wealthy regions, to water management.
04:51In addition, the European Investment Bank will launch a new program.
04:5515 billion euros will be available over the period between 2025 and 2027,
05:01and it aims to attract a further 25 billion euros from commercial investors.
05:05Our guest is Hildegard Bentele from Centre-Right EPP Group,
05:11who shares the MEP Water Group at the European Parliament.
05:15Welcome to Euronews.
05:16One of the few concrete aspects of the European Water Resilience Strategy
05:21is increasing investment through the cohesion funds and the European Investment Bank.
05:28Will that money be enough?
05:30Well, we'll see, because the negotiations for the budget have just started.
05:35So, it's important to have the priorities here.
05:38And everybody knows about the emergency and about the needs of investment into the sector.
05:45We have the figures, so we can react with the budget and better use, as you said,
05:50the cohesion policy, because we have seen that funds have not been used even for investments.
05:57So, we have to think about it.
05:59The European Commission proposes voluntary targets to improve water efficiency by 10% by 2030.
06:06But there is not a roadmap or an implementation mechanism foreseen.
06:12So, isn't this just good intentions?
06:15It is a good intention, and it's also, I would say, a little bit modest,
06:18because 10% is not a lot.
06:21But at least it's on the agenda.
06:22And I think we can do more also, for example, through public procurement.
06:27If we prescribe that water-efficient technologies have to be used,
06:32we have to take it serious, because it's the cheapest way to save money is to become more efficient.
06:39But first of all, we have to become more transparent,
06:42because people don't know how much water they waste, how much water they use in their households.
06:47Shouldn't also more concrete measures be foreseen,
06:51and even sanctions for less proactive member states,
06:55in terms of preventing and recovering from water-related disasters,
07:01whether droughts or floods.
07:04We have, for example, the Water Framework Directive,
07:07and this is legislation.
07:08If you do not comply with legislation, we could sanction there,
07:11because if member states don't meet the targets of legislation,
07:14they should be sanctioned, and we have a backlog.
07:17We haven't seen a lot of progress in the last 20 years,
07:20so we have to become faster.
07:22And I would also see that the Commission is getting more rigid on that
07:26in the coming years, also with the strategy.
07:28The European Commission is focusing on improving infrastructure
07:33and technological innovation,
07:35but environmentalists say that we need to protect nature more.
07:39They suggest that water management should include protection of moors and wetlands,
07:45as well as reducing the use of fertilizers and pesticides.
07:50EU Decoded will continue to follow water protection efforts in Europe.
