The AREFLH participated to the consultation on the resilient management of the organization by the Committe of the Regions

  

Luca Contrino and Eriselda Canaj participated on February 21, 2024 to the consultation on the resilient management of the organization by the Commitee of the Regions, in Brussels.

This public consultation was the opportunity to understand the positions of several European institutions on the subject of water management. The stakeholders exposed the challenges and key points to be taken into account.

 

The rapporteur of the Environment Commission of the Committee of the Regions recalled the seriousness of the water situation in the EU, with around 20% of the EU territory (and the United Kingdom) under a state of “warning” vis-à-vis regarding its water situation, and around 1% of the territory in a state of “alert”.

Luca Perez represented the European Commission during this consultation, emphasizing the importance of subsidiarity (the delegation of responsibilities) in the formulation of policies aimed at sustainable water management.

He also recognized that the Green Deal does not cover all elements linked to water, particularly in terms of pollution, but that it can provide part of the solutions, and that social justice and equity will be central to any policy aimed at sustainable water management.

A representative of the European Economic and Social Committee formulated a “call for a European Blue Deal”. The representative also recalled that this process is difficult because there is no reliable data on the water consumption of several industrial sectors, but that in any case “we are far from reaching a society that uses water in an intelligent way”.