30 Amendments of Eleonora EVI related to 2017/0332(COD)
Amendment 137 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 4
Recital 4
(4) Following the conclusion of the European citizens' initiative on the right to water (Right2Water)71, a Union-wide public consultation was launched and a Regulatory Fitness and Performance (REFIT) Evaluation of Directive 98/83/EC was performed72. It became apparent from that exercise that certain provisions of Directive 98/83/EC needed to be updated. Four areas were identified as offering scope for improvement, namely the list of quality-based parametric values, the limited reliance on a risk-based approach, the imprecise provisions on consumer information, the accessibility of consumer information, and the disparities between approval systems for materials in contact with water intended for human consumption. In addition, the European citizens' initiative on the right to water identified as a distinct problem the fact that part of the population, especially marginalised groups, has no access to water intended for human consumption, which is also a commitment under Sustainable Development Goal 6 of UN Agenda 2030. A final issue identified is the general lack of awareness of water leakages, which are driven by underinvestment in maintenance and renewal of the water infrastructure, as also pointed out in the European Court of Auditors' Special Report on water infrastructure73. _________________ 71 COM(20146) 177270 final. 72 SWD (20163) 428527 final 73 Special report of the European Court of Auditors SR 12/2017: "Implementing the Drinking Water Directive: water quality and access to it improved in Bulgaria, Hungary and Romania, but investment needs remains substantial".
Amendment 169 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 9
Recital 9
(9) The hazard assessment should be geared towards reducing and optimising the level of treatment required for the production of water intended for human consumption, for instance by reducing the pressures causing the pollution of water bodies used for abstraction of water intended for human consumption, facilitating quality and cleanliness monitoring, and encouraging the appropriate exchange of information. To that end, Member States should identify hazards and possible pollution sources associated with those water bodies and monitor pollutants which they identify as relevant, for instance because of the hazards identified (e.g. microplastics, nitrates, pesticides or pharmaceuticals identified under Directive 2000/60/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council78), because of their natural presence in the abstraction area (e.g. arsenic), or because of information from the water suppliers (e.g. sudden increase of a specific parameter in raw water). Those parameters should be used as markers that trigger action by competent authorities to reduce the pressure on the water bodies, such as prevention or mitigating measures (including research to understand impacts on health where necessary), to protect those water bodies and address the pollution source, in cooperation with water suppliers and stakeholders. _________________ 78 Directive 2000/60/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2000 establishing a framework for Community action in the field of water policy (OJ L 327, 22.12.2000, p. 1).
Amendment 185 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 13 a (new)
Recital 13 a (new)
(13a) Given that suppliers are both fragmented and numerous, encouragement and incentives should be offered for the use of common standards and practice for rapid exchange of data whenever necessary and in any event for the purposes of continuous monitoring. New technologies can boost this dynamic at a modest or at any rate reasonable cost, with a view ultimately to providing more information to end-users (citizens and stakeholders) and improving dynamics between suppliers. Data exchange should, in addition, help to reduce waste or, as far as possible, keep it within bounds.
Amendment 186 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 13 b (new)
Recital 13 b (new)
(13b) The standardisation and movement of data should be speeded up, not least to facilitate data collection at central level (in other words by Member States) so as to ensure that the state of play can be kept as up to date as possible at national level. This approach might also prove very useful if problems occurred, for example pollution or network incidents.
Amendment 195 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 15
Recital 15
(15) In the event of non-compliance with the standards imposed by this Directive the Member State concerned should immediately investigate the cause and ensure that the necessary remedial action is taken as soon as possible to restore the quality of the water. In cases where the water supply constitutes a potential danger to human health, the supply of such water should be prohibited or its use restricted, and citizens who might be affected should be duly informed without delay. In addition, it is important to clarify that failure to meet the minimum requirements for values relating to microbiological and chemical parameters should automatically be considered by Member States as a potential danger to human health. In cases where remedial action is necessary to restore the quality of water intended for human consumption, in accordance with Article 191(2) of the Treaty, priority should be given to action which rectifies the problem at source.
Amendment 208 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 17 a (new)
Recital 17 a (new)
(17a) In order to guarantee access to water, a natural resource and a universal human right, it should be borne in mind that all surface waters and groundwater are public and non-commodifiable, and participatory public governance should therefore be fostered with a view to encompassing the integrated water cycle as a whole. When water is managed by a private entity, that entity should be placed under the close scrutiny of the competent authorities of Member States.
