Water

Advocacy Lab Content
Electricity 22-04-2024

Is Europe’s hydropower potential tapped out?

Est. 7min

Huge dam projects built in Sweden, Austria and France decades ago might not be feasible today, but pumped storage hydropower at sites with existing infrastructure could have major potential to reduce the EU’s emissions.

Eucalyptus: Portugal’s sustainability dilemma

Est. 4min

Portuguese eucalyptus forests are helping to replace plastics, but as the country's climate warms up, this highly flammable tree is a growing threat to people and biodiversity.

Europe strengthens rules on urban wastewater treatment

Est. 4min

In a final vote, the European Parliament has just adopted a new law updating the rules on the collection, treatment and discharge of urban wastewater. Europe's local authorities fear an explosion for the costs of its implementation.

Advocacy Lab Content

Droughts prove EU’s water resilience urgently needs holistic strategy

Est. 5min

With several EU member states facing the impacts of drought conditions and the bloc’s water ecosystems under pressure, experts have voiced the need for a “holistic approach” to increase Europe’s water resilience.

Chemicals 05-04-2024

French National Assembly, impatient with EU, pushes for ‘forever chemical’ ban

Est. 4min

On Thursday (4 April), the French opposition party Les Écologistes pushed a proposal to reduce the use of the so-called "forever chemicals" through the National Assembly, but the government favours a European solution to this environmental and health problem.

Climate change 11-03-2024

Europe must do more to adapt to climate change, says EU environment agency

Est. 4min

Europe needs to take immediate action to address the rapidly increasing climate challenges, the EU's environment agency said in its first European Climate Risk Assessment (EUCRA), published on Monday (11 March), which identified 36 major risks.

Industrial site near Brussels shows microplastic pollution in action

Est. 5min

As the European Parliament works on a revision of the regulation on microplastics, EU lawmakers and NGOs travelled outside Brussels to see for themselves the scale and impact of plastic pellet pollution on site.

Barcelona bets on water desalination in response to ‘drought of the century’

Est. 7min

The Catalonia region has decided to invest almost €500 million from EU funds to make its capital city more resilient to droughts, with two new desalination plants expected to come online by the end of the decade. But for the more than 500 Catalan towns that aren’t connected to the water grid, there is little prospect of improvement.

European Commission backtracks on Water Resilience Initiative

Est. 3min

The withdrawal of the Water Resilience Initiative from the European Commission's agenda has raised fears among environmental NGOs that Europe's climate ambitions will be set back.

Politics 08-02-2024

EU threatens Portugal with sanctions over conservation failings

Est. 2min

The EU Commission started legal proceedings against Portugal at the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) on Wednesday in two individual cases for its alleged failure to comply with a ruling on the conservation of sites considered Special Areas of Conservation and threatened sanctions.

Politics 23-01-2024

Portugal says EU needs plan to promote water availability to fight scarcity

Est. 2min

Responding to the threat of water scarcity must include creating a plan to promote water availability in the European Union, namely through management technologies that reduce waste, said Portuguese Agriculture Minister Maria do Céu Antunes on Monday.

Biodiversity 08-01-2024

Europe’s rivers at risk due to hydropower plants, human interference

Est. 5min

While only around a third of the world’s rivers “remain free flowing,” according to campaign group International Rivers, the situation is worse in Europe, where the number of ‘wild’ or free-flowing rivers can likely be counted on both hands.

Europe’s oldest renewables industry wants more attention from Brussels

Est. 6min

The EU's biggest hydropower players have gathered to form an alliance and are asking for aid from Brussels as the industry suffers from slow growth due to green concerns and a challenging investment environment.

Politics 05-10-2023

Spanish government blocks controversial irrigation law in drought-stricken Doñana

Est. 2min

The Spanish government has succeeded in blocking a regional law that would legalise further irrigation around the already-water-scarce Doñana National Park, instead aiming to support sustainable practices financially.

Lawmakers call for ‘European Blue Deal’ to tackle water challenges

Est. 3min

A cross-party group of lawmakers in the European Parliament have issued a joint call for the establishment of an ambitious "European Blue Deal" to protect water resources from climate stress and promote ocean energies.

Politics 22-09-2023

Albania’s Skavica hydropower project to be examined by Constitutional Court

Est. 4min

Albania's controversial but yet-to-be-built Skavica mega-dam, which threatens some 41 villages in the north of the country, will be reviewed by the country's highest court following a constitutional complaint by a coalition of energy and environmental NGOs.

Politics 01-09-2023

Polish court discontinues proceedings in Turów mine case

Est. 4min

The Voivodship Administrative Court in Warsaw has suspended proceedings against the decision to extend the concession for the Turów mine until 2044, meaning that the mine, which has been the subject of a long-running dispute between Poland and the Czech Republic, can continue to operate unhindered for more than 20 years.

Politics 28-08-2023

Serbia struggles with access to clean drinking water

Est. 3min

Serbia does not have enough water, so around one million citizens are struggling to get consistent access to safe drinking water, according to activists who spoke to EURACTIV.rs.

Politics 17-07-2023

Over two-thirds of French groundwater below monthly averages

Est. 3min

Droughts are emptying groundwater reserves, which are seriously under the usual monthly average, a trend that continues to lead to wildfires and shortages of freshwater for consumption, the French authority monitoring water resources has found. Winter and summer rainfalls in France …

Agrifood 01-06-2023

Brussels closes German nitrate pollution case after decade-long tussle

Est. 4min

Germany is now in compliance with EU nitrate pollution rules and equipped to further tackle high pollution levels in groundwater, the European Commission announced on Thursday (1 June), ending a decade-long back-and-forth with Brussels and the threat of hefty fines.

Agrifood 18-04-2023

Water politics: How Spain’s drought became a battle ground for rural votes

Est. 6min

Ahead of regional elections, the Spanish National Park of Doñana is at the epicentre of a clash between local fruit producers, environmentalists, and authorities after a controversial proposal to regularise illegal irrigation systems in the midst of a severe drought.

Italy tables ‘drought’ decree to address severe water crisis

Est. 3min

The Italian government has introduced a new drought decree to tackle the country's severe water crisis, including appointing an extraordinary national commissioner to oversee emergency interventions.

Politics 31-03-2023

Macron announces water plan to fight droughts

Est. 2min

Progressive pricing, savings, and the fight against leaks are all part of the 53 measures in the new water management plan President Emmanuel Macron announced on Thursday to better tackle droughts.

Italy’s water crisis exacerbated by leaky pipes, data shows

Est. 3min

Italy is wasting more and more of its water from leaky aqueducts, leaving the country increasingly vulnerable to droughts, national statistics bureau ISTAT said on Tuesday (21 March).