On the 26th of October 2023 the European Economic Social Committee published the #EUBlueDeal declaration, calling on institutions and EU countries to make water a priority.
“Water is key for our environment, economy and society – we will fail on climate change if we do not solve the future of water.” – President Oliver Röpke. The #EUBlueDeal declaration puts forward 15 principles and 21 concrete actions to be implemented urgently:
💧 Water, sanitation and hygiene services must be equitable, of high quality and affordable for all.
💧 Users should be encouraged to sustainable consumption of water.
💧 Development of technologies enabling water efficiency, recycling and pollution reduction.
💧 Water prices, costs and taxes must be fair and transparent.
💧 Ensuring access to sufficient quality water for agriculture for adequate and sustainable food production in the EU.
💧 The EU should increase its efforts on blue diplomacy.