Forever chemicals: Brussels' mission to clean up Europe's water
These were the conclusions of the European Water Resilience Strategy, adopted on Wednesday in Brussels.
In 2022, out of 1,300 monitoring sites in Europe, 59% of rivers, 35% of lakes and 73% of coastal waters exceeded the environmental quality standard for perfluorooctanesulphonic acid (PFOS), a type of PFAS, according to the European Environment Agency (EEA).
In Europe, only 37% of surface waters are in good or very good ecological health and 29% have achieved good chemical status, according to the agency.
Environmental associations, which are campaigning for a ban on PFAS at the source, are denouncing this as a "missed opportunity".
"We expected to see more ambition to reduce pollution at the source," said Angeliki Lyssimachou, head of science and policy at the Pesticide Action Network (PAN) Europe.
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances are dubbed "forever chemicals" because they don't easily break down in the environment and accumulate in humans and animals over time.
Health costs are estimated at €52 to €84 billion a year and some of the chemicals have been classified as carcinogenic.
These chemical compounds are non-stick, waterproof and resistant to high temperatures. They are also present in many everyday items such as non-stick frying pans, fire-fighting foams and medical devices.
Jessika Roswall, the European Commissioner for the Environment and Water Resilience said she was in favour of banning PFAS in consumer products such as cosmetics and food packaging. However, she stressed that it would be difficult to ban all PFASs, as some do not yet have an effective alternative.
"The problem is that we need PFASs for many different products. For example, medical products like inhalers (...) or many things for which there is no substitution. In terms of the ecological transition, semiconductors, digitisation or the defence industry," Roswall told Euronews.
In a leaked document, the Commission's estimated range for the annual cost of PFAS decontamination in Europe was wide, at anywhere from €5 all the way to €100 billion. For the water sector alone, the cost could increase to up to €18 billion annually for drinking water treatment.
For some pollutants, such as TFA (trifluoroacetic acid, a type of PFAS), the clean-up is not so simple.
"According to the water companies, it's a very expensive process that involves extracting all the minerals from the water and adding them back. At the end of the day, you're going to lose a lot of water," says Angeliki Lyssimachou. "So you're going to consume a lot more energy.
The Commission wants to apply the "polluter pays" principle and reserve public funding for sites where it has not been possible to identify who is responsible.
The European Water Resilience Strategy aims to restore the water cycle and ensure access to clean, affordable water at a time when Europe is facing extreme weather events such as floods and droughts. 34% of the EU is affected by water shortages.
"Water is life. Water resilience is essential for our citizens, our farmers, the environment and businesses. The Commission's Water Resilience Strategy sets out the path towards a sustainable, resilient, smart and competitive water economy. We must act now to protect this resource," said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in a statement.
The European action plan also includes raising awareness for these issues through public debates, increasing European funding for infrastructure modernisation, supporting digitisation through the EU's Copernicus Earth observation programme, and supporting innovation.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
France 24
2 days ago
- France 24
Belgian region grapples with forever chemical scandal
On an early summer afternoon about a dozen people waited to get their samples taken at a municipal building in Braine-le-Chateau, a picturesque town in the French-speaking Wallonia region. "Initially local authorities told us that measurements were reassuring, but in reality, they didn't have any and were simply trying to keep people calm as best they could," Douglas, a 35-year-old consultant who preferred only to give his first name, told AFP. "This kind of game has to stop," he said, adding he hoped the blood-sampling campaign launched in June would help shed light on the situation. Anger in the region first erupted in 2023 when an investigation by local broadcaster RTBF revealed the authorities had ignored longstanding warnings about high levels of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), often called forever chemicals. It emerged that the US military, which has an airbase in the small city of Chievres, had warned the local water company in 2017 about high PFAS levels in drinking water, following an incident involving firefighting foam. The US base advised its personnel to drink bottled water -- but locals were left in the dark for years, even after the regional government was told of the issue in 2018. PFAS are a family of synthetic chemicals that take an extremely long time to break down. Chronic exposure to even low levels of the chemicals has been linked to liver damage, high cholesterol, reduced immune responses, low birth weights and several kinds of cancer. A group of more than 10,000 human-made chemicals that repel heat, water and oil, PFAS are used in nonstick pans, stain-proof carpets, and other products. But their use is increasingly being restricted across the world due to adverse health effects. In June an Italian court sentenced executives at a chemical plant to jail terms of up to 17 years for polluting water used by hundreds of thousands of people with the chemicals. - 'Putting out fires' - Water samples in Braine-le-Chateau last year revealed levels five to six times higher than a safety standard of 4 nanograms/litre (ng/L) for four PFAS recently agreed by Belgian authorities. The exact source of the pollution has not yet been confirmed and a judicial investigation is underway. Authorities have since ordered water distribution firms to install activated carbon filters -- a move they say has contained the issue. Large-scale blood testing was carried out in Chievres in early 2024 -- and later extended to nearby areas. Authorities said almost 1,300 people across about 10 municipalities had their blood samples taken to confirm exposure to the chemicals in recent weeks, as part of a fresh campaign launched in June. The results, which could lead to new health recommendations, are expected later this year. Wallonia's government, which took office last summer, has also decided to bring forward to 2025 new European Union rules requiring that drinking water must not exceed a total of 100 ng/L for 20 substances in the PFAS family. "We have taken radical measures and all our distributors are now complying with this standard," Yves Coppieters, the regional minister for health and the environment, told AFP. Nevertheless he acknowledged that "the population is very concerned", adding that without clarity on the source of the pollution, it might take decades to resolve the issue. "Telling people not to eat their home-grown eggs and vegetables, setting standards for sewage sludge... for now I'm just putting out fires," said Coppieters, who favours a ban on all products containing PFAS. Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden have submitted a joint proposal for the EU to ban the production, sale, and use of almost all forever chemicals. And the European Commission has said it is looking to ban PFAS in everyday consumer products.
