Members of the European Parliament voted to suspend key provisions on the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) scheme until a new impact assessment is conducted, in motion for a resolution on the implementation of the Urban Wastewater Treatment Directive (UWWTD). Surfrider Europe strongly condemns the MEP’s decision to favour a “stop-the-clock” process, in the face of the urgent pollution crisis we are facing.
The recast UWWTD, which entered into force on 1 January 2025, constitutes a landmark instrument and roadmap to tackle the pollution of our aquatic environment and protect human health. The revision of this key milestone for water protection aimed at modernising the collection and treatment of urban wastewater across Europe. While strengthening requirements for existing treatment phases, it also introduces a new mandatory quaternary phase, targeting micropollutants, along with the establishment of an Extended Producer Responsibility scheme, is an essential feature of the UWWTD, aimed at securing a fairer and more effective framework to reduce pollution.
The pharmaceutical and cosmetic sectors, which are the two sectors concerned by the EPR scheme, have multiplied their attempts to derail the implementation of the Directive, especially questioning the scheme and the results of the Commission’s impact assessment, regardless of the large body of evidence demonstrating that the UWWTD’s fairness. Last year, the Commission agreed to review its calculations and published an updated study of the costs of the EPR in last December. The results showed very little change compared with the initial assessment. At the same time, several European federations and companies initiated legal proceedings challenging the provisions on the financing of the quaternary treatment phase. Yet, last February, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) dismissed these appeals which were deemed as inadmissible.
Today a narrow majority of MEPs voted in favour of a temporary suspension (‘stop the clock’) of the EPR provisions and of the quaternary treatment obligations. At a time when researchers confirmed we have exceed the planetary boundary for environmental pollutants, this decision sends a deeply troubling signal about the EU’s willingness to curb chemical pollution and hold producers accountable for the environmental impacts of what they place on the market. It is creating uncertainty for the authorities and water operators in charge of implementing the Directive’s key provisions and ultimately delay progress towards cleaner and healthier aquatic ecosystems.
Lucille Labayle, Water Quality and Health Policy Officer for Surfrider Foundation Europe:
“Today, MEPs have chosen to turn their back on the polluter-pays principle, signalling the financial burden of tackling pollution should fall on citizens rather than on those responsible for placing the substances on the market. The outcome of today’s vote is appalling and raises massive concerns over the future of the Directive itself. While the industry is buying time, the EU is moving further away its water resilience objectives. Chemical pollution continues to affect the aquatic environment, threatening both our health and the ecosystems we depend on.”
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About Surfrider Foundation Europe
The NGO Surfrider Foundation is a collective of positive activists who take concrete action on the ground on a daily basis to pass on a preserved ocean to future generations. Our mission: To carry the voice of the Ocean loud and clear! Our weapons? Raising awareness and mobilizing citizens, children and adults alike (in particular through 48 volunteer branches throughout Europe), using our scientific expertise to carry out lobbying actions and transform companies. Discover the association on https://surfrider.eu/ or via this video.
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Surfrider Foundation Europe is supported by the LIFE programme created by the European Commission. The European Commission’s support for the production of this publication does not constitute an endorsement of the content, which reflects the views only of the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.