A European source told journalists that the seven Member States, like Portugal, that did not present updated strategic plans on the application of the Water Framework Directive and the Floods Directive will answer to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), where the infringement process was forwarded.

“For those who have not yet submitted new river basin management plans or flood risk management plans, we have brought them to court,” the source said.

The previous version of the strategic plan is valid until a new one is submitted.

The reports in question, the European Commission highlights, provide valuable information on the state of the EU's fresh and marine waters and the measures taken to improve them, as well as on measures to reduce flood risks.

They also provide country-specific information and tailored recommendations to support continued progress and sustainable water management across Europe.

As regards the programmes of measures under the Marine Strategy Framework Directive, the European Commission considered the national strategic plan to be inadequate in helping the marine environment cope with the pressures it is subject to.

In the report, Brussels highlights that surface waters in the EU are in a critical state due to pollution.

“Only 39.5% of surface water bodies in the EU are in good ecological status and 26.8% in good chemical status”, with mercury being one of the main pollutants, highlights Brussels.

At a press conference, the European Commissioner for the Environment, Water Resilience and Competitive Circular Economy Jessika Roswall, recalled that “water is a scarce commodity”, referring to the need to look at this natural resource in a different way.