Directive (EU) 2024/3019 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 November 2024 concerning urban wastewater treatment (recast) (Text with EEA relevance)

Article 19

Access to sanitation

Without prejudice to the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality, and taking into account local and regional perspectives and circumstances for sanitation, Member States shall take all measures necessary to ensure access to sanitation for all, in particular for vulnerable and marginalised groups.

For that purpose, Member States shall by 12 January 2029:

• (a) identify people without access, or with limited access, to sanitation facilities, paying special attention to vulnerable and marginalised groups, and provide reasons for such lack of access;

• (b) assess the options for improving access to sanitation facilities for such people;

• (c) for all agglomerations of 10 000 p.e. and above, encourage the establishment of a sufficient number of sanitation facilities in public spaces which are freely and, in particular for women, safely accessible and ensure the provision of appropriate information about those facilities to the public;

• (d) for all agglomerations of 5 000 p.e. and above, encourage competent authorities to make available a sufficient number of free sanitation facilities in public buildings, in particular in administrative buildings;

• (e) encourage the making available of sanitation facilities for all, for free or for a low service fee, in restaurants, shops and similar private spaces accessible to the public.

Article 20

Sludge and resource recovery

• (a) maximise prevention;

• (b) prepare for reuse, recycling and other recovery of resources, in particular phosphorus and nitrogen, taking into account national or local valorisation options; and

• (c) minimise the adverse effects on the environment and human health.

Article 21

Monitoring

• (a) discharges from urban wastewater treatment plants in order to verify compliance with the requirements of Part B of Annex I in accordance with the methods for monitoring and evaluation of results laid down in Part C of Annex I; that monitoring shall include loads and concentrations of the parameters listed in Part B of Annex I;

• (b) the amounts, composition and destination of sludge, taking into account the requirements of Directive 86/278/EEC for sludge intended to be used in agriculture;

• (c) the quantities per year and per month of urban wastewater reused for agricultural irrigation that is subject to a derogation referred to in Article 15(1); the nutrient content of the fraction of reused urban wastewater for agricultural irrigation and the period during which that fraction is reused compared to the monthly water and nutrient demand of the crops targeted by that reused urban wastewater;

• (d) the GHGs, including at least CO2, N2O, CH4, emitted from urban wastewater treatment plants of 10 000  p.e. and above by means of analysis, calculations or modelling where appropriate;

• (e) the energy used and produced by the owners of urban wastewater treatment plants treating a load of 10 000 p.e. and above, or by the operators of such plants, regardless of whether it is used or generated on-site or off-site, in line with the requirements referred to in Article 11(2), as well as the energy purchased under the derogations referred to in Article 11(3) and (4).

• (a) pollutants that are likely to be found in urban wastewater listed in:
• (i) Annexes VIII and X to Directive 2000/60/EC, Annex I to Directive 2008/105/EC, Annex I to Directive 2006/118/EC and Part B of Annex II to Directive 2006/118/EC;
• (ii) the Annex to Decision 2455/2001/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council ([^E0011]);
• (iii) Annex II to Regulation (EC) No 166/2006;
• (iv) Annexes I and II to Directive 86/278/EEC;

• (b) parameters listed in Part B of Annex III to Directive (EU) 2020/2184, where urban wastewater is discharged into a catchment area referred to in Article 8 of that Directive, under which, for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), Member States can choose to use one or both of the parameters ‘PFAS Total’ and ‘Sum of PFAS’ when a methodology is available in accordance with the implementing act referred to in paragraph 5;

• (c) parameters listed in Annex I to Directive 2006/7/EC where there are direct discharges from urban wastewater treatment plants into bathing water during the bathing season which might prevent compliance with Directive 2006/7/EC;

• (d) the presence of microplastics.

The pollutants and parameters referred to in points (a) and (b) may be excluded from the monitoring referred to in this paragraph as long as it can be demonstrated, inter alia on the basis of monitoring results, that they are absent in urban wastewater.

For all agglomerations of above 10 000  p.e., Member States shall ensure that competent authorities or appropriate bodies monitor the presence of microplastics in the sludge when relevant and, in particular, when it is reused in agriculture.

The monitoring referred to in this paragraph shall be carried out at the following frequencies:

• (a) at least two samples per year, with a maximum of 6 months between the samples, for agglomerations of 150 000 p.e. and above;

• (b) at least one sample every two years for agglomerations of between 10 000 p.e. and 150 000  p.e.

Those monitoring frequencies may be halved in subsequent years if the monitoring results for the pollutants referred to in this paragraph are below applicable environmental quality standards under Directive 2008/105/EC in three successive samples. The monitoring frequencies should be reviewed at least every year.

Article 22

Information on monitoring of implementation

• (a) by 31 December 2028, set up a data set containing information collected in accordance with Article 21, including information concerning the parameters referred to in Article 21(1), point (a), and the results of the tests with regard to the pass/fail criteria established in Part C of Annex I and update that data set annually thereafter;

• (b) by 31 December 2028, set up a data set indicating the percentage of urban wastewater which is collected and treated in accordance with Article 3 and update that data set annually thereafter;

• (c) by 31 December 2028, set up a data set containing information on the implementation of Article 4(5) and on the percentage of the urban wastewater load from agglomerations above 2 000  p.e. which is treated in individual systems and update that data set annually thereafter;

• (d) by 31 December 2028, set up a data set containing information on the number of samples collected and the number of samples taken in accordance with Part C of Annex I that have failed and update that data set annually thereafter;

