On 11 May 2026, Directive (EU) 2026/805 came into force, updating the lists of pollutants to be monitored in surface water and groundwater. The revision amends three key pieces of EU legislation: the Water Framework Directive, the Environmental Quality Standards Directive and the Groundwater Directive. Member States must transpose the amendments by 22 December 2027.
The most significant changes concern the inclusion of certain PFAS (Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances), pesticides and pharmaceuticals amongst the substances to be monitored and subject to stricter controls. For the first time, the European regulatory framework addresses the critical issues relating to microplastics, indicators of antimicrobial resistance and sensitive groundwater ecosystems. The revision also introduces a requirement to implement so-called ‘effect-based monitoring’: an approach that assesses the combined risk posed by substances present in water, moving beyond the current system based solely on the separate measurement of individual contaminants.
This is a significant milestone because it recognises the complexity of the pressures affecting water bodies. Environmental safety does not depend on a single threshold or a single parameter, but on the ability to understand interactions, cumulative effects and the possible overall impact on water quality.
The regulatory review goes hand in hand with the launch of a broader institutional dialogue. On 20 March 2026, the European Commission issued a call inviting stakeholders to join the new Water Resilience Stakeholder Platform: a forum for dialogue and expertise in support of the European Strategy for Water Resilience. Its work will focus, in particular, on efficiency and demand management, governance and implementation, investment and infrastructure, digitalisation, research and innovation, and security and preparedness in the water sector.
With this decision, the Commission reaffirms its commitment to bringing together water operators, river basin authorities, public authorities, the research community, civil society, innovators and those involved in investment and infrastructure.
The issue was also a key focus of the European Union Environment Council meeting on 25 June 2026. One year on from the adoption of the European Strategy for Water Resilience, the meeting assessed the progress made and the challenges encountered, paying particular attention to the promotion of water efficiency. The discussion also addressed digital solutions for the water sector, attracting private investment and making more effective use of innovative financial instruments.
This European agenda is particularly significant in the Mediterranean. At the meeting of environment ministers from the EuroMED9 group (which involves the nine Mediterranean EU countries), held in Šibenik on 18 and 19 May 2026, the ministers and the European Commission discussed measures to strengthen resilience to growing climate pressures, with a focus on improving water supply systems and protecting coastal and marine ecosystems.
The document presented to the Environment Council highlights the need to reduce water losses, strengthen critical infrastructure, accelerate digitalisation to improve monitoring, forecasting and response, and promote integrated water management. It also refers to nature-based solutions (NBS) and unconventional water resources. Particular emphasis is placed on the source-to-sea approach, which links pressures generated on land to the protection of the marine environment, including wastewater treatment, monitoring and data exchange.
It is within this scenario that the MedRESOURCE initiative, financed by the Interreg NEXT MED Programme, is set. The project does not treat sewage sludge, digestate and other residual materials as undifferentiated materials to be reintroduced into a supply chain, but as potential resources whose value must be assessed throughout the entire process: from the material’s origin and composition to the methods of treatment; from the resulting product’s quality to the actual conditions of use; right through to the possible long-term effects on soil, water, crops and ecosystems. The transition from the concept of recovery to that of safe use therefore requires characterisation, monitoring of quality parameters, traceability, risk assessment and the establishment of clear lines of responsibility.
From this perspective, MedRESOURCE does not merely aim to reduce waste or replace natural resources. It aims to build reliable local supply chains: capable of bringing together waste management operators, businesses, farmers, public authorities, regulatory bodies, research organisations and local communities. Each stakeholder provides a key element of what is needed to make a circular solution viable: technical expertise, data, monitoring capabilities, rules of use, knowledge of local needs and trust in decision-making processes.
This dimension of governance is already at the heart of the partners’ initiatives.
This kind of cooperation and dialogue shows why circularity requires action that goes beyond experimentation. To secure and ensure the replicability of the reuse of products derived from wastewater, it is necessary to link innovation to national environmental and water priorities, make knowledge accessible to decision-makers and end-users, initiate awareness-raising and consultation processes with stakeholders, and establish appropriate monitoring mechanisms. Within this framework, the technical results of place-based, user-centered Living Labs can become useful tools for governance and for the informed adoption of sustainable solutions, whilst technological innovation, environmental protection and the building of institutional and social capacity proceed jointly.
This is where MedRESOURCE most directly connects with the new European water agenda: it is not enough just to recover a resource; we must demonstrate that its use is appropriate, controlled, understandable to local communities, and capable of contributing, in the long term, to environmental quality and the resilience of Mediterranean communities.
Anna Pireddu is Communication and Capacity Building manager of CRENoS and Mohammad Taweel is Project Coordinator of the Palestinian Wastewater Engineers Group (PWEG)
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