Joint letter on an EU biomethane target – Cosignatory group

An EU binding biomethane target in the Gas Regulation is critical to support strategic energy autonomy and climate objectives

23 May 2023

The cosignatories represent the value chain of biomethane, from producers to gas infrastructure operators and suppliers, as well as major end-use sectors, such as steelmaking, heating, food and beverage, and transport.

Ahead of the start of the trilogue on the Gas Decarbonisation Package, we call on Member States to support an ambitious and binding EU-level biomethane target of 35 bcm in 2030 in the Gas Regulation, in line with the REPowerEU Plan. Member States would be free to declinate according to their structural characteristics, resources potential and energy transition strategies.

This target, along with enabling conditions for the whole value chain, is critical to contribute to achieving decarbonisation of end uses, deliver on the Union’s 2030 energy and climate objectives and promote energy security:

-35 bcm/year of biomethane by 2030 would significantly contribute to security of supply by replacing 20% of pre-war imported natural gas volumes from Russia. Biomethane is a dispatchable and versatile energy source that can directly be used in existing gas infrastructure, appliances and equipment across sectors (buildings, industries, combined power and heat generation and transport). Its production and use rely on Europe-based, mature technologies and do not create new dependencies on critical raw materials.

– 35 bcm/year of biomethane by 2030 would provide a valuable GHG emission reduction solution for buildings, industrial energy users and fuel suppliers, complementary to renewable electricity and hydrogen. Procurement of biomethane can be done reliably via robust regulated market-based instruments such as Guarantees of Origin and Proofs of Sustainability.

– 35 bcm/year of biomethane by 2030 could also support the competitiveness of energy intensive industries exposed to very high electricity and natural gas prices, as they transition towards more sustainable energy sources.

– 35 bcm/year of biomethane by 2030 would in the short term reduce the carbon intensity of maritime and road transport, space heating and agri-food systems, contributing to their faster and affordable decarbonisation.

– 35 bcm/year of biomethane by 2030 would be a strong incentive to develop the production capacity required to process bio-waste, which must be separately collected by law (as a result of the 2018 Waste Framework Directive), by 1 January 2024 at the latest.

– 35 bcm/year of biomethane by 2030 can be sustainably produced, as the target is consistent with assessments of available sustainable feedstock. The European Commission acknowledged this by including this target in the REPowerEU Plan published in May 2022.

– A binding 35 bcm biomethane target by 2030 will contribute to predictability and investor confidence that are necessary for the biomethane value chain to deliver its full potential and achieve major economy of scale.

The cosignatories propose the introduction of a new article setting an EU binding biomethane target of 35 bcm/year, leaving flexibility to Member States to define national strategies for its achievement.

European industry associations

Companies

Registrations are open for Water Innovation Europe 2023

Registrations are now open for our awaited Water Innovation Europe 2023 conference, coming up on June 21-22 in Brussels under the theme ‘EU Water Policy: What’s Next? Top EU high-level speakers will shape a 2-days discussion on crucial topics related to water policies, providing valuable insights to drive a transformative change in the water sector and achieve a Water-Smart Society.

The UN 2023 Water Conference has now concluded but the discussion opened there is about to continue at our event. This year’s conference focuses on putting water at the heart of our next European Commission’s programme and our next years’ plans by deploying a strategy to build a European Water-Smart Society.

To know more about the main conference and register, you can visit the official webpage at this link.

New EEA Report Emphasizes Urgent Need for Ecosystem Restoration

A recent report ‘State of nature in Europe: Damaged ecosystems need restoration’ published by the European Environment Agency (EEA) highlights the critical importance of ecosystem restoration in combating environmental degradation.

The study highlights the alarming state of water bodies, emphasizing the urgency to address pollution, depletion, and habitat destruction. Ecosystem restoration is identified as a critical solution to safeguard water resources and their associated ecosystems.

The report calls on governments, stakeholders, and communities to join forces in implementing sustainable practices and policies. It emphasizes the restoration of wetlands, rivers, and lakes to enhance water quality, protect biodiversity, and mitigate the impacts of climate change. Immediate action is imperative to secure the future health and resilience of our precious water ecosystems.

