EU report on flood risk management and water quality
In its latest report on river basin management, the European Commission indicates that while Member States have taken steps to address water quality and flood risk management, significant further action is needed to reach key objectives.
The report evaluates Member States' efforts to improve water quality. Its findings are partially positive, showing an uptake in compliance with the Water Framework's objectives and substantial improvements for groundwater bodies. Still, 40% of surface water bodies are not meeting the EU quality standards.
The Commission's report also examines Member State responses to the Floods Directive. This Directive, which was adopted following a series of flood events in 2007, requires Member states to identify areas at risk for flooding and to draw up plans to minimise the risk and potential damages of flooding. Here as well, meeting the EU targets will require greater efforts from Member States over the coming years.
Climate-fit.City can contribute to Member states' efforts to reduce the impact of flooding as its emergency planning test cases help cities to manage the effects of extreme rainfall. The Climate-fit.City test case in Antwerp, for instance, worked with city officials and emergency services to chart the expected increases in extreme rains and flooding as well as the risk involved and the strains on disaster emergency planning. These efforts allowed them to revise traffic routes to make sure emergency vehicles can continue to operate smoothly during floods.
