Changes from plenary report to plenary report

AddedSHORT JUSTIFICATION

RemovedRecital 4 a (new): (4a) In order to fulfil the ambitious goals set up under the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goal No 6, Member States should be obliged to implement action plans to ensure universal and equitable access to safe and affordable drinking water for all by 2030.

AddedThe Council position at first reading reflects the agreement reached between the Parliament and the Council in interinstitutional negotiations at early second reading stage, after legal-linguistic verification. Since the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI), at its vote of 18 February 2020, already confirmed the outcome of those interinstitutional negotiations, as your rapporteur I am proposing that ENVI recommend that the plenary confirm the position of the Council at first reading, without amending it.

RemovedRecital 4 b (new): (4b) The European Parliament adopted resolution of 8 September 2015 on the follow-up to the European Citizens’ Initiative Right2Water.

RemovedAs acknowledged by the European Commission the proposal of recast takes into account the European Parliament resolution as adopted on September the 8th, 2015.

RemovedRecital 5: (5) The World Health Organisation (WHO) Regional Office for Europe conducted a detailed review of the list of parameters and parametric values laid down in Directive 98/83/EC in order to establish whether there is a need to adapt it in light of technical and scientific progress. In view of the results of that review74, enteric pathogens and Legionella should be controlled and six chemical parameters or parameter groups should be added. The WHO recommendations, which are based on the most up-to-date scientific data and evidence at international level, should be followed and the parametric values adjusted accordingly. For lead, the WHO noted that concentrations should be as low as reasonably practical, and for chromium, the value remains under WHO review.

RemovedRecital 5 a (new): (5a) Water intended for human consumption plays a fundamental role in the Union's ongoing efforts to strengthen the protection of human health and the environment against endocrine-disrupting chemicals. The regulation of endocrine-disrupting compounds in this Directive constitutes a promising step in line with the updated Union strategy on endocrine disruptors, which the Commission is obliged to deliver without any further delay.

RemovedRecital 6: deleted / (deleted)

RemovedWHO recommendation moved to Recital 5.

RemovedRecital 6 a (new): (6a) Where scientific knowledge is not sufficient to determine the human health risk, or absence thereof, of a substance present in water intended for human consumption, or the permissible value for the presence of that substance, it should be placed on a watchlist, on the basis of the precautionary principle, until there are clearer scientific data. Endocrine-disrupting substances in water intended for human consumption are a case in point, since, as scientific knowledge currently stands, they pose no potential risk to human health, but, in the light of their potential risk to the environment, it is warranted to place them on a watchlist. Accordingly, Member States should monitor such emerging parameters separately.

RemovedRecital 6 b (new): (6b) Indicator parameters have no direct public-health impact. However, they are important as a means of determining how water production and distribution facilities are functioning and of evaluating water quality. They can help to identify water treatment deficiencies and they also play an important role in increasing and maintaining consumer confidence in water quality. Therefore, they should be monitored by Member States.

RemovedRecital 7: (7) Where necessary for full implementation of the precautionary principle and to protect human health within their territories, Member States should be required to set values for additional parameters not included in Annex I .

RemovedCreates consistency with the proposed approach in the file on the precautionary principle

RemovedRecital 8: (8) Preventive safety planning and risk-based elements were only considered to a limited extent in Directive 98/83/EC. The first elements of a risk-based approach were already introduced in 2015 with Directive (EU) 2015/1787, which amended Directive 98/83/EC so as to allow Member States to derogate from the monitoring programmes they have established, provided credible risk assessments are performed, which may be based on the WHO’s Guidelines for Drinking Water Quality16. Those Guidelines, laying down the so-called "Water Safety Plan" approach, together with standard EN 15975-2 concerning security of drinking water supply, are internationally recognised principles on which the production, distribution, monitoring and analysis of parameters in water intended for human consumption are based. They should be maintained in this Directive. To ensure that those principles are not limited to monitoring aspects, to focus time and resources on risks that matter and on cost-effective source measures, and to avoid analyses and efforts on non-relevant issues, it is appropriate to introduce a complete risk-based approach, throughout the supply chain, from the abstraction area to distribution until the tap. That approach should be based on the knowledge gained and actions carried out under Directive 2000/60/EC and should take into account more effectively the impact of climate change on water resources. A risk-based approach should consist of three components: first, an assessment by the Me…

RemovedRecital 8 a (new): (8a) Ineffective use of water resources, in particular leakage in the water supply infrastructure, leads to over exploitation of scarce resources of water intended for human consumption. This severely hinders the Member States in reaching the objectives set under Directive 2000/60/EC.

