REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL AND THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT on the exercise of the power to adopt delegated acts conferred on the Commission pursuant to Directive 2008/105/EC on environmental quality standards in the field of water policy
Date: 2018-12-17
Institutions: Directorate-General for Environment, European Commission
Subjects: delegated legislation, environmental standard, metals, powers of the institutions (EU), quality of the environment, quality standard, surface water, technological change, water pollution, water protection

EN 

  EN 

   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 17.12.2018  COM(2018) 847 final  REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL AND THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT on the exercise of the power to adopt delegated acts conferred on the Commission pursuant to Directive 2008/105/EC on environmental quality standards in the field of water policy  
 
 
REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE 
COUNCIL on the exercise of the power to adopt delegated acts conferred on the 
Commission pursuant to Directive 2008/105/EC on environmental quality standards in the 
field of water policy 

1. INTRODUCTION  

Directive 2008/105/EC1 of the European Parliament and of the Council on environmental quality 
standards in the field of water policy, as amended by Directive 2013/39/EU2, sets environmental 
quality  standards  for  the  priority  substances  identified  under  the  Water  Framework  Directive3 
(2000/60/EC)  as  posing  a  significant  EU-wide  risk  to  and  via  aquatic  ecosystems.  Directive 
2008/105/EC is a daughter of the Water Framework Directive, which seeks to protect, restore and 
enhance the status of aquatic ecosystems. 

Directive 2008/105/EC (as amended) empowers the Commission to adopt delegated acts to adapt 
to  scientific or  technical developments  the  specifications in  point  3  of  Part B  of  Annex  I  to  the 
Directive,  i.e.  specifications  relating  to  the  fraction4  in  which  the  water  environmental  quality 
standards  are  defined  and  specifications  relating  to  the  assessment  of  compliance  with  the 
environmental quality standards for metals.  

2. LEGAL BASIS  
This  report  is  required  under  Article  9a(2)  of  Directive  2008/105/EC  as  amended  by  Directive 
2013/39/EU.  Pursuant to this  provision,  the  power to  adopt  delegated  acts  referred  to  in  Article 
3(8) is conferred on the Commission for a period of six  years  from 13 September 2013 and the 
Commission  is  required  to  prepare  a  report  in  respect  of  the  delegation  of  power  not  later  than 
nine  months  before  the  end  of  the  six-year  period.  The  delegation  of  power  is  automatically 
extended  for  periods  of  an  identical  duration,  unless  the  European  Parliament  or  the  Council 
oppose such extension in accordance with Article 9a.  

3. EXERCISE OF THE DELEGATION  
A  similar  empowerment  was  included  in  the  original  version  of  Directive  2008/105/EC  but  not 
used  before  the  Directive  was  amended  by  ordinary  legislative  procedure  in  2013.  The  2013 
amendment  made  some  changes  to  the  text  in  point  3  of  Part  B  of  Annex  I  to  reflect  technical 
advances  relating  to  the  assessment  of  compliance  with  the  environmental  quality  standards  for 
introduction  of  bioavailable  annual  average 
metals, 
environmental  quality  standards  for  two  metals  in  freshwaters,  and  the  progress  made  on 
bioavailability modelling. 

to  acknowledge 

in  particular 

the 

The scientific and technical developments since then have not yet required any further adaptation 
of point 3 of Part B of Annex I, therefore the Commission has not exercised its delegated power 
during the reporting period. However, it may be necessary to use the delegated power in future, in 
particular since the need to take account of relevant scientific or technical developments might not 
coincide with the timing of other possible future amendments to the Directive. 

1 OJ L 348, 24.12.2008, p. 84–97 
2 OJ L 226, 24.8.2013, p. 1–17 
3 OJ L 327, 22.12.2000, p. 1–73 
4 i.e. whole water or dissolved fraction. 

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4. CONCLUSION  
The  Commission  has  not  exercised  the  delegated  power  conferred  on  it  under  Directive 
2008/105/EC  but  may  need  to  do  so  in  the  future.  It  invites  the  European  Parliament  and  the 
Council to take note of this report. 

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