Read the full report to learn more.

Join Wetskills 2023 in Denmark

Expert hearing on Industrial Change of the European Economic and Social Committee

A valuable discussion took place last week on the future of water during the expert hearing organised by the Consultative Commission on Industrial Change of the European Economic and Social Committee. Two Water Europe members shared their expertise:

– Par Larshans from Ragn-Sells stressed the importance of circular processes for climate adaptation and mitigation, as well as the additional benefits of circular technology for the UWWTP particularly for resource recovery.

– Anja de Reus from Ecolab pointed out the importance of digital water and the water-energy nexus for climate change adaption and mitigation. Technologies exist to achieve a higher degree of water circularity and build Water-Smart Societies, but we need to accelerate!

During the follow-up discussion, the Committee explored potential recommendations to include in a Blue Deal for Europe during the next Commission, among of which, reference was made to:

☑ R&D will have a key role to play in developing, testing, and deploying innovative solutions via sandbox or Water-Oriented Living Labs (WOLLs).
☑ Data management through digitalisation, AI was identified as part of the solutions to analyse, communicate and implement the right solutions digital water.
☑ Circular water must be promoted and get a new way of viewing waste as a resource.
☑ The opportunity to have a commissioner dedicated to water, and active participation of the citizens to improve inclusive water governance and put water on the top of the EU agenda.
☑ Resilient water through a nexus approach, particularly for water and energy, to achieve the carbon and water targets.
☑ Diversify water sources, particularly, via reusing greywater in the building.

Save the date for Water Innovation Europe 2023, June 20-22

Mark your calendars and save the date for our biggest event of the year! Water Innovation Europe 2023 is back from the 20^th to the 22^nd of June in Brussels. The UN 2023 Water Conference has now concluded but the discussion opened there is about to continue at our event, coming up under the theme ‘EU Water Policy: What’s Next?‘ This year’s conference focuses on putting water at the heart of our next European Commission’s programme and our next years’ plans by deploying a strategy to build a European Water-Smart Society.

Registration is opening soon, but in the meantime, you can already apply for the Awards, Exhibition and Sponsorship opportunities.

Awards opportunities at WIE2023

Are you ready to take your success to the next level? WIE2023 event is your chance to shine! We’re thrilled to invite you to submit your application for our Water Europe Innovation Awards 2023. Don’t miss out on the chance to elevate your brand and secure your spot among the best of the best. Apply now for the WIE2023 Awards and get ready to celebrate your success! Check all the info here.

The deadline for the application is May 14th. To apply for the Awards, please click here.

What will you gain?
– A WIE2023 Award
– High visibility for your business to stand out
– A marketing package from Water Europe
– The winning applicant for the SMEs Award will get a 2 year-free membership at Water Europe

Awards Categories
🏆 Global Water Challenges Award
🏆 SME Award
🏆 Digital Water Award
🏆 Water Technology & Infrastructure Award
🏆 Water Governance Award

Sponsorship opportunities at WIE2023

Do you want to take your business to the next level and gain unparalleled visibility? Apply to become a WIE2023 sponsor to gain exposure and have the opportunity to showcase your brand in front of industry leaders and potential customers. Don’t miss out on this chance. Check more info and  apply here.

Exhibition opportunities at WIE2023

Want to strengthen your brand visibility? Showcase your products and services as a WIE2023 exhibitor, to engage with potential customers and industry leaders, and elevate your brand to the next level.  Apply here  to secure your spot as an exhibitor and let your brand shine!

EU projects: New Policy Briefs published

Two new policy briefs have now become available for the projects MULTISOURCE and iWays in which Water Europe is participating as a partner.

The iWAYS policy paper presents the case for digitally enhanced circular economy principles and models to foster a water-smart industry, contributing to the revision of the Industrial Emissions Directive (IED), a European Union directive that aims to reduce harmful emissions from industrial activities and to ensure a high level of protection for the environment and human health. Read the full policy brief here iWays

The new MULTISOURCE policy brief focuses on the expected benefits in the European policy context, in particular linked with the recast of the Urban Wastewater Treatment Directive and the new EU Healthy Soils Strategy. Within this context, the MULTISOURCE project also provides examples of international cooperation between Europe and actors from the Global South. Download the MULTISOURCE paper here.

