CELEX: 51997PC0228
Language: en
Date: 1997-06-04
Title: Amended proposal for a Council Directive on the quality of water indended for human consumption

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
                                       Brussels, 04.06.1997
                                       COM(97) 228 final
                                       95/0010 (SYN)
          Amended Proposal for a
         COUNCIL DIRECTIVE
on the Quality of Water Intended for
             Human Consumption
   (presented by the Commission pursuant to Article 189 a (2)
                       of the EC-Treaty)
 ---pagebreak---  ---pagebreak---                       EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM
 Pursuant to Article 189 (a) paragraph^ of the EC Treaty, the Commission submits an amended
 Proposal for a Council Directive on the quality of water intended for human consumption. The
 amended proposal takes account of a number of amendments adopted by the European
 Parliament at its December 1996 Plenary Session.
 In general the Commission cannot accept the amendments which are. in its opinion, unworkable,
 or which will make implementation unduly onerous. On the other hand the Commission can
 accept amendments which improve the clarity of the text and which remove any possible areas of
 ambiguity or doubt. The Commission can also accept those amendments which improve still
 further the transparency of proposed Directive.
 Therefore, the Commission can accept amendments 1. 3. 4. 5. 16. 18. 20. 25. 28 to 33, 36. 38.
 40. 42, 48 to 50, and 64 without reservation. These all improve the text, either by including
 sensible and logical additional requirements, or by removing possible areas of misinterpretation,
 or by improving transparency and the level of protection provided.
 In addition the Commission can accept in principle Amendments 6. 10. 17. 19. 26. 39. 44. 45.
 47, 58, 65, and 77. The Commission also accepts the thrust of amendment 121 under certain
 conditions as noted below.
 Commentary on the above amendments accepted in principle follows:-
 Amendment 6 concerns the scientific basis of the Proposal. This serves a useful purpose but the
 exact wording needs to be modified to include the Commission's Scientific Committee to
 examine the Toxicity and Ecotoxicity of Chemical Compounds.
 Amendment 10 concerns Endocrine Disruptors. There is indeed rising concern about such
 substances but the text needs to be modified to ensure it encapsulates the full essence of the
 issues.
Amendments 17, 26 and 47 deal with the proposed exemption for not meeting the standards at
the tap. The Commission agrees that there is a need to restrict the current exemption to the lead
parameter and to domestic householders only. However such an important derogation, should not
be relegated to Note 3 of Annex I Part B, but should instead be mentioned in the body of the
Articles. Therefore, the Commission cannot agree that Articles 2(2) and 7(3) are deleted, but
rather amended to reflect the spirit of this change. With respect to amendment 47. the
Commission cannot accept the second part of the amendment which obliges Member States to
report to the Commission on the incidence of lead piping in households, and to come forward
with a plan to replace it. This obligation is inconsistent with the first part of the amendment.
Amendment 19 concerns Endocrine Disruptors and other harmful substances. The Commission
does not think it is necessary to mention specifically endocrine disruptors since these are inferred
and already included in the term "other substances harmful to health". Therefore the wording
needs to be modified
Amendment 39 concerns the time limit for Article 18 special circumstances. This could cause
some difficulties in some Member States, and the Commission would prefer a commitment for a
review after two years and the opportunity for a possible extension of two years.
Amendment 44 refers to new scientific evidence and the Commission agrees that new scientific
evidence must be assessed to ensure that our standards are fully in compliance with current
scientific thinking. However in view of the 1997 World Health Organisation (WHO) review of
their Guideline Values this note should refer to all the following parameters:- Trichlorethene:
 ---pagebreak--- Nickel; Nitrate and Nitrite; Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs): and Trihalomethanes
(THMs) in respect of Chloroform.
Amendment 45 refers to note 2 in Annex I, Part B on the Trihalomethane (THM) parameter.
This is acceptable providing the interim standard is adjusted to 150 micrograms per litre (f.ig/1)
after 5 years, in accordance with the comments on amendment 121 below.
Amendment 58 calls for monitoring of the lead parameter to be harmonised, and this seems a
sensible proposition. Tlie exact wording of this amendment needs to be adjusted to ensure
consistency with other provisions of the Proposal.
