2018 Calabria bathing water report and poor bathing water quality in Reggio Calabria

3.5.2018

Question for written answer E-002485-18
to the Commission
Rule 130
Laura Ferrara (EFDD)

The aim of Directive 2006/7/EC on the management of bathing water quality is to maintain, safeguard, and improve the quality of the environment and protect human health.

Specifically, the directive calls for bathing water quality to be monitored and classified, and also imposes an obligation on Member States both to ensure that their waters are at least ‘sufficient’ and to take all appropriate steps to raise their status to ‘excellent’ or ‘good’.

However, the 2018 ARPACAL report (ARPACAL being the Calabrian regional environmental protection agency) points to a deterioration in the quality of Calabrian coastal waters compared with the preceding year.

At many monitoring points, the water quality status has declined from ‘excellent’ or ‘good’ to ‘sufficient’. Furthermore, no substantial improvements have occurred at points already classified as ‘poor’. The situation is particularly dire on the Reggio Calabria stretch of coast, where, at 11 monitoring points, a temporary bathing ban has been in force since 19 June 2014.

1. Have all the necessary measures been taken in Calabria, as provided for in Article 5(4)(a), in order to prevent, reduce, or eliminate the causes of pollution in every case where the bathing water is classified as ‘poor’?

2. Will the Commission urge the authorities concerned to do whatever might be required to resolve the problems in Reggio Calabria, if need be by imposing a permanent bathing ban under Article 5(4)(b)?