• (e) by 12 January 2029, set up a data set containing information on measures taken to improve access to sanitation in accordance with Article 19, points (a), (b) and (c), including information on the share of their population that has access to sanitation in agglomerations of 10 000 p.e. and above and update that data set every 6 years thereafter;

• (f) by 31 December 2030, set up a data set containing information on GHG emissions with a breakdown between different gases and on the total energy used and renewable energy produced by each urban wastewater treatment plant of 10 000  p.e. and above as well as a calculation of the percentage of achievement of the targets set out in Article 11(2), the percentage of energy purchased from non-fossil fuel sources and, when available accompanied by a breakdown of the different types of non-fossil fuel energy source used, where the derogation referred to in Article 11(3) is used, and update that data set annually thereafter;

• (g) by 31 December 2030, set up a data set containing information on measures taken in accordance with point 3 of Annex V and update that data set annually thereafter;

• (h) by 31 December 2030, set up a data set containing the monitoring results referred to in Article 17(1) and (3) and update that data set annually thereafter;

• (i) by 31 December 2030, set up a data set containing the list of areas identified as sensitive to eutrophication and update that data set in accordance with Article 7(2);

• (j) by 31 December 2030, set up a data set containing the list of areas identified as areas where the concentration or the accumulation of micropollutants represents a risk for the environment or human health and update that data set in accordance with Article 8(2);

• (k) where they use biomedia, set up, by 31 December 2030, a data set containing the type of biomedia used and a short description of the measures taken by urban wastewater treatment plants using biomedia to avoid spills into the environment, and update that data set every five years thereafter;

• (l) by 31 December 2030, set up a data set containing the monitoring results referred to in Article 21(1), point (c), with a comparison of the monthly water and nutrient demand of the crops targeted by the reused fraction of treated urban wastewater referred to in Article 15(1), and update that data set annually thereafter.

With regard to the information referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article, the EEA shall provide the public with access to relevant data through the European Pollutant Release and Transfer Register established under Regulation (EC) No 166/2006.

The Commission may adopt implementing acts in order to specify the format of the information to be provided in accordance with paragraph 1, points (a), (b), (c), (d) and (i). Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 28(2).

Article 23

National implementation programme

Those programmes shall include:

• (a) an assessment of the level of implementation of Articles 3 to 8;

• (b) the identification and planning of investments required to implement this Directive for each agglomeration, including an indicative financial estimation and when available an estimation of the financial contribution from the producer responsibility organisations established in accordance with Article 10, and a prioritisation of those investments related to the size of the agglomeration and the level of environmental impact of discharges of untreated urban wastewater and related risks for the environment or human health;

• (c) an estimate of investments needed to renew, upgrade or replace existing urban wastewater infrastructure, including collecting systems, based on depreciation rates, and technical and operational conditions, with the aim of preventing possible leakage, infiltration and misconnected inflow into the collecting systems, and using, where appropriate, digital instruments;

• (d) the identification, or at least an indication, of potential sources of public financing, when needed to complement user charges;

• (e) any information required under Articles 6(3) and 7(4) where applicable.

Member States may continue using the available Union funding for the implementation of this Directive, in order to ensure that all citizens benefit equally from efficient collection and treatment of urban wastewater. Member States may equally exchange best practices on how to improve absorption of Union funds.

Where a Member State establishes, during the implementation of its national implementation programme, that due to the necessity to preserve cultural heritage it is not possible to respect the deadline referred to in Article 3(2) or the deadline referred to in Article 6(3)or both in specific areas, that Member State shall update its national implementation programme. That update shall contain a list of the agglomerations with the areas concerned, a detailed justification demonstrating that the construction of the required infrastructure is particularly difficult due to the necessity to preserve cultural heritage, and an adjusted timeline to finalise the required infrastructure in those areas. Extensions of the deadlines referred to in Article 3(2) and Article 6(3) shall be area-specific and kept as short as possible, and shall not exceed 8 years. The updated national implementation programme shall be submitted to the Commission by 31 December of the year of that update.

Article 24

Information for the public

The information referred to in paragraph 1 shall also be provided by other means upon justified request.

• (a) information on the compliance of the collection and treatment of urban wastewater with Articles 3, 4, 6, 7 and 8, including a comparison between the actual releases of pollutants into receiving waters with the limit values set out in Part B and Tables 1, 2 and 3 of Annex I; that information shall be presented in a manner that allows for easy comparison, for example in the form of a percentage of compliance;

• (b) the volume or estimated volume of urban wastewater collected and treated per year or per billing period for the household or the connected entity in cubic meter, together with trends and the price of urban wastewater collection and treatment for that household (cost per litre and cubic meter);

• (c) a comparison of the yearly volume of urban wastewater collected and treated for the household per year and an indication of the average volume of a household in the agglomeration concerned;

• (d) a link to the online content referred to in paragraph 1.

Where information regarding individual usage is not available, the information referred to in points (a) to (d) shall be provided at agglomeration level in a user-friendly manner via a website or smart application.

Article 25

Access to justice

• (a) they have a sufficient interest;

• (b) they maintain the impairment of a right, where administrative procedural law of a Member State requires this as a precondition.

The review procedure shall be fair, equitable, timely and not prohibitively expensive, and shall provide for adequate and effective redress mechanisms, including injunctive relief where appropriate.

Article 26

Compensation

Article 27

Exercise of the delegation

Article 28

Committee procedure

Article 29

Penalties

• (a) the nature, gravity, and extent of the infringement;

• (b) where appropriate, the intentional or negligent character of the infringement;

• (c) the population or the environment affected by the infringement, bearing in mind the impact of the infringement on the objective of achieving a high level of protection of the environment and human health;

• (d) the repetitive or singular character of the infringement;

• (e) the financial situation of the natural or legal person held responsible.

