00:00A third of the EU is affected by water scarcity.
00:18Water pollution and wastewater are also major concerns,
00:22which are being addressed at this water-purifying unit.
00:25Climate change and high demand of water for economic use require investment and better implementation of legislation.
00:34To try and address all the above, the European Commission has released a new water resilience strategy.
00:40Let's find out more on EU Decoded.
00:43Only 37% of the EU's surface waters have a good ecological status and only 29% have a good chemical status.
00:51The continent is the fastest warming region in the world due to climate change,
00:56which has increased the number of water-related natural disasters.
00:59Currently, 30% of the EU suffers from water scarcity due to prolonged droughts.
01:05Meanwhile, 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.
01:38The European Commission can work a lot when it comes to the consumption.
01:43Every year we can say that we can say that from one or two storms in the winter,
01:48but if there are not these, we will certainly face a problem.
01:52And there is a great possibility of falling a large percentage of our consumption.
01:57I hope that my children still have enough water,
02:01and sweet water, to get to live.
02:05So, I think it has to do with the level of pollution,
02:08and to manage the pollution that exists in the water,
02:11and to talk with 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.
02:40And 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,
02:53to clean up pollution from PFAS and other chemicals.
02:57The polluter pays principle would 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,
03:13and also contribute to water pollution with chemicals.
03:16So will the strategy address those problems?
03:21When 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,
03:48and it's also planning to launch another public-private partnership to develop innovative methods for dry cooling.
03:58NGOs 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?
04:07So it's important to keep in mind that the Greens and some NGOs have criticised this strategy
04:12for lacking clear legal requirements since it is non-binding and for not providing dedicated funding.
04:20So that's one point.
04:21Second, 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.
04:41To address this gap, the EU's executive will allocate the 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.
05:06Our guest is Hildegard Bentele from the 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 is increasing investment
05:24through 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.
05:37And 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, the cohesion policy,
05:51because we have seen that funds have not been used even for investment.
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?
06:14It is a good intention and it's also, I would say, a little bit modest,
06:18because 10% is not a lot.
06:20But 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, we have to take it serious,
06:33because 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.
06:47Should also more concrete measures be foreseen and even sanctions for less proactive member states
06:54in terms of preventing and recovering from water-related disasters, whether droughts or floods.
07:04We have, for example, the Water Framework Directive, and 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, they should be sanctioned.
07:15And we have a backlog.
07:17We haven't seen a lot of progress in the last 20 years, so we have to become faster.
07:22And I would also see that the Commission is getting more rigid on that in the coming years, also with the strategy.
07:28The European Commission is focusing on improving infrastructure and 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.
07:49EU Decoded will continue to follow water protection efforts in Europe.
07:54Stay tuned.
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