RemovedRecital 9: (9) The hazard assessment should take a holistic approach to risk assessment, founded on the explicit aim of reducing the level of treatment required for the production of water intended for human consumption, for instance by reducing the pressures causing the pollution of, or a risk of pollution of, water bodies used for abstraction of water intended for human consumption. To that end, Member States should identify hazard and possible pollution sources associated with those water bodies and monitor pollutants which they identify as relevant, for instance because of the hazard identified (e.g. microplastics, nitrates, pesticides or pharmaceuticals identified under Directive 2000/60/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council18), because of their natural presence in the abstraction area (e.g. arsenic), or because of information from the water suppliers (e.g. sudden increase of a specific parameter in raw water). In accordance with Directive 2000/60/EC, those parameters should be used as markers that trigger action by competent authorities to reduce the pressure on the water bodies, such as prevention or mitigating measures (including research to understand impacts on health where necessary), to protect those water bodies and address the pollution source or risk, in cooperation with all stakeholders, including those responsible for pollutant or potential pollutant sources. Where a Member State finds, via the hazard assessment, that a parameter is not present in a given abs…

RemovedRecital 11: (11) The parametric values used to assess the quality of water intended for human consumption are to be complied with at the point where water intended for human consumption is made available to the appropriate user. However, the quality of water intended for human consumption can be influenced by the domestic distribution system. The WHO notes that, in the Union, Legionella causes the highest health burden of all waterborne pathogens, in particular Legionella pneumophila, which accounts for most cases of Legionnaires’ disease in the Union. It is transmitted by warm water systems through inhalation, for instance during showering. It is therefore clearly linked to the domestic distribution system. Since imposing a unilateral obligation to monitor all private and public premises for this pathogen would lead to unreasonably high costs and would contravene the principle of subsidiarity, a domestic distribution risk assessment is therefore more suited to address this issue, with a special focus on priority premises. In addition, the potential risks stemming from products and materials in contact with water intended for human consumption should also be considered in the domestic distribution risk assessment. The domestic distribution risk assessment should therefore include, inter alia, focusing monitoring on priority premises, assessing the risks stemming from the domestic distribution system and related products and materials in contact with water intended for human consumption. …

RemovedRecital 12: (12) The provisions of Directive 98/83/EC on quality assurance of treatment, equipment and materials did not succeed in addressing obstacles to the internal market when it comes to the free circulation of construction products in contact with water intended for human consumption or providing sufficient protection with regard to human health. National product approvals are still in place, with different requirements from one Member State to another. This renders it difficult and costly for manufacturers to market their products all over the Union. That situation stems from the fact that there are no minimum European hygiene standards for all products and materials in contact with water intended for human consumption, which is essential for fully ensuring mutual recognition between Member States. The removal of technical barriers and conformity of all products and materials in contact with water intended for human consumption at Union level can, therefore, only be effectively achieved by establishing minimum quality requirements at Union level. As a consequence, those provisions should be strengthened by means of a procedure for harmonisation of such products and materials. That work should draw on the experience gained and advances made by a number of Member States that have been working together for some years, in a concerted effort, to bring about regulatory convergence. / (deleted)

