Wastewater treatment: Who pays the bill for cleaning up micropollutants

This paper examines the financing of micropollutant removal under the EU’s recast Urban Wastewater Treatment Directive (UWWTD), which introduces an Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) scheme. Since pharmaceuticals and cosmetics are identified as major sources of micropollutants in urban wastewater, their producers will be required to cover at least 80% of the associated treatment costs. The paper highlights that this approach reflects the polluter-pays principle, helps protect water affordability for citizens, and ensures that both EU and non-EU producers contribute equally to the cost burden.