Statement by Commissioner Roswall on the state of water in the EU

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

Ladies and gentlemen,

I am very happy to be here today to present to you the state of our waters in the European Union. As you know, water is very high on the Commission’s agenda. We need water to sustain life, to produce food, to do business. But 100 years from now, our picture of the world will be different because of increasing droughts, floods, desertification, and their devastating impact.

Already today in Spain, 74% of the country is at risk of desertification. Already today, 78% of European citizens say they feel the impact of environmental change in their daily lives. Already now, 800 million people around the world lack access to safe water. So it is a truly global challenge. Water is important for all of us, as human beings. But it is also important for our farmers and companies. They need clean water for their production and processes.

According to the ECB, 75% of corporate loans in the euro area are linked to an ecosystem service. Many of these relate to water. For too long, we have considered water as an endless resource. We need to change that mindset. We need to think in terms of water circularity and water efficiency.

Because, on the one hand, water is under immense stress due to mismanagement, pollution and climate change. And on the other hand, water plays an increasingly important role for our security, preparedness and competitiveness. To bring all the pieces of that puzzle together, we are preparing a Water Resilience Strategy for later this spring. Today’s work is part of the preparation of that Strategy. As a politician and policy maker, I always want our policy to be evidence-based. We need to base ourselves on facts and figures before taking action.

So today’s reports are important. I will not go into the details here regarding these rather detailed and technical reports. But the findings will feed into our Strategy. And very importantly, they will be a basis for a dialogue with Member States.

So, what are we presenting today? The package consists of three implementation reports: the Water Framework Directive, the Floods Directive and the Marine Strategy Framework Directive. Based on assessments from the Member States, we provide a snapshot of fresh waters, marine management and flood preparedness.

Allow me to present some of the main take-aways.First, the overall findings are clear. Our waters are polluted, our water supply is under threat and we are not reducing enough the risk of serious floods. Less than 40% of EU surface water bodies achieve good ecological status, with healthy ecosystems being home to many species and with water able to regenerate itself. And only a quarter achieve good chemical status, meaning that the relevant thresholds of hazardous substances are not exceeded. Many Member States recognise that this is a big problem. Some progress has been made over the last years, but there is still a lot of work to do.

Second, the pollution of both fresh and marine waters remains a significant challenge. It is especially critical to invest in measures that reduce nutrient pollution from agriculture and urban wastewater, as well as chemical pollution. On the upside, plastic waste on beaches has been reduced by almost 30% in Europe – so our policy is delivering.

Third, more efforts are needed to better manage flood risks. Floods are becoming more frequent, more intense, and more deadly. No part of Europe is spared. Investing in flood prevention and early warning systems is key to achieve this.

Fourth, there is a lot of EU water legislation in place, but its implementation is lagging. To close that gap, I will launch structured dialogues with every EU country to create the political momentum for meaningful change. Water is not just a pressing issue in Europe but also a global challenge, so we also need to take this work forward with international partners.

Fifth, Member States need to increase investment. A staggering 86% of River Basin Management Plans highlight funding shortfalls as a major obstacle. The issue of funding is an important angle that I want to focus on in the Water Resilience Strategy. 

Let me also say a word on the methodology – as mentioned, Member States report their data to us, but the approach varies between Member States. Also, not all Member States sent in their reports in time to be covered by all parts of this reporting exercise.

This means that we can of course draw some general conclusions with regard to the EU level, but findings from individual Member States are not always entirely comparable. Each Member State needs to be looked at in its own context. For your detailed questions about individual Member States, our experts are in the room. They will take your questions in the technical briefing after this press conference.

So, what is the way forward? First, as part of the package, the Commission has made several recommendations to support Member States in their work. Encouraging greater water efficiency, water reuse and circularity are key to restore the water cycle.

Second, based on the reports I want to start a dialogue with Member States. The idea here is not to point fingers at anyone. I see this as a starting point to collectively manage to turn around today’s challenging situation.

Third, I am very keen to engage with all stakeholders. That is also why we are launching a call for evidence on water today. I want to take on board the valuable insights from Europeans across all countries and all sectors as we develop the EU Water Resilience Strategy. Europeans need water, so everybody has a stake in this.

Fourth, today’s insights will shape the upcoming Water Resilience Strategy. The overall goal of the strategy is clear: From land to sea, our water cycle is broken. So this needs to be fixed. There is an urgent need for an integrated approach to water management – from source to sea.

Finally, water cuts across many policy areas. I will work very closely with my colleagues in the Commission on this matter. Water is linked to competitiveness, agriculture and food, to oceans and fisheries, to crisis prevention and climate adaptation – and many other areas.

In conclusion, the call for action is clear. Over 75% of EU citizens wants the EU to act on water, according to the May 2024 Eurobarometer. We need to do more to ensure the security of our water supply. Because citizens need clean water. Farmers and businesses need a stable water supply. We need to protect our fresh and marine waters and reduce flood risks. Because the cost of inaction is too high, knowing that the situation will become worse.

It is time to change our mindset. We can no longer take water for granted. We have to work together to build a water-resilient Europe by 2050.

Thank you.