Amendment 65 refers to protection measures for surface and groundwater resources. Tlie
Commission can accept this in principle since the context is fully consistent with what the
Commission has included in the proposed Framework Directive.
Amendment 77 concerns disinfection, and the obligation to ensure that drinking water is not
contaminated with disinfection by-products. This amendment can be accepted in principle since
it is consistent with the need to find a balance between efficient disinfection and the
contamination of drinking water from disinfection by-products.
Amendment 121 introduces a total standard for four named Trihalomethanes (THMs) of 80 ug/1
at the tap, in place of the Commission's proposal of two individual standards at the treatment
works. Tlie Commission originally expressed an acceptance in principle for amendment 41, but
the latter fell in the plenary voting in favour of amendment 121. Therefore, the Commission
accepts the thrust of amendment 121 providing that the parametric value for all four THMs is
changed to 100 micrograms per litre (ug/1) - instead of 80 ug/1 - to be met after 10 years, with an
interim standard of 150 micrograms per litre (u.g/1) after 5 years. This would bring measurement
of the THM parameter into line with many Member State current practices.
Tlie Commission can accept Amendment 7 in part. Tlie Commission can accept the first part of
this amendment in full, as it is right that the measures taken should be co-ordinated with the
Pesticides marketing Directive. However the second parfrof the amendment referring to the ECJ
mling cannot be accepted since it is not necessary or warranted.
Tlie Commission cannot accept the remaining amendments, namely 2. 8, 9. 11, 12. 14, 15, 21 to
24, 27, 34, 35, 37, 43, 46, 51, 52, 53, 61, 73, 87, 91. 92. 118, and 119. Commentary on these
amendments follows :-
Amendment 2 refers to the "modus vivendi" between Parliament. Council, and the Commission.
This is an unnecessary reference and adds nothing of substance to the Proposal. Hence it is not
acceptable.
Amendments 8 and 9 call for the "guaranteed protection" of catchments from Pesticides and
Nitrates respectively. Such protection cannot, even with the best will in the world be
"guaranteed", and such an amendment would be virtually impossible to implement fully.
Amendment 11 calls for the parametric values to be complied with in all cases at the tap. There
are several parameters which do not change their value between the treatment works and the tap.
and where this can be established, it is fair to offer Member States the opportunity to measure
such parameters at the treatment works.
Amendments 12 and 34 deal with the regulation of materials in contact with water. Tlie
Commission accepts that the question of piping materials is highly relevant to the eventual
quality of drinking water at the tap, but this is primarily a matter for Directive 89/106/EEC - the
Construction Products Directive.
 ---pagebreak--- Amendment 14 calls for the Commission to update Parliament on the implementation of the
 Directive. This amendment stems from the mistaken impression that the costs of meeting the
standards, and in particular the lead standard, are to be borne by the Community. These costs are
to be met by Member States and not the Community, and therefore the Commission is unable to
support this amendment.
Amendment 15 requires that failures to meet the standards "must" be investigated, rather than
 "should" be investigated. This is not acceptable since there may be cases where taking remedial
action is not feasible, and the supply must be closed. This is not really remedial action.
Therefore, "should" is preferable.
Amendment 21 calls for Member States inform the Commission of guidelines drawn up to deal
with the implications of an interruption in the supply ôr a restriction in use. This is not
acceptable since there would be no benefit to be gained if the Commission was to be infomied of
the mass of guidelines that may be produced by Member States.
Amendments 22 to 24 delete the notification procedure which is to be applied when Member
States choose to introduce more stringent standards, or standards for additional parameters- Tlie
Commission cannot accept these amendments since the notification procedure is intended to
ensure that other standards are not used in a manner which could constitute a barrier to trade, and
hence prejudice the functioning of the internal market.
Amendment 27 calls for the Commission to be informed of Member States monitoring
programmes. This is not acceptable since there would be no benefit to be gained if the
Commission was to be informed about all the monitoring programmes that may be produced by
Member States.
Amendment 35 proposes the deletion of the words "so far as this is relevant to the protection of
human health" from Article 12. Tlie effects of the this deletion would mean that parameters
which are not relevant to human health could not be altered in the future, as this would be seen
as a "deterioration". This could, ironically, lead to a reduction in the quality of the water, and
therefore it cannot be accepted.