Article 30

Evaluation

• (a) the experience gained through the implementation of this Directive;

• (b) the data sets referred to in Article 22(1);

• (c) relevant scientific, analytical and epidemiological data, including results from research projects funded by the Union;

• (d) WHO recommendations, where available.

That evaluation shall, as a minimum, contain an analysis of:

• (a) the appropriateness of the public health parameters referred to Article 17(1) to be monitored by Member States;

• (b) the added value of mandatory monitoring of specific public health parameters;

• (c) the possible need to adapt the list of products to be covered by extended producer responsibility to the evolution of the range of products placed on the market, improved knowledge on the presence of micropollutants in urban wastewater, their impacts on the environment and public health, data resulting from the new monitoring obligations on micropollutants in the inlets and outlets of the urban wastewater treatment plants and an analysis of the need to revise the condition for exemption from extended producer responsibility referred to in Article 9(2), point (a);

• (d) the added value and the appropriateness of requiring mandatory national water reuse plans, including national targets and measures, taking into account the evolution of Union policies and law related to water management;

• (e) the objective of energy neutrality in order to analyse the technical and economic feasibility and environmental and climate benefits of achieving a higher level of energy autonomy for the sector;

• (f) the possibilities for measuring direct and indirect GHG emissions emitted by the urban wastewater sector, including emissions of GHGs other than those referred to in Article 21(1), point (d), and for setting requirements for actual measurements in connection with the monitoring, taking into account the most recent methodologies for the measurement of GHG emissions of the urban wastewater sector set out by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change;

• (g) the possible impacts on the functioning of the internal market of the potentially different contribution rates for producers set by Member States and that are referred to in Article 9(1);

• (h) the feasibility and appropriateness of the development of an extended producer responsibility system for products generating PFAS and microplastics in urban wastewater based in particular on the monitoring data provided for in Article 21 on PFAS and microplastics in the inlets and outlets of the urban wastewater treatment plants;

• (i) the possibility of the urban wastewater treatment sector reaching climate neutrality, and the time required to do so;

• (j) the feasibility and appropriateness of setting Union minimum reuse and recycling rates for nitrogen from sludge or from urban wastewater, or both.

The Commission shall present a report on the main findings of the evaluation referred to in the first subparagraph to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee, and the Committee of the Regions accompanied, where the Commission finds it appropriate, by relevant legislative proposals.

Article 31

Review

Every five years, the Commission shall present a report to the European Parliament and the Council on the implementation of this Directive. On the basis of that report, the Commission may send early warnings to Member States that are failing or at risk of failing to meet the objectives and deadlines laid down in Articles 3, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 11.

Article 32

Repeal and transitional provisions

Article 3 (1a), first indent, and Article 4(1a), first indent, of Directive 91/271/EEC shall continue to apply until 30 December 2030.

• (a) until 31 December 2033 for urban wastewater treatment plants that are not required to comply with the requirements set out in Article 7(1) of this Directive by 1 January 2025;

• (b) until 31 December 2036 for urban wastewater treatment plants that are not required to comply with the requirements set out in Article 7(1) of this Directive by 31 December 2033;

• (c) until 31 December 2039 for urban wastewater treatment plants that are not required to comply with the requirements set out in Article 7(1) of this Directive by 31 December 2036.

Without prejudice to the first subparagraph, for urban wastewater discharges from agglomerations of 10 000 p.e. and above, Article 5 of Directive 91/271/EEC shall continue to apply:

• (a) until 31 December 2033 for agglomerations that are not required to comply with the requirements set out in Article 7(3) of this Directive by 1 January 2025;

• (b) until 31 December 2036 for agglomerations that are not required to comply with the requirements set out in Article 7(3) of this Directive by 31 December 2033;

• (c) until 31 December 2039 for agglomerations that are not required to comply with the requirements set out in Article 7(3) of this Directive by 31 December 2036;

• (d) until 31 December 2045 for agglomerations that are not required to comply with the requirements set out in Article 7(3) of this Directive by 31 December 2039;

• (e) until 31 December 2053 for agglomerations to which the derogation referred to in Article 7(4) of this Directive applies.

Article 33

Transposition

When Member States adopt those measures, they shall contain a reference to this Directive or be accompanied by such a reference on the occasion of their official publication. They shall also include a statement that references in existing laws, regulations and administrative provisions to the Directive repealed by this Directive shall be construed as references to this Directive. Member States shall determine how such reference is to be made and how that statement is to be formulated.

Article 34

Entry into force and application

This Directive shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

Articles 12 and 13 and Annexes II and IV shall apply from 1 August 2027.

Article 35

Addressees

This Directive is addressed to the Member States.

ANNEX I

REQUIREMENTS FOR URBAN WASTEWATER

Part A

Collecting systems

Collecting systems shall take into account urban wastewater treatment requirements.

The design, construction and maintenance of collecting systems shall be undertaken in accordance with the best technical knowledge not entailing excessive costs, in particular regarding:

• — volume and characteristics of urban wastewater,

• — prevention of leaks of urban wastewater, infiltration and misconnected inflow into the collecting systems,

• — limitation of pollution of receiving waters due to storm water overflows, considering the relevant requirements in Article 5 and Annex V.

Part B

Discharge from urban wastewater treatment plants to receiving waters

• 1.Urban wastewater treatment plants shall be designed or modified so that representative samples of the incoming wastewater and of treated effluent can be obtained before discharge to receiving waters.

