Implementation of the new EU Urban Waste Water Directive

With the new EU Urban Wastewater Treatment Directive (UWWTD), wastewater treatment plant operators in Germany are facing considerable technical, financial and organisational changes. On the occasion of a parliamentary evening on 1 December 2025 in Brussels, the Ruhrverband emphasised that successful implementation can only be achieved if the extended producer responsibility (EPR) is consistently designed and secured in the long term.

The directive stipulates that pharmaceutical and cosmetics manufacturers will bear at least 80 per cent of the additional investment and operating costs for the fourth purification stage in future. This is intended to effectively remove micropollutants such as residues from medicines or cosmetics. "The public as well as trade and industry are already financing the first three purification stages. Without a robust EPR system, they would bear a disproportionate cost burden in future, which would affect the competitiveness of companies in the Ruhr catchment area," emphasised Prof. Christoph Donner, Chairman of the Ruhrverband, to the members of the European Parliament present.

A strong EPR system must therefore:
- finance at least 80 % of the investment and operating costs of the fourth treatment stage,
- involve the water industry and operators in the implementation,
- set clear incentives to avoid persistent substances and environmentally friendly product development.

Technically feasible - organisationally challenging
The technologies for the fourth purification stage are proven, but expansion is being held back by limited engineering and personnel capacities. In addition, operators are faced with parallel obligations, such as stricter environmental quality standards, energy and climate neutrality and climate adaptation.

The Ruhrverband is therefore calling for reliable funding security, risk-based and catchment area-related prioritisation in order to be able to spread planning and implementation evenly over the period up to 2045. For smaller wastewater treatment plants in particular (10,000-150,000 population equivalents), the risk-based approach must be further developed pragmatically so that individual limit value exceedances - for example of diclofenac - do not automatically force a costly fourth stage.

The implementation of the EU Urban Waste Water Directive will bring far-reaching changes for local authorities, the population and small and medium-sized enterprises. "Only with transparent data, joint messages with local authorities and the healthcare sector and open communication about costs and benefits can we ensure acceptance in society," says Christoph Donner.