RemovedRecital 13: (13) Each Member State should ensure that monitoring programmes are established to check that water intended for human consumption meets the requirements of this Directive. Most of the monitoring carried out for the purposes of this Directive is performed by water suppliers but, where necessary, Member States should clarify with which competent authorities the obligations stemming from the transposition of this Directive lie. A certain flexibility should be granted to water suppliers as regards the parameters they monitor for the purposes of the supply risk assessment. If a parameter is not detected, water suppliers should be able to decrease the monitoring frequency or stop monitoring that parameter altogether. The supply risk assessment should be applied to most parameters. However, a core list of parameters should always be monitored with a certain minimum frequency. This Directive mainly sets provisions on monitoring frequency for the purposes of compliance checks and only limited provisions on monitoring for operational purposes. Additional monitoring for operational purposes may be necessary to ensure the correct functioning of water treatment, at the discretion of water suppliers. In that regard, the water suppliers may refer to the WHO's Guidelines and Water Safety Plan Manual.

RemovedRecital 13 a (new): (13a) Given that water suppliers are both fragmented and numerous, encouragement and incentives should be offered for the use of common standards and practice for rapid exchange of data whenever necessary and in any event for the purposes of continuous monitoring. New technologies can boost this dynamic at a modest or, at any rate, reasonable cost, with a view ultimately to providing more information to end-users, both citizens and stakeholders, and improving dynamics between water suppliers. Data exchange should, in addition, help to reduce waste or, as far as possible, keep it within bounds.

RemovedWider ranging data exchange and facilitation thereof constitute added value, not least in terms of the safety and quality of water for human consumption, and the cost would probably not even be hard to meet. Lastly, data exchange could also be helpful in combating waste.

RemovedRecital 14: (14) The risk-based approach should be applied by all water suppliers, including small and medium-sized water suppliers, as the evaluation of Directive 98/83/EC showed deficiencies in its implementation by those suppliers, which were sometimes due to the cost of performing unnecessary monitoring operations. When applying the risk-based approach, security concerns and concerns relating to the ‘polluter pays’ principle should be taken into account. For smaller suppliers, the competent authority should support the monitoring operations by providing expert support.

RemovedRecital 14 a (new): (14a) In order to deliver the strongest protection for public health, Member States should ensure a clear and balanced distribution of responsibilities for the application of the risk-based approach in line with their national institutional and legal framework.

RemovedRecital 15: (15) In the event of non-compliance with the standards imposed by this Directive the Member State concerned should immediately investigate the cause and ensure that the necessary remedial action is taken as soon as possible to restore the quality of the water. In cases where the water supply constitutes a potential danger to human health, the supply of such water should be prohibited or its use restricted, and citizens who could be affected should be duly informed. In addition, in the event of failure to meet the minimum requirements for values relating to microbiological and chemical parameters, Member States should determine whether exceeding the values constitutes a potential risk to human health. To that end, Member States should take account of, in particular, the extent to which minimum requirements have not been met and the type of parameter concerned. In cases where remedial action is necessary to restore the quality of water intended for human consumption, in accordance with Article 191(2) of the Treaty, priority should be given to action which rectifies the problem at source.

RemovedNecessary for pressing reasons relating to the internal logic of the text.

RemovedRecital 15 a (new): (15a) It is important to prevent contaminated water causing a potential danger to human health. Therefore, the supply of such water should be prohibited or its use restricted.

RemovedRecital 16: (16) Member States should be authorised to grant derogations from this Directive. Derogations were initially used to allow Member States up to nine years to resolve a non-compliance with a parametric value. This procedure has proved to be useful for Member States, given the level of ambition of the Directive. It should be noted, however, that, in some cases, it has led to delays in remedial actions being taken, as the possibility for derogation was sometimes considered to be a transitional period. In the light of the fact, firstly, that the quality parameters in this Directive are to be strengthened and, secondly, that emerging pollutants are being increasingly detected, requiring stepped-up evaluation, monitoring and management actions, it remains, nonetheless, necessary to maintain a derogation procedure that is in keeping with those circumstances, provided that they do not constitute a potential risk to human health and provided that the supply of water intended for human consumption in the area concerned cannot otherwise be maintained by any other reasonable means. The provision in Directive 98/83/EC on derogations should therefore be amended so as to ensure faster and more effective compliance by Member States with the requirements of this Directive. Derogations granted by Member States pursuant to Article 9 of Directive 98/83/EC and still applicable at the date of entry into force of this Directive should continue to apply in accordance with the arrangements laid down b…