• 2.Discharges from urban wastewater treatment plants and urban wastewater treatment plants serving agglomerations referred to in Articles 6, 7 and 8 shall meet the requirements in Table 1 of this Annex.

• 3.Discharges from urban wastewater treatment plants referred to in Article 7(1) or from urban wastewater treatment plants serving agglomerations referred to in Article 7(3) shall, in addition to the requirements referred to in point 2, meet the requirements in Table 2 of this Annex, except in cases where Article 7(8) is applied.

• 4.Discharges from urban wastewater treatment plants referred to in Article 8(1) or from urban wastewater treatment plants serving agglomerations referred to in Article 8(4) shall meet the requirements set out in Table 3 of this Annex.

• 5.Prior regulations and specific authorisations for discharges from urban wastewater treatment plants using biomedia shall include:

• — a description of the technologies incorporating biomedia used in the treatment carried out by the urban wastewater treatment plant, including the type and volume of biomedia used in the plant and a description of the measures taken to avoid releases of biomedia into the environment;

• — an obligation to permanently monitor and prevent all biomedia releases into the environment;

• — an obligation to report without delay any significant releases of biomedia into receiving waters to competent authorities.

• 6.Requirements that are more stringent than those set out in Tables 1, 2 and 3 shall be applied where necessary to ensure that the receiving waters fulfil the requirements laid down in Directives 2000/60/EC, 2008/56/EC, 2008/105/EC and 2006/7/EC.

• 7.The points of discharge of urban wastewater shall be chosen, as far as possible, so as to minimise harmful effects on receiving waters.

Part C

Methods for monitoring and evaluation of results

• 1.Member States shall ensure that a monitoring method is applied which fulfils the requirements set out in points 2 to 5. Where relevant, all methods of analysis shall comply with the same minimum performance criteria as those defined in Directive 2009/90/EC and other relevant rules.

• Alternative methods to those referred to in points 2, 3 and 4 may be used provided that it can be demonstrated that equivalent results are obtained.

• Member States shall provide the Commission with all relevant information concerning the applied monitoring method.

• 2.Flow-proportional or time-based 24-hour samples shall be collected at the same well-defined point in the outlet and, if necessary, in the inlet of the urban wastewater treatment plant. However, any time-based samples used to monitor micropollutants shall be 48-hour samples.

• Good international laboratory practices aiming at minimising the degradation of samples between collection and analysis shall be applied.

• 3.The minimum annual number of samples shall be determined according to the size of the treatment plant and be collected at regular intervals during the year:

1 000 to 9 999 p.e.:	One sample per month (see Note 1)
10 000 to 49 999 p.e.:	Two samples per month For micropollutants, one sample per month
50 000 to 149 999 p.e.:	One sample per week. For micropollutants, two samples per month
150 000 p.e. or above:	Two samples per week For micropollutants, two samples per month

Note 1: For agglomerations concerned by seasonal activity, intervals of a maximum of two months without sampling are accepted provided that additional samples are taken during the months of seasonal activity. A total of 12 samples shall be taken throughout the year.

• 4.The treated urban wastewater shall be assumed to conform to the relevant parameters if, for each relevant parameter considered individually, samples of the water show that it complies with the relevant parametric value in the following way:

• (a) for the parameters specified in Tables 1 and 3, a maximum number of samples which are allowed to fail the requirements, expressed in concentrations or percentage reductions, or both, is specified in Table 4;

• (b) for the parameters specified in Table 1 expressed in concentrations, the failing samples taken under normal operating conditions must not deviate from the parametric values by more than 100 %, except for the parameter total suspended solids, for which deviations from the parametric values of up to 150 % may be accepted;

• (c) for the parameters specified in Table 2, the annual mean of the samples for each parameter conforms to the relevant parametric values set out in that table; the values for concentration or for the minimum percentage of reduction apply;

• (d) for the parameters specified in Table 3, the frequency of sampling referred to in Part C, point 3, means that one sample is taken in the inlet and one sample is taken in the outlet of the urban wastewater treatment plant in order to verify compliance with the minimum percentage of removal of Table 3; the average percentage of removal of all substances used in the calculation is used in order to assess whether the required 80 % minimum percentage of removal has been reached.

• 5.The samples shall be taken so that they reflect the pollution during dry weather flow. Extreme values for the water quality in question shall not be taken into consideration when they are the result of unusual situations due to heavy rain.

• 6.Analyses concerning discharges from lagooning shall be carried out on filtered samples; however, the concentration of total suspended solids in unfiltered water samples of such discharges shall not exceed 150 mg/l.

Table 1: Requirements for discharges from urban waste water treatment plants subject to Article 6 of this Directive. The values for concentration or for the percentage of reduction shall apply.

Parameters	Concentration	Minimum percentage of reduction (see Note 4)	Reference method of measurement
Biochemical oxygen demand (BOD5 at 20 oC) without nitrification (see Note 1)	25 mg/l O2	70-90 40 under Article 6(4)	Homogenised, unfiltered, undecanted sample. Determination of dissolved oxygen before and after five-day incubation at 20 oC ± 1 oC, in complete darkness. Addition of a nitrification inhibitor
Chemical oxygen demand (COD) (see Note 2)	125 mg/l O2	75	Homogenised, unfiltered, undecanted sample Potassium dichromate
Total Organic Carbon (see Note 2)	37 mg/l	75	EN 1484
Total suspended solids	35 mg/l (see Note 3)	90 (see Note 3)	— Filtering of a representative sample through a 0,45  μm filter membrane. Drying at 105 oC and weighing — Centrifuging of a representative sample (for at least five mins with mean acceleration of 2 800 to 3 200  g), drying at 105 oC and weighing

Note 1: The parameter can be replaced by another parameter: total organic carbon (TOC) or total oxygen demand (TOD) if a relationship can be established between BOD5 and the substitute parameter.

