Aqua Publica Europea took part in the high-level roundtable on Water and the Competitiveness of European Industry, held at the invitation of Commissioner Jessika Roswall. 

Drawing on our publication Resilience in Action, we reaffirmed that Aqua Publica’s members are aware of their responsibility to strengthen the sustainable management of water resources, and we are taking action:

• Through a strong commitment to efficiency, while also actively promoting water savings and alternative water resources.
• By taking on new responsibilities that are key to repairing the broken cycle, such as river restoration, catchment protection, and sponge cities.
• By preparing for the future with long-term quantitative plans that, based on expected climate change and socio-economic evolution, guide investments and interventions to reduce the impact of droughts and floods.

We also called for an appropriate policy framework at national and European levels to enable public water operators to fulfil their mission. This means:

• Reducing institutional fragmentation, particularly in relation to quantitative management.
• Developing a new financing model, especially to support investments aimed at addressing drought and flood risks, which too often lack a clear "owner". 
• Maintaining ambition for the “zero pollution strategy”, as polluted water is water that cannot be used. 
• Providing guidance for the management of shared, transboundary water bodies as a means of reducing the risk of political tensions between territories.
• Continuing economic support, particularly for regions that are vulnerable both economically and environmentally, to maintain the cohesion of our continent.

We look forward to contributing actively to realising the future Water Resilience Strategy.