RemovedRecital 17: (17) The Commission, in its reply to the European citizens’ initiative ‘Right2Water’ in 201483, invited Member States to ensure access to a minimum water supply for all citizens, in accordance with the WHO recommendations. It also committed to continue to "improve access to safe drinking water […] for the whole population through environmental policies"84. This is in line with Articles 1 and 2 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union. This is also in line with UN Sustainable Development Goal 6 and the associated target to "achieve universal and equitable access to safe and affordable drinking water for all". The concept of equitable access covers a wide array of aspects such as availability (due for instance to geographic reasons, lack of infrastructure or the specific situation of certain parts of the populations), quality, acceptability, or financial affordability. Concerning affordability of water, it is important to recall that, without prejudice to Article 9(4) of Directive 2000/60/EC, when setting water tariffs in accordance with the principle of recovery of costs set out in that Directive, Member States may have regard to the variation in the economic and social conditions of the population and may therefore adopt social tariffs or take measures safeguarding populations at a socio-economic disadvantage. This Directive deals, in particular, with the aspects of access to water which are related to quality and availability. To address those aspects, as p…

RemovedRecital 18: (18) The European Parliament, in its Resolution on the "follow-up to the European citizens’ initiative Right2Water"86, "requested that Member States should pay special attention to the needs of vulnerable groups in society"87. The specific situation of minority cultures, such as Roma and Travellers, whether sedentary or not – in particular their lack of access to drinking water – was also acknowledged in the Commission Report on the implementation of the EU Framework for National Roma Integration Strategies88 and the Council Recommendation on effective Roma integration measures in the Member States89. In light of that general context, it is appropriate that Member States pay particular attention to vulnerable and marginalised groups by taking the necessary measures to ensure that those groups have access to water. Taking into account the principle of recovery of costs set out in Directive 2000/60/EC, Member States should improve access to water for vulnerable and marginalised groups without jeopardising the supply of universally affordable high-quality water. Without prejudice to the right of the Member States to define those groups, they should at least include refugees, nomadic communities, homeless people and minority cultures such as Roma and Travellers, whether sedentary or not. Such measures to ensure access, left to the appreciation of the Member States, might for example include providing alternative supply systems (individual treatment devices), providing water via t…

RemovedRecital 19: (19) The 7th Environment Action Programme to 2020 ‘Living well, within the limits of our planet’90, requires that the public have access to clear environmental information at national level. Directive 98/83/EC only provided for passive access to information, meaning that Member States merely had to ensure that information was available. Those provisions should therefore be replaced to ensure that up-to-date information that is comprehensible and relevant to consumers and easily accessible, for instance in a booklet, a website or a smart application. The up-to-date information should not only include results from the monitoring programmes, but also additional information that the public may find useful, such as the outcome of actions taken to monitor water suppliers as regards water quality parameters and information on indicator parameters listed in Part Ba of Annex I. For very large water suppliers, additional information on, inter alia, management, tariff structure and treatment applied, should also be available on-line. The purpose of better consumer knowledge of relevant information and improved transparency should be to increase citizens' confidence in the water supplied to them, as well as in water services, and should lead to an increased use of tap water as drinking water, which could contribute to reduced plastic usage and litter and greenhouse gas emissions, and a positive impact on climate change mitigation and the environment as a whole.

RemovedRecital 20: (20) For the same reasons, and in order to make consumers more aware of the implications of water consumption, they should also receive information in an easily accessible manner, for instance on their invoice or by smart application on the volume consumed per year, changes in consumption, a comparison with average household consumption, where such information is available to the water supplier, the structure of the tariff charged by the water supplier, including the distribution of variable and fixed parts of it, as well as on the price per litre of water intended for human consumption, thereby allowing a comparison with the price of bottled water.