Amendment 213 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 18 a (new)
Recital 18 a (new)
(18a) On 15 July 2015 the European Parliament adopted the report on the follow-up to the European Citizens’ Initiative Right2Water (2014/2239(INI)).
Amendment 222 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 19
Recital 19
(19) The 7<sup>th</sup>th Environment Action Programme to 2020 ‘Living well, within the limits of our planet’90, requires that the public have access to clear environmental information, which should also be available online, at national level. Directive 98/83/EC only provided for passive access to information, meaning that Member States merely had to ensure that information was available. Those provisions should therefore be replaced to ensure that up-to-date information is easily accessible, for instance on a website whose link should be actively distributed. The up- to-date information should not only include results from the monitoring programmes, but also additional information that the public may find useful, such as information on indicators (iron, hardness, minerals, etc.), which often influence consumers' perception of tap water. To that end, the indicator parameters of Directive 98/83/EC that did not provide health-related information should be replaced by on-line information on those parameters. For very large water suppliers, additional information on, inter alia, energy efficiency, management, governance, cost structure, and treatment applied, should also be available on-line. It is assumed that better consumer knowledge and improved transparency will contribute to increasing citizens' confidence in the water supplied to them. This in turn is expected to lead to increased use of tap water, thereby contributing to reduced plastic litter and greenhouse gas emissions, and a positive impact on climate change mitigation and the environment as a whole. _________________ 90 Decision No 1386/2013/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 November 2013 on a General Union Environment Action Programme to 2020 ‘Living well, within the limits of our planet’ (OJ L 354, 28.12.2013, p. 171).
Amendment 227 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 20
Recital 20
(20) For the same reasons, and in order to make consumers more aware of the implications of water consumption, they should also receive information (for instance on their invoice or by smart applications) on the volume consumed, the cost structure of the tariff charged by the water supplier, including variable and fixed costs, as well as on the price per litre of water intended for human consumption, thereby allowing a comparison with the price of bottled water. The data referred to above should, as far as possible, be accessible and clear in order to be more readily comprehensible to all citizens.
Amendment 234 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 21
Recital 21
(21) The principles to be considered in the setting of water tariffs, namely recovery of costs for water services and polluter pays, are set out in Directive 2000/60/EC. However, the financial sustainability of the provision of water services is not always ensured, sometimes leading to under-investment in the maintenance of water infrastructure. With the improvement of monitoring techniques and the prompt exchange of information, including in digital form, leakage rates and waste – mainly due to such under- investment or to structural network flaws – have become increasingly apparent and reduction of water losses should be encouraged at Union level to improve the efficiency of water infrastructure. In line with the principle of subsidiarity, that issue should be addressed by increasing transparency and consumer information on leakage rates and energy efficiency.
Amendment 239 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 23
Recital 23
(23) Directive 98/83/EC did not set out reporting obligations for small water suppliers. To remedy this, and to address the need for implementation and compliance information, a new system should be introduced, whereby Member States are required to set up, keep up-to- date and make accessible to the Commission and the European Environmental Agency data sets containing only relevant data, such as exceedances of parametric values and incidents of a certain significance. This should ensure that the administrative burden on all entities remains as limited as possible. To ensure the appropriate infrastructure for public access, reporting and data-sharing between public authorities, Member States should base the data specifications on Directive 2007/2/EC and its implementing acts. The digitalisation of data and the adoption of standards could provide a fast, efficient, and inexpensive medium for the above purpose.
Amendment 240 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 24
Recital 24
(24) Data reported by Member States isare not only necessary for the purposes of compliance checking but isare also essential to enable the Commission to monitor and assess the performance of the legislation against the objectives it pursues in order to inform any future evaluation of the legislation in accordance with paragraph 22 of the Interinstitutional Agreement between the European Parliament, the Council of the European Union and the European Commission on Better Law- Making of 13 April 201693. In that context, there is a need for complete updated relevant data that will allow better assessment of the efficiency, effectiveness, relevance, and EU value added of the Directive, hence the necessity to ensure appropriate reporting mechanisms that can also serve as indicators for future evaluations of this Directive. _________________ 93 OJ L 123, 12.5.2016, p. 1.
Amendment 256 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – paragraph 2
Article 1 – paragraph 2
2. The objective of this Directive shall be to protect human health from the adverse effects of any contamination of water intended for human consumption by ensuring that it is wholesome and clean, clean, equally accessible to all, and, in general, exploited in a sustainable way.
