Water

The past decades have seen significant progress in treating the sewage and industrial wastes which are being pumped into Europe's river systems, resulting in lower levels of most pollutants and a measurable improvement in water quality. The agricultural sector, on the other hand, has not made as much progress. Nitrate levels in Europe's rivers are still as high as they were at the beginning of the last decade.

While we have been successful in combating pollution, society has due to increasing populations and economies experienced an ever increasing demand for water of good quality and the result is that several regions across Europe nowadays are facing water scarcity.

With this in mind we can identify the major challenges to Europe’s water:

• To ensure the rates of extraction from our water resources are sustainable over the long term[1] and to promote sustainable water use based on a long-term protection of available water resources[2]
• To prevent further deterioration and protect and enhance the status of aquatic ecosystems and to ensure the progressive reduction of pollution of groundwater and prevent its further pollution.[3]
• To achieve levels of water quality that does not give rise to unacceptable impacts on, and risks to, human health (and the environment)[4].