A high-level stakeholder consultation event, “Towards a Water Resilience Strategy for the European Union”, is taking place in Brussels today (6 March), with online participation still available on the event’s page.
Speaking at the opening of the event, Commissioner for the Environment, Water Resilience and a Competitive Circular Economy, Jessika Roswall, said:
“Today’s event is an important part of our broad outreach efforts on the Water Resilience Strategy, one of the main priorities of my mandate. By bringing our experience and knowledge together, we can find lasting solutions to guarantee the EU’s water resilience. Water is not only the basis of life on our planet, it is also essential for our economic security and competitiveness.”
The main goal of the European Water Resilience Strategy, announced by President Ursula von der Leyen in her Political Guidelines in July 2024, is to ensure that water sources are properly managed, scarcity is addressed, and we enhance our water industry’s competitiveness and innovation while taking a circular economy approach. The strategy will have an international dimension by leading efforts to help mitigate and prevent acute global water stress and boost access to water and sanitation.
The event, which follows the call for written evidence, which closed on 4 March, is intended to gather ideas on what action is needed to restore the broken water cycle, enhance the EU water industry’s competitiveness, and promote clean technology to increase water efficiency and circularity, in line with the Competitiveness Compass and Clean Industrial Deal. Research, international cooperation, and expanding access to clean and affordable water and sanitation will also feature.
In February 2025, the European Commission published a series of reports on the state of water in the EU. Covering the implementation of the Water Framework Directive, the Floods Directive, and the programmes of measures submitted by Member States for the Marine Strategy Framework Directive, the reports highlighted the limited progress made to improve the state of EU water bodies over the past six years. They identified key areas where further efforts are needed.
On 3 March, the second Zero Pollution Monitoring and Outlook report was published. Those reports will contribute to the shaping of the Water Resilience Strategy.
More information
Stakeholder consultation - Towards a Water Resilience Strategy for the EU | Event page
Commission reports on the state of water in the European Union | Press release
WaterWiseEU campaign | Commission page
Zero Pollution Monitoring and Outlook 2025 | European Environment Agency's home page
Details
- Publication date
- 6 March 2025
- Author
- Directorate-General for Environment
