Spain faces fines for not complying with judgment from 2011 over poor waste water collection and treatment

On the 17 November 2016, the European Commission took Spain back to the Court of Justice of the EU for its failure to fully and completely comply with the Court judgement of 2011. Spanish regional authorities must ensure that urban waste water is adequately collected and treated in 17 agglomerations across the country to prevent serious risks to human health and the environment.

Five years later, this matter remained unaddressed in 17 agglomerations (out of the 37 covered by the judgment) corresponding to 1,400,000 people. The lack of adequate collection and treatment of the waste water posed significant risks to human health, to inland waters and to the marine environment.
The Commission asked the Court of Justice of the EU to impose a lump sum amounting to €46,522,999 by this date.