Commission reports show faster progress is needed across Europe to protect waters and better manage flood risks

This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission.

Today, the European Commission is publishing its latest reports on the state of water in the European Union.

Covering the implementation of the Water Framework Directive, the Floods Directive, and the Marine Strategy Framework Directive, the reports highlight the progress made to improve the state of EU water bodies over the past six years. They also identify key areas where further efforts are needed.

The reports offer valuable insights into the condition of EU freshwater and marine waters and the actions taken to improve it, as well as measures to reduce flood risks. They also provide country-specific information and tailored recommendations to support continued progress and sustainable water management across Europe.

Information provided by the reports will play a crucial role in shaping the upcoming Water Resilience Strategy, which aims to address the most pressing water-related challenges in Europe.

More work needed to ensure water resilience

Water Framework Directive Implementation Report

The report on the implementation of the Water Framework Directive identified several positive trends. Member States have generally improved knowledge and monitoring of surface and ground water bodies, increased spending, and improved application of EU water-related legislation, though there are considerable regional differences. Most groundwater bodies also continue to achieve good quantitative and chemical status.

However, significant work is needed to meet EU targets on freshwater quality and quantity. The average health of EU surface water bodies is critical, with only 39.5% achieving good ecological status, and only 26.8% achieving good chemical status. This is mainly due to widespread contamination by mercury and other toxic pollutants. Water scarcity and drought are also growing concerns across most of the EU.

The EU has made key recommendations to Member States to improve water management by 2027, including:

• Increase compliance with EU water laws by adhering to pollution limits, particularly nutrient pollution from agriculture, and ensuring that wastewater discharge is dealt with properly to protect the environment and human health;
• Ensure sufficient financing to address funding gaps and guarantee effective implementation of water management measures;
• Implement additional measures to address persistent environmental challenges, such as chemical pollution;
• Promote water reuse and increase efficiency and circularity to prevent aquifer overexploitation, combat illegal abstractions, and mitigate droughts.

Floods Directive Report

The assessment of the implementation of the Floods Directive shows notable improvements in flood risk management, better alignment of objectives and measures, and consideration of challenges posed by climate change.

Nevertheless, most plans failed to include quantitative targets, making it difficult to draw conclusions as to the effectiveness of flood risk management. With more frequent and severe floods in Europe, Member States need to expand their planning and administrative capacity, and adequately invest in flood prevention. To achieve this, ecosystem restoration and nature-based solutions, as well as preparedness measures like early warning systems and awareness raising, are key.

Marine Strategy Framework Directive Programmes of Measures Report

According to the report on the Marine Strategy Framework Directive, some limited progress has been made towards introducing and implementing measures to reach the Directive’s objectives, particularly relating to marine litter.

Member States are encouraged to do more to achieve good environmental status of all EU marine waters, and to sustainably protect the resource base upon which marine-related economic and social activities depend.

Some key EU recommendations to achieve this include:

• Enhancing the design and implementation of measures to protect and restore marine biodiversity, and to reduce nutrient, chemical and underwater noise pollution;
• Introduction of new and improved financing and governance measures to ensure effective implementation of ambitious and coherent measures across the EU’s marine environments.

Call for evidence on future European Water Resilience Strategy

To accompany the reports, the European Commission is launching a call for evidence to provide stakeholders with an opportunity to share input and help design the future European Water Resilience Strategy. The call responds to a clear demand for action to address water challenges and reverse the widespread degradation and structural mismanagement of water resources and ecosystems across the EU.

The call is open to representatives from across the EU, including members of the public and stakeholders working in water-related areas. The consultation process will also include a stakeholder consultation event that will take place on 6 March 2025.

Background

Today’s reports complement the European Environment Agency’s State of Europe’s water 2024 report.

The EU’s water resources face significant pressure due to unsustainable land use, hydro-morphological changes, pollution, climate change, increased demand for water, urbanization, and growing populations.

When asked about the main threats linked to water issues in their country, the majority of Europeans mention pollution, followed by overconsumption and wasting water.

The EU’s Water Framework Directive requires Member States to ensure that all surface water (lakes, rivers, transitional and coastal waters) and groundwaters achieve good quality status by 2015. This deadline can be postponed to 2027 under certain conditions.

The Floods Directive requires Member States to identify and map areas prone to flooding and develop plans to minimise risk and potential damage through Flood Risk Management Plans. Today, the Commission publishes its assessment of these for the period 2021 to 2027.

River Basin Management and Flood Risk Management Plans are developed for six-year periods. Today, the Commission publishes its assessment of these for the period 2021 to 2027.

The Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) requires Member States to assess, monitor and take measures to protect and improve the state of their seas to achieve good environmental status. The programmes of measures assessed are those submitted for the period 2021-2027. The Commission’s assessment focuses on the measures that Member States developed for their respective marine strategies. These programmes are an update of the first programmes of measures reported in 2016.