Hans Goossens, President’s editorial

Dear Water Europe friends,

Taking water action forward was our motto this month. The much-anticipated UN 2023 Water Conference took place, and we were there with our new vision in our hands, eager to share it with the water world, get feedback and collect impressions. Now, we are back with something more than our commitment to building a Water-Smart Society. We are back with a vision ready to be put in place as a step-by-step plan to overcome the water-related challenges and ensure water security, sustainability, and resilience for our society.

Throughout the whole UN2023 Water Conference week, our five side-events addressed the aspects of climate resilience, collaborative innovation, circular economy, WEFE nexus and water & health as key elements for building a Water-Smart Society. The sessions were all very well-attended with important representation from the whole water value chain. In particular, we were happy to deliver the first copies of our new vision to Zuhal Demir, the Flemish Minister for Environment, Dr Daniel Westlén, State Secretary to Swedish Minister for Climate and Environment and Magnus Heunicke, the Danish Minister for Environment that participated in the programme of our events. To see all the highlights of our UN 2023 Water Conference participation, click here.

On the World Water Day, the United Nations World Water Development report 2023 also got released to remind us that protecting and preserving this precious resource for future generations depends on partnerships. The report made clear reference to our vision for a Water-Smart Society and the Water-Oriented Living Labs as successful examples to accelerate action to achieve the SDG action agenda. As it’s mentioned, “A water-smart society leads to a more resilient water sector, with water security and safety as essential goals”.

Following the UN 2023 Water Conference’s efforts to put water at the top of the political agenda, we are now starting the real preparations for our own Water Innovation Europe 2023 conference that is coming up to continue the discussion opened. Its theme is EU Water Policy: What’s next? and it’s the next occasion to book in your calendar from the 20th to the 22nd of June 2023.

Interview with Veronica Manfredi, Director for Zero Pollution, DG Environment, European Commission

The UN Water Conference 2023 just finished. How do you evaluate EU’s stance at the conference and the commitments made? How do those connect with industry?

We are not in want of evidence that the climate is changing, faster than we thought and with more frequent and severe extreme weather events. The March 2023 report from the European Drought Observatory suggests there is good likelihood this upcoming summer will be a repetition of the very dry and difficult summer of 2022.

With most global freshwater resources crossing borders, their sustainable and effective management is an issue of global importance. The UN 2023 Water Conference aimed to highlight the urgent need to put water at the top of the political agenda, holistically putting the need to restore the water cycle at the centre.

In the run-up to that conference, the Commission and the Member States worked hard to increase the level of ambition and enrich the debate with topics that are essential to tackle in the future, like water security and fairness in the face of climate change.

In many ways, the priorities emerging from the Conference are the priorities the EU had envisaged: accelerating implementation of SDG 6, better linking water with the food, energy and climate agenda, an emphasis on better, resilient infrastructure for waste water treatment, increasing efficiency across all water uses and the call for binding transboundary water management through the UN ECE Water Convention.

We welcome that the European Council Conclusions of last 23rd March specifically stress the need for a strategic EU approach to water security, paving the way for needed further action under the present and the next College mandate.

We need to secure that economic sectors that are heavy water users (such as agriculture, industry including major digital actors, energy, transport) better internalise water efficiency and water protection in the ways they operate. A water efficiency first principle, mirroring the efficiency first principle for energy, should increasingly guide business decisions and investments. Water should be recognised as a key part of business sustainability.

With the proposal for Net-Zero Industry Act just tabled, how do you foresee the role of water?

The Green Deal Industrial Plan establishes enabling conditions to scale up the EU’s manufacturing capacity for the net-zero technologies required to meet Europe’s ambitious climate targets. Water plays a key role as an input resource to so many processes. A changing climate is also affecting water resources, necessitating responsible water abstraction, use, re-use, efficiency and minimising the emissions of pollutants.