Note 2: Member States shall measure either the Chemical oxygen demand (COD) or the Total Organic Carbon.

Note 3: This requirement is optional.

Note 4: Reduction in relation to the load of the influent.

Table 2: Requirements for tertiary treatment of discharges from urban wastewater treatment plants referred to in Article 7(1) or from urban waste water treatment plants serving agglomerations referred to in Article 7(3). For discharges from urban wastewater treatment plants referred to in Article 7(1), both parameters shall apply. For agglomerations referred to in Article 7(3), one or both parameters may be applied depending on the local situation. The values for concentration or for the percentage of reduction shall apply.

Parameters	Concentration	Minimum percentage of reduction (see Notes 1 and 2)	Reference method of measurement
Total phosphorus (see Note 4)	0,7  mg/l (10 000 p.e. and above but below 150 000 p.e.) 0,5  mg/l (150 000 p.e. and above)	87,5 (10 000 p.e. and above but below 150 000 p.e.) 90 (150 000 p.e. and above)	Molecular absorption spectrophotometry
Total nitrogen (see Note 4)	10 mg/l (10 000 p.e. and above but below 150 000 p.e.) 8 mg/l (150 000 p.e. and above) (see Note 5)	80 (see Note 3)	Molecular absorption spectrophotometry

Note 1: Reduction in relation to the load of the influent or to the load generated in an agglomeration if the same level of environmental protection can be ensured.

Note 2: If a fraction of treated urban wastewater is used for agricultural irrigation, nutrients in that fraction may be included in the calculation of the influent load and be excluded from the discharged load.

Note 3: In exceptional situations due to specific local circumstances, natural nitrogen retention may be taken into account in the calculation of the minimum percentage reduction in Member States where natural nitrogen retention was taken into account in the calculation of the minimum percentage reduction of nitrogen referred to under Table 2 of Annex I to Directive 91/271/EEC and where it is demonstrated that part of the nitrogen originated from urban wastewater can be eliminated in the receiving waters until 31 December 2045 for the calculation of the minimum percentage reduction of nitrogen referred to in Table 2 of this Annex if all the following conditions are fulfilled:

• (1) the average hydraulic retention time of the discharged effluent is at least 1,5  years before it reaches the area sensitive to nitrogen designated under Article 7(2);

• (2) a continuous monitoring and assessment programme of the total nitrogen parameter is ensured:
• (a) in the outlets of all urban wastewater treatment plants and where relevant in the urban runoff from agglomerations of 10 000 p.e. and above located in the catchment area of the area sensitive to nitrogen designated under Article 7(2);
• (b) in the relevant inlets of the area designated under Article 7(2);
• (c) at the representative sampling locations in the receiving waters and relevant water bodies in the catchment area of the area designated under Article 7(2);

• (3) the minimum percentage reduction for nitrogen of Table 2 is met; that percentage shall be calculated on the basis of the data collected from continuous monitoring and assessment programme referred to in point (2);

• (4) it can be demonstrated that nitrogen releases from urban wastewater treatment plants in the catchment area are not harmful for the environment, including for biodiversity, and human health and do not modify the ecosystem;

• (5) the concentration of nutrients in the areas referred to in point (c) of condition (2) are compliant with the condition set under Annex V.1.2.1 to Directive 2000/60/EC to define good ecological status of those areas;

• (6) the use of natural nitrogen retention is reported to the Commission in accordance with Article 22(1)(a), as well as to potentially affected neighbouring Member States, together with all the elements necessary to verify that conditions (1), (2), (3), (4) and (5) are fulfilled.

Note 4: This requirement shall apply on 1 January 2025 to existing urban wastewater treatment plants obliged to meet the deadlines established under Article 7(1) and to agglomerations under Article 7(3). Until those deadlines are met, the obligations of Article 32(3) shall apply to those urban wastewater treatment plants.

Note 5: Where the temperature in the effluent of the biological reactor is below 12 ^oC, the results of the samples taken may be excluded from the calculation of the annual mean for nitrogen as referred to in point (4)(c) of Part C of this Annex where all the following can be demonstrated:

• (1) no adverse effect on the environment is ensured;

• (2) excessive costs or excessive energy consumption would be required to reach the values for nitrogen in Table 2.

Where the temperature in the effluent of the biological reactor is below 5 ^oC the results of the samples taken may be excluded from the calculation of the annual mean for nitrogen as referred to in point (4)(c) of Part C of this Annex.

Table 3: Requirements for quaternary treatment of discharges from urban wastewater treatment plants referred to in Article 8(1) and or from urban wastewater treatment plants serving agglomerations referred to in Article 8(4).

Indicators	Minimum percentage of removal in relation to the load of the influent
Substances that can pollute water even at low concentrations (see Note 1)	80 % (see Note 2)

Note 1: The concentration of the organic substances referred to in points (a) and (b) shall be measured.

• (a) Category 1 (substances that can be very easily treated):
• (i) Amisulprid (CAS No 71675-85-9),
• (ii) Carbamazepine (CAS No 298-46-4),
• (iii) Citalopram (CAS No 59729-33-8),
• (iv) Clarithromycin (CAS No 81103-11-9),
• (v) Diclofenac (CAS No 15307-86-5),
• (vi) Hydrochlorothiazide (CAS No 58-93-5),
• (vii) Metoprolol (CAS No 37350-58-6),
• (viii) Venlafaxine (CAS No 93413-69-5);

• (b) Category 2 (substances that can be easily disposed of):
• (i) Benzotriazole (CAS No 95-14-7),
• (ii) Candesartan (CAS No 139481-59-7),
• (iii) Irbesartan (CAS No 138402-11-6),
• (iv) mixture of 4-Methylbenzotriazole (CAS No 29878-31-7) and 5-methyl-benzotriazole (CAS No 136-85-6).

