EurEau News
EurEau Congress | Zurich 2026
From 20–22 October, the EurEau community came together in Zurich for our Annual Congress, with a packed programme of discussions, meetings and networking.
Topics included drinking water, wastewater, economics and legal affairs. Communications managers joined the Congress for the first time, alongside meetings of our Joint Working Groups on Energy & Climate, Innovation, Reuse and WFD/Pollutants. We also held our first unconference!
The week concluded with the General Assembly and visits to Zurich’s drinking water and quaternary wastewater treatment facilities.
A highlight was the Swiss EurEau Water Summit 2026, which welcomed 300 guests from across Europe and the wider water sector.
A huge thank you to our hosts SVGW and VSA, and to everyone who made this such a memorable week!
Europe’s Water in Figures: 2026 Snapshot
Europe is investing more in water services, but challenges are growing
Investment in Europe’s water services is rising, but network renewal and water loss reduction show little progress. Meanwhile, climate change is becoming a greater concern and revenue from water bills is struggling to keep pace with investment.
Our Europe’s Water in Figures 2026 Snapshot, based on data from our members across Europe, highlights five key trends. You can read more about these in the report.
Speaking out
EurEau continued to contribute to discussions on key European water policy developments throughout October.
On 12 October, Gari Villa-Landa presented the latest developments on Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) under the recast Urban Wastewater Treatment Directive at an event organised by the Dutch Water Authorities in Brussels.
On 14 October, she discussed the impact of 2026 droughts on drinking water supply at the Commission’s Working Group on Water Scarcity and Droughts in Athens.
On 15 October, Martin Silič took part in a European Parliament stakeholder hearing on the Cloud and AI Development Act. On 28 October, he also spoke at a SWAN Americas event on AI implementation and regulatory policy.
On 29 October, Sébastien Mouret presented water services’ perspective on innovation in the circular economy at the Circular Water Economy conference in Nicosia. The conference was organised as part of the CIRSEAU project, where EurEau is a partner.
EU news
Water legislation
Water services call against Water Framework Directive revision
EurEau and four other European organisations representing water services and services of general interest have called on the European Commission not to revise the Water Framework Directive (WFD).
We warn that reopening the legislation risks weakening existing protections and undermining Europe’s water security. The WFD provides an essential framework for protecting water resources and preventing pollution, helping to safeguard the quality and availability of water across Europe.
Our message is clear: protecting water resources and preventing pollution are essential to securing clean, affordable water for everyone.
The European Biosolids Observatory: Report published
The Pan-European Biosolids Observatory, launched in 2024, aims to improve understanding of biosolids quality across Europe. Its first sample-campaign report, based on 30 samples from eight countries, is now available here. We thank all our members who contributed samples.
The findings suggest that contaminant concentrations are broadly similar across wastewater treatment plants of different sizes, except the very largest. However, the limited sample size does not allow robust Europe-wide conclusions.
The report identifies four priorities: selecting contaminants for monitoring, standardising analytical methods, controlling pollution at source and adopting a risk-based approach.
Water and the environment
Reaction: Commission presents Climate Resilience Framework
We welcome the publication of the Climate resilience Framework and support the overall approach. Importantly, it recognises the importance of water security and critical water infrastructure and calls for strategic planning based on climate risk assessments.
Preparing water services for future climate challenges requires long-term planning and investment.
Water Framework Directive: Summary of river basin management plans
The European Commission has published additional Staff Working Documents (SWDs) assessing the implementation of the Water Framework Directive (WFD) and Floods Directive.
The documents cover the third River Basin Management Plans (RBMP) and second Flood Risk Management Plans in eight Member States whose reports were not available for the Commission’s February 2025 assessment (ie: Ireland, Slovenia, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Greece, Malta, Portugal and Slovakia). They provide further insight into progress in implementing EU water legislation and the challenges facing Member States.
More information is here.
PFAS: ECHA says TFA is a reprotoxic substance
The European Chemicals Agency’s (ECHA) Committee for Risk Assessment recommends classifying trifluoroacetic acid (TFA) as toxic to reproduction category 1B, as well as persistent, mobile and toxic, and very persistent and very mobile.
The recommendation highlights the risk of long-lasting contamination of water resources. The European Commission, in consultation with Member States, will now consider whether to make the classification legally binding.
With TFA concentrations in water resources increasing rapidly, we call on policymakers to ban fluorinated gases and TFA-emitting pesticides without further delay.
Read ECHA’s statement here.
Water as an essential service
Public procurement: Call to recognise wastewater services as utility activity
We are calling for wastewater treatment to be recognised as an autonomous utility activity under the proposed EU Public Procurement Act.
The proposal currently applies the utilities procurement regime to drinking water services but covers wastewater only when the same entity also provides drinking water. This fails to recognise wastewater treatment as an essential public service in its own right.
Like drinking water, wastewater services rely on extensive networks, long-term investment and the procurement of goods and services essential to their operations.
We propose amending Article 14 to ensure wastewater services are included in the utilities regime.
Read our position paper and proposed amendment.
Water treatment chemicals: CEN members oppose weaker requirements
CEN members have rejected three out of four proposed substance-specific standards for iron-based flocculants used in drinking water treatment.
We welcome the outcome of the CEN/TC 164 formal voting procedures. The rejected standards would have allowed weaker purity requirements, particularly regarding heavy metal contamination.
This could have increased the presence of certain unwanted chemicals in drinking water and made the recycling of wastewater sludge more difficult.
The outcome is important for maintaining high standards for drinking water treatment chemicals and protecting both water quality and opportunities for sludge recycling.
Data centres: EurEau position on CADA
The European Commission has published its proposal for a Regulation establishing a framework of measures to strengthen Europe’s cloud and artificial intelligence ecosystem (CADA).
We urge the EU co-legislators to make local water availability a binding criterion before designating data centre acceleration zones or granting permits.
As demand for AI infrastructure grows, water resource planning must be integrated from the outset. New data centres should not add pressure to already strained water resources or compromise public drinking water supply.
Read our position paper here.
Other news
European Commission launches Water Resilience Investment Accelerator
The European Commission announced the creation of a Water Resilience Investment Accelerator to support pilot projects on natural water retention, clean water and water efficiency. The initiative, stemming from last year’s European Water Resilience Strategy, aims to advise project proponents and assist them in securing private funding to scale up their solutions.
Webinar: Who pays for water: Tariffs, investment and the right to water in Europe and Mexico
17 November 2026 – 17hCET, 10am Mexico.
Events
18–20 November 2026 – EBC annual benchmarking workshop, Madrid, Spain. www.waterbenchmark.org.
7 December 2026 – Zero Pollution Forum organised by the European Commission and the Committee of the Regions. This registration page offers you the possibility to propose hosting a stand in the exhibition space to present innovative and successful zero pollution solutions.
18-20 May 2027 – Porto, Portugal – SWAN 17th Annual Conference on “Connected Resilience: Transforming Complexity into Capability” More…
24-28 May 2027 – Ghent, Belgium. 21st IWA Leading Edge Conference on Water and Wastewater Technologies (LET 2027). LET brings together researchers, utilities, technology providers, consultants, and industry leaders to discuss the latest innovations in drinking water and wastewater treatment. The theme of LET 2027 is “Sparking the Water Future with Technology”.IWA LET 2027.
25-28 May 2027 –23rd Euro-INBO Conference in Brussels, Belgium – International Network of Basin Organizations(INBO) on Implementing EU Water Directives in national and transboundary river basins.