Protection of groundwater: prevention and control of pollution

In its amended proposal, the Commission accepted in full, in part or in principle 67 of the 89 amendments adopted by the European Parliament in its first reading. 54 amendments have now been incorporated, either verbatim or in spirit, in the common position.

The Commission accepted all the amendments which sought to clarify the scope of the proposal, in particular those regarding the compliance regime related to the groundwater good chemical status. The Commission did not accept amendments which repeated Water Framework Directive provisions and referred to groundwater ecosystems.

The Council has incorporated key Parliamentary amendments related to good groundwater chemical status compliance, identification and reversal of pollution trends as well as exemptions linked to provisions to prevent or limit pollutant inputs.

The Commission considers that the common position adopted by qualified majority does not in general alter the approach or aims of the Proposal and can thus generally support it as it stands.