Translation of "Bassin d'eau souterraine " (French → English) :

Q. whereas Directive 2000/60/EC laying down a framework for water policy requires the Member States, inter alia, to prevent the deterioration of ‘inland surface waters, transitional waters, coastal waters and groundwater’ and obliges them to ensure a coordinated policy with respect to the ‘whole of a river basin’,

1a. For bodies of groundwater situated within an international river basin district, the Member States concerned shall jointly determine - in the light of their specific national and regional conditions - groundwater quality standards and evaluation methods with a view to providing criteria for the evaluation of the chemical status of bodies of groundwater.

2. For bodies of groundwater situated within an international river basin district, the Member States concerned shall jointly determine - in the light of their specific national and regional conditions - groundwater quality standards and evaluation methods with a view to providing criteria for the evaluation of the chemical status of bodies of groundwater.

Within this overall purpose, a special attention is required for several aspects of 'integration': between sectors and among partners, to overcome fragmentation of responsibilities; between land and water uses within the basin or catchment; between protection of water quality (with an emphasis on pollution prevention) and maximisation of quantity; between the uses of surface water and groundwater; between supply- and demand-based measures, requiring attention to pricing of water services; between short-term water demand for human development and the long-term requirements to protect habitats and biodiversity, especially wetlands.

The main event of 2000 was the adoption on 23 October of the framework-directive for a Community water policy (2000/60/EC); it has two main aims: to ensure that all water(surface and ground water and protected areas) is of good chemical and ecological quality through integrated management at water basin level and to ask Member States to take account of the principle of recovering the costs of services related to water use (including environmental and resource costs) and the polluter-pays principle.

The main event of 2000 was the adoption on 23 October of the framework-directive for a Community water policy (2000/60/EC); it has two main aims: to ensure that all water(surface and ground water and protected areas) is of good chemical and ecological quality through integrated management at water basin level and to ask Member States to take account of the principle of recovering the costs of services related to water use (including environmental and resource costs) and the polluter-pays principle.