Joint civil society priorities for the trialogue negotiations on the Urban Wastewater Treatment Directive

Parliament and the European Commission, to adopt a strong Urban Wastewater Treatment Directive

(UWWTD) that is fit for purpose to address current and emerging threats to ecosystems and human

health for the coming decades.

untreated and/or inadequately treated wastewater remains a main reason for the failure of good water

status. As a footprint of society and our consumption and production patterns, urban wastewater

contains a complex mix of domestic discharges, industrial effluents, and road runoff that needs proper

treatment to achieve good water quality in the EU.

remains our last filter of protection before discharging into the receiving environment. Upholding an

ambitious update of the Directive can address both of these objectives.

health but also at a large cost for the public budget. Integrated urban wastewater management, with

an emphasis on prevention via blue-green solutions, is essential to cities’ climate change adaptation

and can help to reduce pollution carried by wastewater spills.

to the challenges of today, not least in tackling pollutants of emerging concern. The Commission has

proposed an ambitious overhaul of the rules, but we are concerned about certain changes proposed

by the Parliament and – in particular – the Council that would significantly weaken the Commission’s

proposal.

Commission to safeguard the following key elements in the EU Urban Wastewater Treatment

Directive in the trialogue negotiations.

• No more derogation after 2027 on existing wastewater treatment requirements.
  
  Secondary treatment (removal of organic matter) has been a central requirement of the

  Directive since 1991 and should have already been fulfilled in all +2000 p.e. agglomeration

  by 2005 at the latest. Decentralised treatment will still be allowed where the environmental

  gain or costs do not warrant the building of a collection systems.

• Coherent rules across the EU without exemptions for selected Member States or regions.
• Maintained ambition for micropollutant removal by retaining 100,000 p.e. as the definition

  for large plants and as the cut-off threshold for mandatory tertiary and quaternary treatment

• Timely introduction of publicly available integrated urban wastewater management plans
  
  with clear targets to climate-proof cities and reduce pollution from urban wastewaters.
• No undermining of the Water Framework Directive objectives. The 2019 fitness check

  concluded the Water Framework Directive is fit for purpose and its obligations have been

  clarified in court rulings.

• An EPR scheme that covers all costs related to micropollutant removal.
• An energy neutrality target that is truly aiming for energy neutrality, with emphasis on energy

  saving first in order to reduce energy consumption and to protect the public budget from volatile energy prices.

• Ensure that circularity requirements do not compromise the EU Zero Pollution ambition by

  ensuring strict pollution thresholds for wastewater and sludge reuse, in particular in

  agriculture.

• Secure a comprehensive framework to prevent biomedia leakages through preventive

  measures as well as regular monitoring of the use of this technology in WWTPs.