Note 2: The percentage of removal shall be calculated on dry weather flow for at least six substances. The number of substances in category 1 shall be twice the number of substances in category 2. If fewer than six substances can be measured in sufficient concentration, the competent authority shall designate other substances to calculate the minimum percentage of removal when it is necessary. The average of the specific percentages of removal of all single substances used in the calculation shall be used in order to assess whether the required 80 % minimum percentage of removal has been reached.

Table 4: Requirement for samples

Series of samples taken in any year	Maximum permitted number of samples which fail to conform
4-7	1
8-16	2
17-28	3
29-40	4
41-53	5
54-67	6
68-81	7
82-95	8
96-110	9
111-125	10
126-140	11
141-155	12
156-171	13
172-187	14
188-203	15
204-219	16
220-235	17
236-251	18
252-268	19
269-284	20
285-300	21
301-317	22
318-334	23
335-350	24
351-365	25

ANNEX II

AREAS SENSITIVE TO EUTROPHICATION

• 1.Areas located in the catchments of the Baltic Sea, the Black Sea, the North Sea and the Adriatic Sea identified as sensitive to eutrophication under Directive 2008/56/EC or 2000/60/EC.

• 2.Natural freshwater lakes, other freshwater bodies, estuaries and coastal waters which are found to be eutrophic or which in the near future may become eutrophic if protective action is not taken.

• The following elements shall be taken into account when considering which nutrient should be reduced by further treatment:

• (a) lakes and streams reaching lakes/reservoirs/closed bays which are found to have a poor water exchange, whereby accumulation may take place. In those areas, the removal of phosphorus should be included unless it can be demonstrated that the removal will have no effect on the level of eutrophication. Where discharges from large agglomerations are made, the removal of nitrogen may also be considered;

• (b) estuaries, bays and other coastal waters which are found to have a poor water exchange, or which receive large quantities of nutrients. Discharges from small agglomerations are usually of minor importance in those areas, but for large agglomerations, the removal of phosphorus or nitrogen, or both, should be included unless it can be demonstrated that the removal will have no effect on the level of eutrophication.

• 3.Surface freshwaters intended for the abstraction of drinking water which could contain more than the concentration of nitrate laid down under the relevant provisions of Directive (EU) 2020/2184 if protective action is not taken.

• 4.Areas where further treatment than that prescribed in Article 7 of this Directive is necessary to comply with other Union acts in the environmental field, including in particular water bodies covered by Directive 2000/60/EC which are at risk of not maintaining or achieving good ecological status or potential.

• 5.Any other areas found by the Member States to be sensitive to eutrophication.

ANNEX III

LIST OF PRODUCTS COVERED BY EXTENDED PRODUCER RESPONSIBILITY

• 1.Medicinal products for human use falling within the scope of Directive 2001/83/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council ([^E0014]).

• 2.Cosmetic products falling within the scope of Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council ([^E0015]).

ANNEX IV

INDUSTRIAL SECTORS

• 1.Milk-processing

• 2.Manufacture of fruit and vegetable products

• 3.Manufacture and bottling of soft drinks

• 4.Potato-processing

• 5.Meat industry

• 6.Breweries

• 7.Production of alcohol and alcoholic beverages

• 8.Manufacture of animal feed from plant products

• 9.Manufacture of gelatine and of glue from hides, skin and bones

• 10.Malt-houses

• 11.Fish-processing industry

ANNEX V

CONTENT OF THE INTEGRATED URBAN WASTEWATER MANAGEMENT PLANS

• 1.An analysis of the initial situation of the drainage area of the agglomeration concerned, including at least the following:

• (a) a detailed description of the network of collecting systems, the urban wastewater and urban runoff storage and conducting capacities of that network and the existing urban wastewater treatment capacities in case of rainfall;

• (b) for combined sewers, a dynamic analysis of the flows of urban wastewater in case of rainfall, based on monitoring data or the use of hydrological, hydraulic and water quality models that take into account state-of-the-art climate projections and including an estimate of the pollution loads of the parameters referred to in Table 1 and, where relevant, Table 2 of Annex I as well as microplastics and relevant pollutants released into receiving waters in case of rainfall;

• (c) for separate sewers, a detailed description of the monitoring requirements at relevant points of separate systems where discharges of urban runoff are expected to be polluted as identified under Article 5(2), point (d), to identify relevant and feasible measures as required in point 3 of this Annex.

• 2.Objectives for the reduction of pollution from storm water overflows, including the following:

• (a) an indicative non-binding objective that storm water overflow represents a small percentage that cannot be more than 2 % of the annual collected urban wastewater load calculated in dry weather conditions; this indicative non-binding objective shall be met by:
• (i) 31 December 2039 for all agglomerations of 100 000 p.e. and above;
• (ii) 31 December 2045 for agglomerations of 10 000 p.e. and above referred to in Article 5;

• (b) the progressive reduction of macroplastics.

• 3.The measures to be taken to achieve the objectives referred to in point 2 in accordance with the deadlines set in that point accompanied with a timeline for the implementation of the measures and a distinction between measures already in place and to be taken. It shall also contain a clear identification of the actors involved and their responsibilities in the implementation of the integrated urban wastewater management plan.