Euronews
2 days ago
- Euronews
The battle for the EU budget - who wins, who loses?
Brussels has spoken! The European Commission presented its long-term budget proposal, kicking off tough negotiations over who gets what and who pays for it. Rich countries like Germany and the Netherlands have already rejected the numbers game as being too ambitious. But it's not only about politics - it's about who wins and who loses in crucial areas like technology, agriculture and climate action. Who will finally get their way? And what are the benefits for ordinary citizens? Questions for our panel this week: Kait Bolongaro, managing editor for Europe at MLEX, Tomi Huhtanen, executive director at the Wilfried Martens Centre and Dave Keating, Brussels correspondent for France 24. To say that the European Commission's proposal for a long-term budget would not survive in its current form, would be an understatement. For Chancellor Friedrich Merz the EU must do more with the money it has. This sets up a clash with fellow German Christian Democrat Ursula von der Leyen who believes that rising challenges need an adequate fiscal response - in other words: more money. Get ready for bruising budget battles that might last two years! Another fight over money: This time, it would make smoking, in all its forms, more expensive. The EU Commission announced a renewed push to curb tobacco consumption through higher taxation. At the same time, the World Health Organization is sounding the alarm bell: chronic public health problems are getting out of hand. As a remedy, the WHO is pushing countries to raise the prices of sugary drinks, alcohol and tobacco by 50 percent over the next ten years through higher taxes. This would save millions of lives and raise 1.4 trillion dollars globally, according to the WHO. The move would help cut consumption of the products which contribute to diseases like diabetes and cancer. The WHO is now becoming an ally for the European Commission, which wants to modernize the EU's Tobacco Taxation Directive. A strong signal for public health or just another way to squeeze taxpayers? Can public health be improved by fiscal measures? Finally, panellists discuss the fast-fashion industry operating in Eurpope, as the hunt for super-cheap online bargains might get a little less attractive - at least in France. The government in Paris has hit Chinese ultra-fast fashion giant SHEIN with a €40 million fine for what regulators call 'deceptive commercial practices.' It's a major escalation in Europe's scrutiny of the fast fashion model. The blow comes two months after the European Commission found Shein guilty of engaging in illegal commercial practices under EU law, following a coordinated investigation with national consumer protection authorities. And earlier this year, France already presented new legislation targeting Shein and its Chinese rival Temu, imposing eco-taxes, advertising bans and influencer restrictions. Will these steps have an impact among consumers? Will they stop buying from those sites?
Euronews
2 days ago
- Euronews
EU regulator backs new Alzheimer's drug, months after rejecting it
The European Union's medicines regulator is reversing course on its decision to block a new Alzheimer's disease treatment, saying the drug can be offered to certain patients under strict safety protocols. In late March, the European Medicines Agency's (EMA) drug evaluators said the risks did not outweigh the benefits for the medicine donanemab, which can slow the progression of early-stage Alzheimer's but also raises the risk of potentially deadly brain swelling and bleeding. But in a revised opinion on Friday, the group said donanemab can be offered to a specific subset of Alzheimer's patients in tightly controlled settings. Donanemab, which is sold by Eli Lilly as Kisunla, is a monoclonal antibody taken via a once-monthly infusion. It's already been approved in the United Kingdom, the United States, Japan, and China. In a clinical trial, Kisunla slowed dementia symptoms by up to 35 per cent over 18 months – but three people died with serious amyloid‑related imaging abnormalities (ARIA), which are a common side effect of the medicine that can cause swelling and bleeding in the brain. Two of these patients carried a type of gene that raises the risk of Alzheimer's, and Lilly had suggested that the medicine only be offered to people who do not have the gene. In March, the EMA committee said that people without the gene were still at risk of fatal complications from ARIA. On Friday, the group said the drug can be offered to early Alzheimer's patients who have at most one copy of the gene – but only in a controlled access programme with medical teams that know how to detect and treat ARIA. Patients must also start at a lower dose. The EMA said that with those measures in place, its advisory group 'concluded that Kisunla's benefits outweigh its risks in noncarriers and people with just one copy' of the gene. The European Commission has the final say on whether a new drug or vaccine is approved, but it usually adopts the EMA evaluators' recommendations. That's why drugmaker Lilly had asked the EMA group to reconsider its negative opinion on Kisunla. It argued that ARIA is usually temporary and does not cause symptoms in most cases. Alzheimer's groups were also disappointed by the initial decision. At the time, Alzheimer Europe said that while patient safety is important, strict prescribing rules and safety monitoring could help ensure dementia patients have access to the new drug while keeping it away from those at higher risk of serious side effects. Notably, the EMA and the Commission recently greenlit another Alzheimer's drug, Leqembi, that comes with similar side effects for people with the gene. In that case, the EMA group had also first refused the drug, but later recommended that it be offered to people with only one or no copies of the gene – making it the first medicine of its kind authorised in the EU. The Commission is expected to make a final decision on Kisunla in the coming months.
