As many as 30 percent of Europeans face a lack of water at least once a year due to drought and poverty, the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) was warned on the occasion of the International Water Day.
The EESC, the Advisory Institution in Brussels in which 329 union representatives, employers and non-governmental organizations from the EU, organized the conference that the consumers would need to change the behavior to use water more efficiently.
“Europeans still see water as something unlimited. But we must finally understand that it is a scarce resource,” said Bulgarian Professor Milena Angelov, the ESCO member.
Large summer droughts in countries like Spain and Greece have led to the fall of water reserves, and the inhabitants were invited not to spend drinking water on watering and washing cars. There was a limited shower in the Public Pools in Barcelona.
Luis Silveira Rodriguez, President of the Portuguese Association for Consumer Protection (Kids), believes that governments should reduce losses in water levels and invest in infrastructure.
Affordable Prices
In Portugal, 30 percent of stored and distributed water fails to be charged or lost due to unauthorized use. Due to the degradation of the pipeline, 184 billion cubic meters of water is lost, worth 90 million euros a year, Rodriguez said.
Francesco Masco, Vice President of the European Association of Public Water Management Companies Aqua Public European, says all Europeans must have access to water at affordable prices.
“This means that the prices of water should be at the lowest possible level,” he emphasized. “Social tariffs and water subsidies are key to insuring equal access,” he added.
The European Economic and Social Committee together with the European Parliament in late 2023. presented the “EU Blue Deal” (the Blue EU Plan). It is a set of recommendations for the sustainable water policy of the European Union.
The plan is based on a series of opinions covering social, economic, environmental and geopolitical aspects of water, as well as problems related to agriculture, industry and infrastructure. Its aims to make clean water available to every inhabitant of Europe.
From the new European Commission, the EU Executive Body, it was requested that in the next five years, this is just a priority. Elena Montani, European Commission officials, said that they develop a new water use strategy.
(Vijesti.ba)
