"Businesses and citizens have to take into account that we shall face water scarcity in large parts of Europe that will hinder successful economic development," stressed the MEP, insisting that "water should be one of the main issues on the political agenda and integrated into all policies".
Growing strains on Europe's water supply, fuelled by extensive use as well as climate change, prompted the Commission to propose, last July, the introduction of pricing policies to persuade users – including farmers, industries and households – to waste less of the earth’s precious resources (see EurActiv 18/07/07; Links Dossier).
Although the MEP rejects suggestions that global water supply will one day be unable to satisfy demand, creating a 'peak water' situation as theorised for oil (see EurActiv 27/05/08; Links Dossier), Seeber nevertheless stresses that "supplying more water will not resolve the scarcity problem in general."
"Water is renewable," he explains, adding: "You can recycle water as often as you want, so if you have proper installations, there will never be peak water." However, he warns that this does not change the fact that "water is a scare commodity". He therefore calls on member states to rethink the way they consume water and insists that they implement pricing systems to reflect this.
How this could work in practice should nevertheless be left to individual states to decide, Seeber believes. "You have to look at each country because there are very different traditions, especially regarding pricing," he said, explaining why he is "always fighting for subsidiarity".
Indeed, ensuring that water policy remains primarily a national issue is a central theme of Seeber's report. "Committee members fully backed my position that water resources will remain, without doubt, in the sole possession of each EU member state," he said.
Nevertheless, his report also stresses the "international dimension" of water scarcity and drought problems and calls on EU states "to work together" to combat increasing risks of drought in some regions, as well as the "irresponsible waste of water resources in some economic sectors and countries".
Estimating the total economic impact of drought at EU level over the past thirty years at €100 billion, the report claims that a fifth of the bloc's population lives in regions experiencing water stress. 40% of the water used in the EU could be saved and 20% of the bloc's supplies are wasted due to inefficiency, it asserts, prompting Seeber to declare that "trends in water use are unsustainable".
The MEP's report further calls for the EU's energy efficiency labelling system to be extended to include a reference to water consumption, and asks the bloc to launch a public awareness-raising campaign to encourage people to save water.
The seriousness of the water scarcity issue became apparent last summer, when serious droughts afflicted much of the bloc (EurActiv 18/07/07).
To read the interview with Richard Seeber in full, please click here.