Amendment 37 proposes the deletion of all comitology procedures. Tlie Commission took great
care in adopting the proposal to ensure that any changes to Annex I - the parameters and
parametric values- must be through the full legislative procedure involving Parliament. However,
in the case of Annex II (monitoring) and Annex III (measurement methods), any updating should
be by Committee. The Commission considers this to be the most efficient way to deal with what
are essentially technical issues. There will, of course, be a full application of the Plumb - Delors
procedure.
Amendments 43 and 51 relate to Endocrine Disruptors. Tlie Commission is very aware that this
is an area of rising concermjind therefore accepts the call for a study to be carried out to
determine the need for such a parameter. However, the Commission believes it is premature to
insert a new parameter for such substances at this stage, and therefore cannot accept these
amendments.
Amendment 46 calls for the lead standard of 10 micrograms per litre (mg/1). to be met within 10
years after entry into force of the Directive. Tlie Commission cannot accept such a timetable. Tlie
proposed figure is 15 years, and this is based on what the Commission believes to be the best
balance between the protection of human health, and the economic consequences of achieving
such a standard.
Amendment 52 calls for copper to be included in Annex I Part C i.e.: as an indicator parameter.
Tlie Commission's Scientific Committee has recommended that a parametric value of 2 mg/1
 ---pagebreak--- should be set in order to provide freedom from acute gastrointestinal disturbances, and
furthermore the WHO will be reviewing their guideline value for copper in 1997. In view of this,
it is considered that it would be premature to move the parameter to Annex 1 part C or change or
delete the parametric value.
Amendment 53 calls for the parameters Tetrachlorethene and Trichlorethene to be replaced by
one parameter for 5 specified organochlorine compounds with a parametric value of 10 mg/1.
Tetrachlorethene and Trichlorethene were chosen by the Commission as appropriate parameters
for the presence of chlorinated solvents, and the parametric values were fixed at 40 and 70 mg/1
respectively, as advised by the Commission's Scientific Committee and in accordance with the
World Health Organisation (WHO) Guidelines. Tlie Commission feels that it would be
inappropriate to impose anything other than the toxicologically based WHO standards on all
Member States. However the Commission has asked its scientific Committee for a view on this
amendment, and when the WHO comes up with its re-evaluation of the guideline value for
Trichlorethene, the Commission will examine the results and may propose a revised standard, if
appropriate and necessary.
Amendments 61 and 92 introduce radioactivity standards into the proposed Directive. Tlie
Commission cannot accept these amendments, since radioactivity in drinking water is already
covered under the Euratom Treaty and Council Directive 96/29/Euratom (Basic Safety
Standards for the health protection for the protection of the health of workers and the general
public against the dangers arising from ionising radiation).
Amendment 73 provides an exemption from the Directive for water in closed industrial systems.
This amendment cannot be accepted since closed industrial systems are already excluded via
Article 2(1) (b) of the proposal.
Amendments 87 and 91, propose the addition of Coliforms to Annex I Part A and Annex II
Table Al. Tlie Commission cannot accept these amendments, but it will examine the need for
this and other microbiological parameters in both these annexes.
Amendments 118 and 119 deal the obligation to maintain a supply to domestic consumers at all
times, without prejudice to the costs of the supply. Tlie Commission cannot accept such
amendments because they impinge on the subsidiarity principle, and hence the issue is one for
Member States to deal with.
