France and Belgium will have to explain to the European Court of Justice (ECJ) the violation of the EU Nitrates Directive on drinking water. The European Commission accused these countries of exposing their population to drinking water with too high a concentration of nitrates.
Nitrate concentration too high
The EC's position shows that the population of seven regions of France has for a long time been supplied with water with nitrate concentrations exceeding the maximum value of 50 mg/l. The efforts of the French authorities so far to address the situation have been deemed insufficient.
The lawsuit against Belgium concerns nitrate pollution of water in Flanders. According to the EC, the situation has been getting worse, not better, in recent years. Reservoirs in Flanders were among the most polluted in the EU, and authorities' actions since 2015 did not produce the desired results. In February 2023, the ECJ had to address nitrate pollution in Walloon waters. However, the case was closed after a month when the Belgian government introduced changes to the water quality action program in the region.
Criticism of water abstractions
The European Commission has also launched proceedings into Member States' failure to comply with the Water Framework Directive (WFD). The European Commission criticizes Austria, the Netherlands and Slovenia for their water abstraction approval practices. Permits in the Netherlands can be issued for an indefinite period and without appropriate control. In Austria, permits are valid for 25 years, and there are no clear rules at all in Slovenian law.
The objections towards the Dutch concern insufficient protection of nature, including: birds and breeding areas.
read more
The first application in the EU for authorization to sell laboratory meat 
read more
Already 14 people infected with bird flu in the USA. Cats and raccoons are also affected 
read more
Investigation after sheep fever in Greece. Animals buried alive