• 4.When assessing which measures to be taken under point 3, Member States shall ensure that their competent authorities consider at least the following:

• (a) preventive measures aimed at avoiding the entry of unpolluted rain waters into collecting systems, including measures promoting natural water retention or rainwater harvesting, and measures aimed at increasing green and blue spaces in urban areas in order to reduce storm water overflows or limiting impermeable surfaces in the agglomerations;

• (b) measures to better manage and optimise the use of existing infrastructure, including collecting systems, storage volumes and urban wastewater treatment plants, with the aim of ensuring that releases of untreated urban wastewater or polluted urban runoff into receiving waters are minimised;

• (c) where necessary to achieve the objectives referred to in point 2, additional mitigation measures including the adaptation of the infrastructure for the collection, storage and treatment of urban wastewater, such as connecting newly built urban areas to separate sewers, where relevant, or the creation of new infrastructure with priority given to green and blue infrastructure such as vegetated ditches, treatment wetlands and storage ponds designed in order to support biodiversity. Where relevant, water reuse shall be considered in the context of the development of the integrated urban wastewater management plans referred to in Article 5.

ANNEX VI

INFORMATION FOR THE PUBLIC

• (1)the competent authority and the operator(s) responsible for urban wastewater collection and treatment services, including information on the ownership structure of the operators and their contact information;

• (2)the total urban wastewater load expressed in population equivalents (p.e.) generated in the agglomeration, with details on the share of that load (in %) that is:

• (a) collected and treated in urban wastewater treatment plants;

• (b) treated by registered individual systems;

• (c) not collected or treated;

• (3)where relevant, a justification for why a certain load of urban wastewater is not collected or treated;

• (4)information on the quality of the urban wastewater discharged from the agglomeration to each receiving water body, including the following elements:

• (a) annual average concentrations and the load of pollutants covered by Article 21 released by each urban wastewater treatment plant;

• (b) an estimate of the load of the discharges from individual systems for the parameters referred to in Tables 1 and 2 of Annex I;

• (c) for agglomerations above 10 000 p.e., an estimate of the load of the discharges from combined sewer and storm water overflows for the parameters referred to in Tables 1 and 2 of Annex I;

• (5)total annual investment costs and total annual operational costs, with a distinction between collection and treatment costs, total annual costs related to staff, energy, consumables, administration and other costs as well as average annual investment and operational costs per cubic meter of urban wastewater collected and treated, and per average household where costs are recovered totally or partly through a water tariff system or per agglomeration level in other cases;

• (6)information on how the costs referred to in point (5) are covered and, where costs are recovered through a tariff system, information on the structure of the tariff per cubic meter of urban wastewater collected and treated information on the structure of the tariff either per cubic meter of urban wastewater collected and treated or per cubic meter of water supplied, including fixed and variable costs and a breakdown between costs for collection, treatment, administration and other costs;

• (7)investment plans for urban wastewater collection and treatment infrastructure at agglomeration level, with expected impacts on urban wastewater service tariffs, and intended financial and societal benefits;

• (8)for each urban wastewater treatment plant of 10 000 p.e. and above:

• (a) the total load (in p.e.) treated and the energy required to treat the urban wastewater (in kWh total and per cubic meter);

• (b) the total renewable energy produced (GWh/year) each year, including a breakdown per source of energy;

• (9)the total direct GHG emissions (in tonnes of CO2 equivalent) produced or avoided per year by the operation of urban wastewater collection and treatment infrastructure of 10 000 p.e. and above in each agglomeration and, when available, the total indirect GHG emissions (in tonnes of CO2 equivalent) produced in particular during the construction of that infrastructure;

• (10)a summary of the nature and statistics regarding complaints and of the answers provided by the urban wastewater treatment plant operators on matters falling within the scope of this Directive;

• (11)upon justified request, consumers shall be given access to historical data for information under points (2), (4), (8) and (9), dating back to 10 years, and not earlier than 1 January 2025.

ANNEX VII

Part A

Repealed Directive with list of the successive amendments thereto (referred to in Article 32)

Council Directive 91/271/EEC (OJ L 135, 30.5.1991, p. 40)
Commission Directive 98/15/EC (OJ L 67, 7.3.1998, p. 29)
Regulation (EC) No 1882/2003 of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ L 284, 31.10.2003, p. 1)	only Annex III, point 21
Regulation (EC) No 1137/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ L 311, 21.11.2008, p. 1)	only Annex, point 4.2
Council Directive 2013/64/EU (OJ L 353, 28.12.2013, p. 8)	only Article 1

Part B

Time limits for transposition into national law (referred to in Article 32)

Directive	Time limit for transposition
91/271/EEC	30 June 1993
98/15/EC	30 September 1998
2013/64/EU	31 December 2018 as regards Article 1(1), (2) and (3) 30 June 2014 as regards Article 1(5), point (a) 31. December 2014 as regards Article 1(5), point (b)

