Back in 2025, the European Commission announced its intention to revise the Water Framework Directive in the context of the presentation of the ResourceEU Plan, aimed at facilitating critical raw materials mining projects. In support of this process, APE, as the association of European public water operators, responded to the Call for Evidence.
This comes in the context in which the situation of water bodies in Europe is already critical, with thousands of catchment areas closed in some Member States over recent years, and the ecological and chemical status of waters under the Water Framework Directive still far from reaching “good status” by 2027.
In our response, Aqua Publica Europea highlights the following key points:
- Mining activities are not prohibited under the current legislative framework and have already been enabled through several projects since the entry into force of the Water Framework Directive.
- The European Commission must take into account the multiple environmental risks associated with mining activities, which can have long-lasting impacts on both water quantity and quality, posing serious risks to water operators, communities, and ecosystems.
- Without proper regulation, the costs of pollution and related externalities risk being shifted onto public authorities and citizens.
For these reasons, APE warns against the risk, for both citizens and the economy, of a weakening of the non-deterioration principle or a systematic expansion of exemption regimes, particularly in relation to chemical pollution.
If any revision of the non-deterioration principle is considered, it is essential that it does not undermine the capacity of the Water Framework Directive to continue protecting the environment, human health, and water resilience.
Above all, the protection of citizens’ health must remain the overriding priority, ensuring the fundamental right to clean and affordable drinking water.
Read Aqua Publica Europea's position paper on the WFD revision here.