1
         OJ No L 159, 29.6.96, p 1
 ---pagebreak---                                    Amended Proposal for a
                                   COUNCIL DIRECTIVE
               on the Quality of Water Intended for Human Consumption
         Commission Proposal                                   Amended Proposal
                                            Recital 2
Whereas in keeping with the provision of            Whereas in keeping with the provision of
Article 3(b) of the Treaty, whereby any             Article 3(b) of the Treaty, whereby any
action by the Community should not go               action by the Community should not go
beyond what is necessary to achieve the             beyond what is necessary to achieve the
objectives of the Treaty, it is necessary to        objectives of the Treaty, it is necessary to
revise the provisions of Directive                  revise the provisions of Directive
80/778/EEC so as to focus on compliance             80/778/EEC so as to focus on compliance
with essential quality and health                   with essential quality and health
parameters, leaving Member States free to           parameters, leaving Member States free to
add secondary parameters if they see fit;           add other parameters if they see fit;
                                        Recital 2a (new)
                                                    Whereas, in compliance with the
                                                    subsidiarity principle. Community action
                                                    must support and supplement action by the
                                                    competent authorities in the Member
                                                    States;
                                                     r
 ---pagebreak---                                              Recital
Whereas, in accordance with the principle            Whereas, in accordance with the principle
of subsidiarity, the differences in natural          of subsidiarity, the differences in natural
and socio-economic features of the regions           and socio-economic features of the regions
in the Union require that most decisions on          in the Union require that most decisions on
monitoring, analysis, and on the measures            monitoring, analysis, and on the measures
to be taken to redress failures be taken at a        to be taken to redress failures be taken at a
local, regional or national level;                   local, regional or national level; in so far
                                                     as the differences do not detract from the
                                                     establishment of the framework of laws,
                                                     regulations and administrative provisions
                                                     laid down by this Directive;
                                             Recital 4
Whereas Community standards for                      Whereas Community standards for
essential health-related quality parameters          essential and preventive health-related
in water intended for human consumption              quality parameters in water intended for
are necessary in order to define the                 human consumption are necessary in order
minimum environmental quality goals to               to define the minimum goals for a high
be achieved in connection with other                 level of environmental protection to be
Community measures, in order to                      achieved in connection with other
safeguard the sustainable use of water               Community measures, in order to
intended for human consumption;                      safeguard and promote the sustainable use
                                                     of water intended for human consumption;
 ---pagebreak---                                         Recital 4a (new)
                                                    Whereas the standards in Annex I are
                                                    generally based on the World Health
                                                    Organisation's Guidelines for Drinking
                                                    Water Quality, and the advice of the
                                                    Commission's Scientific Committee to
                                                    examine the toxicity and Ecotoxicitv of
                                                    Chemical Compounds.
                                   Recitals 6a and 6b (new)
                                                    Whereas to enable the quality standards
                                                    for drinking water to be met by the water
                                                    supply undertakings, appropriate water
                                                    protection measures should be applied to
                                                    ensure that surface and groundwater is
                                                    kept clean;
                                                    Whereas the coherence of European water
                                                    policy presupposes a suitable water
                                                    framework directive will be adopted in
                                                    due course
                                           Recital 8
Whereas measures are required to meet               Whereas measures are required to meet
specified values for all directly health-           specified values for all directly health-
relevant parameters and for other                   relevant parameters and for other
parameters if a deterioration in quality has        parameters if a deterioration in quality has
occurred; whereas furthermore such                  occurred; whereas furthermore such
measures should not prejudice the                   measures should be carefully coordinated
implementation of Directive 91/414/EEC              with the implementation of Directive
of 15 July 1991 concerning the placing of           91/414/EEC of 15 July 1991 concerning
plant protection products on the market as          the placing of plant protection products on
last amended by Commission Directive                the market as last amended by
94/79/EC.                                           Commission Directive 94/79/EC.
                                              }
 ---pagebreak---                                        Recital 1 la (new)
                                                     Whereas there is no conclusive evidence
                                                     on which to base precautionary
                                                     parameters, yet there is increasing concern
                                                     about the potential impact on humans and
                                                     wildlife of the effects of substances
                                                     harmful to health, which include
                                                     environmental        endocrine      disaipting
                                                     chemicals;
                                            Article 1(2)
2.       The objective of the Directive is to        2.       The objective of the Directive is to
protect - human health from the adverse              protect human health from the adverse
effects resulting from the contamination of          effects resulting from the contamination of
water intended for human consumption by              water intended for human consumption by
ensuring that it is wholesome.                       ensuring that it is wholesome and clean.
                                            Article 2(2)
Z        For the purpose of this Directive,          2.       For the purpose of this Directive,
"domestic distribution system" shall mean             "domestic distribution system" shall mean
all pipe work and fittings which connect a           all pipe work and fittings which connect a
consumer's tap to the supply and which,              household or group of households to the
according to the relevant national law, are          supply and which, according to the
not the responsibility of the water supplier.         relevant national law, are not the
                                                      responsibility of the water supplier.
