The European Commission plans a “Blueprint to Safeguard Europe’s Water” for publication towards the end of 2012. This will assess the implementation and achievements of current policy, and also look forward to identify measures that may be needed in several EU policy areas to ensure a sustainable use of good quality water in the long term.
Recent reports by the Committee have highlighted the importance of water sustainability to meeting new challenges, not least tackling climate change and boosting agricultural productivity in order to respond to a growing global population (“Adapting to Climate Change: EU agriculture and forestry”, March 2010, and “Innovation in EU Agriculture”, July 2011). This recent work, alongside current discussions on the future of the Common Agricultural Policy, and the Commission’s current review, all make this a critical time to examine what is wanted from future EU freshwater policy.