RemovedRecital 21: (21) The fundamental principles to be considered in the setting of water tariffs, without prejudice to Article 9(4) of Directive 2000/60/EC, namely recovery of costs for water services and polluter pays, are set out in that Directive. However, the financial sustainability of the provision of water services is not always ensured, sometimes leading to under-investment in the maintenance of water infrastructure. With the improvement of monitoring techniques, leakage levels – mainly due to such under-investment – have become increasingly apparent and reduction of water losses should be encouraged at Union level to improve the efficiency of water infrastructure. In line with the principle of subsidiarity, in order to raise awareness of this issue, the information related to it should be shared in a more transparent way with consumers.

RemovedRecital 22: (22) Directive 2003/4/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council91 aims at guaranteeing the right of access to environmental information in the Member States. It encompasses broad obligations related both to making environmental information available upon request and actively disseminating such information. Directive 2007/2/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council92 is also of broad scope, covering the sharing of spatial information, including data-sets on different environmental topics. It is important that provisions of this Directive related to access to information and data-sharing arrangements complement those Directives and do not create a separate legal regime. Therefore, the provisions of this Directive on information to the public and on information on monitoring of implementation should be without prejudice to Directives 2003/4/EC and 2007/2/EC.

RemovedRecital 25: (25) Pursuant to paragraph 22 of the Interinstitutional Agreement on Better Law-Making, the Commission should carry out an evaluation of this Directive within a certain period of time from the date set for its transposition. That evaluation should be based on experience gathered and data collected during the implementation of the Directive, on any available WHO recommendations, and on relevant scientific, analytical and epidemiological data.

RemovedRecital 28: (28) In order to adapt this Directive to scientific and technical progress or to specify monitoring requirements for the purposes of the hazard and domestic distribution risk assessments, the power to adopt acts in accordance with Article 290 of the Treaty should be delegated to the Commission to amend Annexes I to IV to this Directive, and take measures necessary under the changes set out under Article 10a. It is of particular importance that the Commission carry out appropriate consultations during its preparatory work, including at expert level, and that those consultations be conducted in accordance with the principles laid down in the Interinstitutional Agreement of 13 April 2016 on Better Law-Making. In particular, to ensure equal participation in the preparation of delegated acts, the European Parliament and the Council receive all documents at the same time as Member States' experts, and their experts systematically have access to meetings of Commission expert groups dealing with the preparation of delegated acts. In addition, the empowerment laid down in Annex I, part C, Note 10, of Directive 98/83/EC, to set monitoring frequencies and monitoring methods for radioactive substances has become obsolete due to the adoption of Council Directive 2013/51/Euratom96 and should therefore be deleted. The empowerment laid down in the second subparagraph of part A of Annex III to Directive 98/83/EC concerning amendments of the Directive is no longer necessary and should be delet…

RemovedArticle 1 – paragraph 1: 1. This Directive concerns the quality of water intended for human consumption for all in the Union.

RemovedNecessary for reasons related to the internal logic of the text. The introduction of the access to water (Article 13) was not reflected in Article 1 of the COM Proposal.

RemovedArticle 1 – paragraph 2: 2. The objective of this Directive shall be to protect human health from the adverse effects of any contamination of water intended for human consumption by ensuring that it is wholesome and clean, and to promote universal access to water intended for human consumption.

RemovedNecessary for reasons related to the internal logic of the text. The introduction of the access to water (Article 13) was not reflected in Article 1 of the COM Proposal.

RemovedArticle 2 – paragraph 1 – point 1: 1. ‘water intended for human consumption’ shall mean all water either in its original state or after treatment, intended for drinking, cooking, food preparation or production, or for other food purposes, or other domestic purposes in both public and private premises, including food businesses, regardless of its origin and whether it is supplied from a distribution network, supplied from a tanker or put in bottles or containers.

RemovedArticle 2 – paragraph 1 – point 2: (Does not affect the English version.)

RemovedArticle 2 – paragraph 1 – point 3: 3. 'water supplier' shall mean a legal entity supplying at least 10 m3 of water intended for human consumption a day as an average.

RemovedArticle 2 – paragraph 1 – point 3 a (new): 3a. 'very small water supplier' shall mean a water supplier supplying less than 50 m3 per day or serving less than 250 people.