The proposal for a Net Zero Industry Act simplifies the regulatory framework for mainly energy technologies that are key to meet the Union’s climate neutrality goals. Simplification will be achieved by better coordinated and faster environmental assessment and authorisation procedures, while not lowering the level of environmental protection. Indeed, the targeted facilities should be fully compliant with requirements stemming from Union legislation, such as those related to environmental impact assessments and emissions to air, water and soil, and seek to ensure high energy and water efficiency.

Along the same lines, the proposed Critical Raw Materials Act also aims to streamline national permit procedures while ensuring that projects comply with relevant EU legislation, including the Water Framework Directive.

The Communication on the establishment of the European Hydrogen Bank is particularly relevant given the considerable use of water for the production of green hydrogen. Hence there is a need to frame the production of this necessary energy source within integrated water management.

Finally, let me bring the attention to the recent proposal for a Directive to substantiate green claims to prevent false environmental claims thereby reducing green washing and securing that buyers receive reliable, information to enable them to make more sustainable decisions.

The Industrial Emissions Directive is under revision and the European Commission has proposed a progressive revision of the IED to consider more water efficiency and reduction of emissions into water. What are the expectations of the European Commission related to this dossier?

Indeed, a big objective of this revision is to enhance the protection of water. It clarifies and modernises rules on allowed emissions in permits and enhances resource efficiency.

The proposal has also a strong focus on innovation and industrial transformation by fostering the creation of a new Innovation Centre on Industrial Transformation and Emissions (INCITE). Frontrunners will benefit from new permitting flexibilities to test and deploy more environmentally effective emerging techniques.

Whilst regretting the lowered ambition in the scope of livestock activities covered, we overall welcome that the Environment Council of last March 16th has largely endorsed the thrust of the Commission proposal, in particular its innovation aspects and the use of benchmarks in resource use, reuse and efficiency for water too.

The members of the European Parliament seem very aware of the need to address water scarcity overall, and the need for industrial operators and Member States’ authorities to react in an agile, collaborative and rapid manner to emergency situations such as those experienced last year in the River Oder incident.

We hope to witness encouraging trilogue negotiations soon, which would help significantly reduce water consumption across the EU’s largest industrial processes.

Taking action at the UN 2023 Water Conference

The UN 2023 Water Conference concluded last week, and we are excited to have participated in a conference that brought together 8.000 delegates from all over the world and made water the centre of everyone’s attention. With the first copies of our new vision in our hands, Water Europe team and ambassadors were present to spread the message of the need to build a Water-Smart Society. For this, five side-events were organised with a dedicated agenda covering the key thematic areas of our new vision. Scroll down to explore the main highlights.

During the UN Water Conference and the organised side-events, Water Europe had the opportunity to hand over the first copies of its new vision to Zuhal Demir, the Flemish Minister for Environment, Dr Daniel Westlén, State Secretary to Swedish Minister for Climate and Environment and Magnus Heunicke, the Danish Minister for Environment.

Our project’s representatives also participated in the programme of our side-events with Chrysi Laspidou, ARSINOE’s coordinator presenting the project at the ‘Climate resilience needs a Water-Smart Society’ event. Luuk Rietveld, Coordinator of ToDrinQ, and Luisa Rocha Durães, coordinator of H2Oforall presenting their project at the ‘Water & Health: Going beyond the WASH approach’ event and Gerard van der Berg, coordinator of ULTIMATE presenting the project in the WEFE nexus and the need for Water-Smart industry.

Water Europe team had the pleasure to meet in person with its board members, Vision Leadership Teams, Working Group members, but also long-standing collaborators throughout the whole week of the UN Water Conference by organising informal get togethers to enhance the exchanges and collaborative spirit. Our Water Vision is included in the new publication “Emergency preparedness – Time for a Blue Deal #Food #WATER #Energy”. The book will be officially launched next week at the European Economic and Social Committee.

Arthur Valkieser, Water Europe board member handed over the publication Blueprint for a Circular Water-Smart Society to Willem Alexander, king of the Netherlands and Mark Harbers, Dutch Minister of Infrastructure and Water Management, in which our new vision’s model, core value and innovation areas are included.