ANNEX VIII

Correlation table

Directive 91/271/EEC	This Directive
Article 1	Article 1
Article 2, introductory wording	Article 2, introductory wording
Article 2, points 1 to 4	Article 2, points 1 to 4
—	Article 2, points 5 and 6
Article 2, point 5	Article 2, point 7
—	Article 2, points 8 and 9
Article 2, point 6	Article 2, point 10
Article 2, point 7	Article 2, point 11
Article 2, point 8	Article 2, point 12
—	Article 2, points 13 and 14
Article 2, point 10	Article 2, point 15
Article 2, point 11	Article 2, point 16
—	Article 2, point 17 to 28
Article 3(1)	Article 3(1)
—	Article 3(2) and (3)
Article 3(2)	Article 3 (4)
Article 3(1), third subparagraph	Article 4(1)
—	Article 4(2)
—	Article 4(3)
—	Article 4(4)
—	Article 4(5)
—	Article 4(6)
—	Article 5
Article 4(1)	Article 6(1)
—	Article 6(2)
—	Article 6(3)
Article 4(2)	Article 6(4)
Article 4(4)	Article 6(5)
—	Article 7(1)
—	Article 7(2)
Article 5(2)	Article 7(3)
—	Article 7(4)
Article 5(3)	Article 7(5)
—	Article 7(6) and (7)
Article 5(4)	Article 7(8)
Article 5(5)	Article 7(9)
Article 5(7)	Article 7(10)
—	Article 7(11)
—	Article 8
—	Article 9
—	Article 10
—	Article 11
Article 9	Article 12(1) and (2)
—	Article 12(3)
Article 10	Article 13
Article 11(1)	Article 14(1)
—	Article 14(2)
—	Article 14(3)
—	Article 14(4)
Article 11(3)	Article 14(5)
Article 12(1)	Article 15(1)
Article 12(2)	Article 15(2)
Article 12(3)	Article 15(3)
—	Article 15(4)
Article 13(1)	Article 16(1) and (2)
—	Article 17
—	Article 18
—	Article 19
Article 14(1)	Article 20(1)
—	Article 20(2)
Article 15(1)	Article 21(1)
—	Article 21(2)
—	Article 21(3) to (6)
—	Article 22
Article 17(1)	Article 23(1)
—	Article 23(2)
Article 17(3)	Article 23(3)
—	Article 23(4)
—	Article 24
—	Article 25
—	Article 26
—	Article 27
Article 18	Article 28
—	Article 29
—	Article 30
—	Article 31
—	Article 32
Article 19	Article 33
—	Article 34
Article 20	Article 35
Annex I(A)	Annex I(A)
Annex I(B)	Annex I(B)
Annex I(C)	—
Annex I(D)	Annex I(C)
Annex II	Annex II
—	Annex III
Annex III	Annex IV
—	Annex V
—	Annex VI
—	Annex VII
—	Annex VIII

[^E0001]: () Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 December 2006 concerning the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH), establishing a European Chemicals Agency, amending Directive 1999/45/EC and repealing Council Regulation (EEC) No 793/93 and Commission Regulation (EC) No 1488/94 as well as Council Directive 76/769/EEC and Commission Directives 91/155/EEC, 93/67/EEC, 93/105/EC and 2000/21/EC (OJ L 396, 30.12.2006, p. 1).

[^E0002]: () Directive 2011/83/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2011 on consumer rights, amending Council Directive 93/13/EEC and Directive 1999/44/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and repealing Council Directive 85/577/EEC and Directive 97/7/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ L 304, 22.11.2011, p. 64).

[^E0003]: () Regulation (EU) 2022/2371 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 November 2022 on serious cross-border threats to health and repealing Decision No 1082/2013/EU (OJ L 314, 6.12.2022, p. 26).

[^E0004]: () Directive 2008/105/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 2008 on environmental quality standards in the field of water policy, amending and subsequently repealing Council Directives 82/176/EEC, 83/513/EEC, 84/156/EEC, 84/491/EEC, 86/280/EEC and amending Directive 2000/60/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ L 348, 24.12.2008, p. 84).

[^E0005]: () Directive 2006/118/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2006 on the protection of groundwater against pollution and deterioration (OJ L 372, 27.12.2006, p. 19).

[^E0006]: () Regulation (EU) No 1380/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 December 2013 on the Common Fisheries Policy, amending Council Regulations (EC) No 1954/2003 and (EC) No 1224/2009 and repealing Council Regulations (EC) No 2371/2002 and (EC) No 639/2004 and Council Decision 2004/585/EC (OJ L 354, 28.12.2013, p. 22).

[^E0007]: () Council Directive 92/43/EEC of 21 May 1992 on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora (OJ L 206, 22.7.1992, p. 7).

[^E0008]: () Directive 2009/147/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 November 2009 on the conservation of wild birds (OJ L 20, 26.1.2010, p. 7).

[^E0009]: () Directive 2010/75/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 November 2010 on industrial and livestock rearing emissions (integrated pollution prevention and control) (OJ L 334, 17.12.2010, p. 17).

[^E0010]: () Council Directive 86/278/EEC of 12 June 1986 on the protection of the environment, and in particular of the soil, when sewage sludge is used in agriculture (OJ L 181, 4.7.1986, p. 6).

[^E0011]: () Decision No 2455/2001/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 November 2001 establishing the list of priority substances in the field of water policy and amending Directive 2000/60/EC (OJ L 331, 15.12.2001, p. 1).

[^E0012]: () Directive (EU) 2024/1203 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 April 2024 on the protection of the environment through criminal law and replacing Directives 2008/99/EC and 2009/123/EC (OJ L, 2024/1203, 30.4.2024, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dir/2024/1203/oj).

[^E0013]: () Commission Implementing Decision 2014/431/EU of 26 June 2014 concerning formats for reporting on the national programmes for the implementation of Council Directive 91/271/EEC (OJ L 197, 4.7.2014, p. 77).

[^E0014]: () Directive 2001/83/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 6 November 2001 on the Community code relating to medicinal products for human use (OJ L 311, 28.11.2001, p. 67).

[^E0015]: () Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 November 2009 on cosmetic products (OJ L 342, 22.12.2009, p. 59).