A new report has claimed that water in over 6,000 European towns and cities is failing EU environmental standards, risking the health of millions of people and exposing taxpayers to fines of almost €1 billion (£848 million) a year.

The report, presented by Romanian MEP Victor Bostinaru at a special event held to highlight the need for continued water investment, lists 6,311 areas where water quality is sub-standard, including the home of the European Commission itself, Brussels.

Data from the European Commission and European Environment Agency was examined to determine which areas were falling short of the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive. The Directive was adopted in 1991 and regulates the collection, treatment and discharge of waste water in an attempt to improve water standards.

The list reportedly marks the ‘first time’ that water data from the two European organisations has been analysed in this way.

Report findings

Romania topped the list as the worst water offender, with the report stating that it had “by far the most cases of non-compliance with European Union water legislation”. It was found to have breached EU legislation in 2,476 places, with the report blaming “outdated infrastructure, weak enforcement of regulations and the absence of economic incentives to promote cleaner production”.

Spain was the second-worst offender with 1,148 breaches, followed by Bulgaria with 901, Hungary with 631 and Italy with 443.

Aside from Brussels, five other capital cities were found to be sub-standard, including Bucharest (Romania), Sofia (Bulgaria), Madrid (Spain), Budapest (Hungary) and Rome (Italy).

Popular tourist spots that failed to meet water standards included Pisa in Italy, Halkidiki in Greece, Balaton in Hungary and Ayia Napa in Cyprus.

However, the majority of the 27 EU member nations were fully compliant with EU regulations, including the UK, with only 11 nations violating water quality legislation.

‘The time to act is now’

Bostinaru argued that for water investment, “the time to act is now”, as €376 billion of European Cohesion funds are soon be allocated.

Commenting on the report, Bostinaru said: “This report demonstrates the scale of the problem that exists across the 27 EU member states. The quality of water in many countries has to improve and the money needs to be found to make it happen – starting with the city of Brussels, in which the European Union’s institutions are based…

“Every country needs to apportion funds to meet minimum standards of water quality that we should all expect across Europe. Investing in better water treatment systems will safeguard public health, protect delicate ecosystems, save energy, reduce chemical use, support industry and even provide jobs”, he added.

Breaches in water quality exposes countries to large fines, such as Luxembourg’s daily fine of €1,248 in October 2011 for four breaches of water quality standards.

The Cohesion Fund is aimed at Member States whose Gross National Income (GNI) per inhabitant is less than 90 per cent of the community average. It serves to reduce economic and social shortfall and stabilise economies by helping finance environmental measures and trans-European transport networks.

Read Bostinaru’s Water Report.