Ninth report on the implementation status and the programmes for implementation of Council Directive 91/271/EEC concerning urban waste water treatment

The Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive (UWWTD) is one of the key policy instruments under the EU water acquis for protecting the environment and human health. Progress in implementing the UWWTD over the past 25 years has played a substantial role in improving the quality of waters in EU rivers, lakes and seas. It has also underpinned a lot of progress in meeting the objectives of other EU Directives such as the Drinking Water, Bathing Water, Water Framework, and Marine Strategy Framework Directives. Together with the Bathing and the Drinking Water Directives, this Directive also contributes to growth and jobs.

The UWWTD should be also seen in the context of implementing Sustainable Development Goal 6 (SDG 6) - to ‘ensure access to water and sanitation for all’. Considering that worldwide 2.4 billion people live without access to improved sanitation facilities, and still around 10 million people at EU level, SDG 6 offers new hope in terms of improving health and the environment for everyone. It also offers an opportunity for investments and operations in the water sector.

This report is based on data collected from January to December 2014. It is accompanied by a staff working document (SWD) providing a more detailed analysis. For this report, the Commission assessed the situation in all Member States based on accurate implementation data. This was possible through an in-depth dialogue with Member States and the improvement of the IT tools used by the Commission and the European Environment Agency. The report shows the countries that joined the EU since 2004 (EU-13) have made significant improvement in achieving the objectives.

EUR-Lex: SWD(2017)445: Commission Staff Working Document accompanying the report http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=SWD:2017:445:FIN

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