Amendment 426 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 10 – paragraph 1 – point a
Article 10 – paragraph 1 – point a
(a) an assessment of the potential risks associated with the domestic distribution systems, and with the related products and materials, and whether they affect the quality and wholesomeness of water at the point where it emerges from the taps normally used for human consumption, in particular where water is supplied to the public in priority premises;
Amendment 490 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 12 – paragraph 4 – point a
Article 12 – paragraph 4 – point a
(a) notify all affected consumers without delay of the potential danger to human health and its cause, of the exceedance of a parametric value and of the remedial actions taken, including prohibition, restriction or other action;
Amendment 491 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 12 – paragraph 4 – point b
Article 12 – paragraph 4 – point b
(b) give, and regularly update, wherever possible in a clear and intuitive way, the necessary advice to consumers on conditions of consumption and use of the water, taking particular account of potential vulnerable groups;
Amendment 511 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 13 – paragraph 1 – introductory part
Article 13 – paragraph 1 – introductory part
1. WGiven that access to drinking water is a human right and without prejudice to Article 9 of Directive 2000/60/EC, Member States shall take all necessary measures to improve access for all to water intended for human consumption and promote its use on their territory. This shall include all of the following measures:
Amendment 518 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 13 – paragraph 1 – point a
Article 13 – paragraph 1 – point a
(a) identifying people without access to water intended for human consumption and reasons for lack of access (such as belonging to a vulnerable and marginalised group or being at risk of poverty or social exclusion), assessing possibilities to improve access for those people and informing them about possibilities of connecting to the distribution network or about alternative means to have access to such water;
Amendment 519 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 13 – paragraph 1 – point a
Article 13 – paragraph 1 – point a
(a) identifying people without access to water intended for human consumption and reasons for lack of access (such as belonging to a vulnerable and marginalised group), assessing possibilities to improve access for those people and informing them clearly and exhaustively about possibilities of connecting to the distribution network or about alternative means to have access to such water;
Amendment 522 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 13 – paragraph 1 – point a a (new)
Article 13 – paragraph 1 – point a a (new)
(aa) ensuring, as far as possible, that water is distributed by public entities or, in any event, providing for public monitoring of private entities supplying, managing, or distributing water intended for human consumption;
Amendment 523 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 13 – paragraph 1 – point a b (new)
Article 13 – paragraph 1 – point a b (new)
(ab) The supply of a vital minimum quantity of water must not be discontinued. In the event of late payment, the operator shall install a supply limiter providing not more than the essential daily supply of 50 litres per person.
Amendment 541 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 13 – paragraph 1 – point c – point ii
Article 13 – paragraph 1 – point c – point ii
(ii) encouraging the provision of such water in administrations and public buildings, while discouraging the use of plastic bottles and containers;
Amendment 550 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 13 – paragraph 1 – point c – point iii a (new)
Article 13 – paragraph 1 – point c – point iii a (new)
(iiia) encouraging systems, technologies, and other ways to reduce waste and leakage in public and domestic water networks;
Amendment 553 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 13 – paragraph 1 – point c – point iii b (new)
Article 13 – paragraph 1 – point c – point iii b (new)
(iiib) raising public awareness of issues related to water pollution, leakage, sustainable water use and maintenance, and the problem of recycling;
Amendment 554 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 13 – paragraph 1 – point c – point iii c (new)
Article 13 – paragraph 1 – point c – point iii c (new)
(iiic) encouraging digitalisation of public water distribution, control, and management data;
Amendment 576 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 14 – paragraph 1
Article 14 – paragraph 1
1. Member States shall ensure that adequate and up-to-date information on water intended for human consumption is available online, as well as in other forms, to all persons supplied, in accordance with Annex IV.
Amendment 657 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 14 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 1 – point e a (new)
Article 14 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 1 – point e a (new)
(ea) any initiatives seeking to eliminate waste and loss.
Amendment 717 #
Proposal for a directive
Annex I – part B – table – rows 29 and 30
Annex I – part B – table – rows 29 and 30
PFAS 0,101 μg/l 'PFAS' means each individual per- and polyfluoroalkyl substance (chemical formula: CnF2n+1−R). PFASs - Total 0,505 μg/l 'PFASs Total' means the sum of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (chemical formula: CnF2n+1−R).
Amendment 720 #
Proposal for a directive
Annex I – part B – table – row 34
Annex I – part B – table – row 34
Amendment 756 #
Proposal for a directive
Annex III – part B – point 1 – table 1 – row 28
Annex III – part B – point 1 – table 1 – row 28
PFAS 50 20