RemovedArticle 2 – paragraph 1 – point 4: 4. 'small water supplier' shall mean a water supplier supplying less than 500 m3 per day or serving less than 2 500 people.

RemovedArticle 2 – paragraph 1 – point 4 a (new): 4a. 'medium water supplier' shall mean a water supplier supplying at least 500 m3 per day or serving at least 2 500 people.

RemovedArticle 2 – paragraph 1 – point 5: 5. 'large water supplier' shall mean a water supplier supplying at least 5 000 m3 per day or serving at least 25 000 people.

RemovedArticle 2 – paragraph 1 – point 6: 6. 'very large water supplier' shall mean a water supplier supplying at least 20 000 m3 per day or serving at least 100 000 people.

RemovedArticle 2 – paragraph 1 – point 7: 7. 'priority premises' shall mean large non-household premises with many people, in particular vulnerable people, potentially exposed to water-related risks, such as hospitals, healthcare institutions, retirement homes, schools, universities and other education facilities, crèches and nurseries, sport, recreation, leisure and exhibition facilities, buildings with a lodging facility, penal institutions and campgrounds, as identified by Member States.

RemovedArticle 2 – paragraph 1 – point 8 a (new): 8a. ‘food business’ shall mean a food business as defined in point (2) of Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 178/2002.

RemovedNecessary for pressing reasons relating to the internal logic of the text. This definition clarifies the meaning of the term in this Directive and ensures consistency with the legislation already in place.

RemovedArticle 3 – paragraph 1 a (new): 1a. For water used in food businesses for the manufacture, processing, preservation or marketing of products or substances intended for human consumption, only Articles 4, 5, 6 and 11 of this Directive shall apply. However, none of the articles of this Directive shall apply where an operator of a food business can demonstrate to the satisfaction of the competent national authorities that the quality of the water it uses does not affect the hygiene of the products or substances resulting from its activities and that such products or substances comply with Regulation (EC) No 852/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council1a. / 1a Regulation (EC) No 852/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004 on the hygiene of foodstuffs (OJ L 139, 30.4.2004, p. 1).

RemovedNecessary for pressing reasons relating to the internal logic of the text and for more clarity.

RemovedArticle 3 – paragraph 1 b (new): 1b. A producer of water intended for human consumption that is put into bottles or containers shall not be considered a water supplier. / Provisions of this Directive shall apply to water intended for human consumption put into bottles or containers insofar as they are not covered by obligations under other Union legislation.

RemovedNecessary for pressing reasons relating to the internal logic of the text and for more clarity.

RemovedArticle 3 – paragraph 1 c (new): 1c. Maritime vessels that desalinate water, carry passengers and act as water suppliers shall only be subject to Articles 1 to 7 and 9 to 12 of this Directive and its Annexes.

RemovedNecessary for pressing reasons relating to the internal logic of the text and for more clarity.

RemovedArticle 4 – paragraph 1 – point c: (c) Member States have taken all other measures necessary to comply with the requirements set out: / (i) in Articles 4 to 12 of this Directive for water intended for human consumption supplied to the final consumers from a distribution network or from a tanker; / (ii) in Articles 4, 5 and 6 and Article 11(4) of this Directive for water intended for human consumption put into bottles or containers in a food business; / (iii) in Articles 4, 5, 6 and 11 of this Directive for water intended for human consumption produced and used in a food business for the production, processing and distribution of food.

RemovedNecessary for pressing reasons relating to the internal logic of the text and for more clarity.

RemovedArticle 4 – paragraph 2: 2. Member States shall ensure that the measures taken to implement this Directive adhere fully to the precautionary principle and in no circumstances have the effect of allowing, directly or indirectly, any deterioration of the present quality of water intended for human consumption or any increase in the pollution of waters used for the production of water intended for human consumption .

RemovedThe link to theprecautionary principle should be made explicit in this Article as,particularly with the introduction of the risk-based approach, this principleshould underpin the approach to the obligations upon Member States throughoutthis Directive