During the plenary session (14-17/12) of the European Parliament in Brussels, MEPs vote on new drinking water rules, designed to offer high quality tap water across the EU, thus enabling and encouraging people to drink tap water rather than bottled water while reducing plastic waste. To improve access, member states should encourage the free provision of water in public buildings. A resolution on the implementation of the EU water legislation will be put to the vote. Statements by Christophe HANSEN (EPP, LU), rapporteur, Michael ROTH, German Federal Minister of State for Europe and President in office of the Council of the EU, Janusz WOJCIECHOWSKI, European Commissioner for Agriculture, and illustration shots of tap water and bottled water.

Brussels

statement

debate

plenary session

water policy (T)

WOJCIECHOWSKI, Janusz (ECR, PL, EC)

ROTH, Michael (DE)

HANSEN, Christophe (EPP, LU)

Water legislation: statement by Christophe HANSEN (EPP, LU), rapporteur and illustration shots

Title: Water legislation: statement by Christophe HANSEN (EPP, LU), rapporteur and illustration shots

SOUNDBITE (German), Christophe HANSEN (EPP, LU), Rapporteur, I mentioned that confidence in drinking water is important. Why is it important? Well, they need to know the good quality of the water. If people. Want to drink the water from the tap, they have to be aware that the energy that is necessary to produce a bottle of water can. Constitute up to 1000, a thousand times more energy in terms of transporting that water than from a tap. So we would, in doing so, be reducing plastic waste that's generated by plastic bottles. And here we've already set a foundation stone for the green deal before the green deal is on the table, in fact. And that's something that we in Parliament should be proud in our contribution and also in raising the bar in terms of the ambition here.

SOUNDBITE (German), Michael ROTH, German Federal Minister of State for Europe, Measures designed to fight chemical pollution have also been envisaged. The new cast of the drinking, the recast of the Drinking Water Directive also sets out a series of parameters for monitoring of water quality. We know that some things have changed enormously. Some things which we hadn't even thought of 20 years ago. Endocrine disruptors, disruption. Or damage caused by pharmaceuticals. And there was also a major issue concerning lakes, rivers, but above all seas. And that's micro plastics. This is why we are committed to finding rapid technical solutions for these new sampling methods.

SOUNDBITE (English), Janusz WOJCIECHOWSKI, European Commissioner for Agriculture, Four major crisis threaten our waters. The climate crisis, the biodiversity crisis, the pollution crisis, the resources crisis. And on the top of that, we now have covid crisis as well. Business as usual is not an option. I can assure this house of the Commission's commitment to supporting member states. In their efforts to step and to implementation of their water directives.

SOUNDBITE (English), Christophe HANSEN (EPP, LU), Rapporteur, We have the first European citizens' initiative that gathered more than the necessary million signatures. So this was, of course, as well, the so-called Right2Water citizens' initiative. So this was a as well a call. And we took it on board into this revision with several points, namely on access to water, which was a very strong request by this citizens' initiative.

SOUNDBITE (German), Christophe HANSEN (EPP, LU), Rapporteur, We are tightening the thresholds for unknown contaminants such as led, which is still present because of the pipes in cities, especially the old pipes. So there we have no strict thresholds. On the other hand, we take on board as well new contaminants, so-called new contaminants, which are, for example, endocrine disruptors, hormone active substances, especially bisphenol A. That's one we are taking now under the scope as well. And then as well, microplastics, which is, of course, present in the nature as well. And we know that it can as well be present in the human body. We don't know exactly the effect on the human health, but it is important already know to be very attentive to that and take this into on board. Then I just said about the access to water. So we oblige member states to put it in public places, sources where people can fill their bottles. And this is especially important as well for vulnerable citizens such as minorities in certain countries that don't have a permanent residence. So that's a very important point as well we enhance the transparency when it comes to the water quality, because this gives us, well, trust to the consumer. And if the consumer has trust, you will use more water from the tap. And this has a double positive effect on the environment. Firstly, to produce and transport one bottle of bottled water and compared it takes a thousand times more energy to transport it to your home than the tap water. So this is of course, then for the climate very important. And secondly, if people use more water from the tap, they use less plastic bottles and then we have a double positive effect, less waste, less plastic waste in the environment.

Illustrations: filling empty glass with tap water, man drinking tap water, woman filling her shopping caddy with bottled water, 6 shots