                                            Article 3(d)
                                                      (d)     without prejudice to Article 5(1),
                                                              water intended         for     human
(d)      without prejudice to Article 5(1),                   consumption from an individual
         water      intended for      human                   supply serving 15 or fewer
         consumption from an individual                       households, unless the water is
         source serving 15 or less                            offered for sale.
         households, unless the water is
         offered for sale.
                                           S>
 ---pagebreak---                                        Article 4(1) (b)
(b)     is free of pathogenic micro-               (b)     is free of pathogenic micro-
        organisms and parasites in                         organisms and parasitesa or other
        numbers which constitute a                         substances harmful to health, in
        potential danger to human health.                  numbers or concentrations which
                                                           constitute a potential danger to
                                                           human health.
                                          Article 4(2)
2.      Member States shall take all other         2.      Member States shall take all other
measures necessary to ensure that water            measures necessary, to ensure that water
intended for human consumption meets               intended for human consumption meets
the objective set out in Article 1.                the objective set out in Article 1. This shall
                                                   include catchment protection measures
                                                   that take full account of the precautionary
                                                   principle and the polluter pavs principle.
                                          Article 7(2)
2.      For water intended for human               2.      For water intended for human
consumption supplied from a distribution           consumption supplied from a distribution
network, the parametric values shall be            network, the parametric values shall be
complied with as it emerges from at least          complied with as it emerges from all cold
one tap in the consumer's premises.                water taps, which are representative for
                                                   human consumption.
 ---pagebreak---                                             Article 7(3)
3.       Member States are deemed to have            3.       Member States are deemed to have
fulfilled their obligations under this Article       fulfilled their obligations under this Article
and under Articles 4 and 9(2) where it can           and under Articles 4 and 9(2) where it can
be established that non-compliance with              be established that non-compliance with
the parametric values set in accordance              the parametric value for lead set in
with Article 6(1), (2) and (3) is due to the         accordance with Article 6(1), (2) and (3) is
domestic distribution system.                        due to the domestic distribution system.
                                            Article 8(1)
 1.      Member States shall take all                 I.      Member States shall take all
measures necessary to ensure regular,                measures necessary to ensure regular,
representative monitoring of the quality of          representative monitoring of the quality of
water intended for human consumption, in             water intended for human consumption, in
order to check whether the water available           order to check whether the water available
to consumers meets the requirements of               to consumers meets the requirements of
this Directive. In addition, Member States           this Directive. In addition, Member States
shall take all measures necessary to ensure          shall take all measures necessary to ensure
that, where disinfection forms part of the           that, where disinfection forms part of the
preparation of water intended for human              preparation of water intended for human
consumption, the efficiency of the                   consumption, the efficiency of the
disinfection treatment applied is verified.          disinfection treatment applied is verified
                                                     and that there is no unnecessary
                                                     contamination from disinfection by-
                                                     products.
                                            Article 8(3)
3.       The sampling points shall be                3.       The sampling points shall be
determined by the competent authorities.             determined by the competent authorities,,
                                                     without prejudice to Article 7(2).
                                            Article 8(6)
6.       The Commission shall review at                       The Commission shall review at
regular intervals the reference methods of            least every three years the reference
analysis specified in Annex III.                      methods of analysis specified in Annex III.
                                                Wo
 ---pagebreak---                                           Article 9(2)
2.      If, despite the measures taken to          2.       If, despite the measures taken to
meet the obligations under Article 4(1),           meet the obligations under Article 4(1),
water intended for human consumption               water intended for human consumption
does not meet the requirements of Annex            does not meet the requirements of Annex
I, Member States shall ensure that the             I, Member States shall ensure that the
necessary remedial action is taken as soon         necessary remedial action is taken as soon
as possible to restore its quality.                as possible to restore its quality, and that
                                                   consumers are notified.
                                     Article 9(3a) (new)
                                                   3a.     Member States shall prioritise their
                                                   enforcement action, having regard to the
                                                   extent to which the relevant parameter has
                                                   been exceeded.
                                         Article 10(1)
1.      Member       States      may  make          1.      Member       States  may      make
provision for derogations from the                 provision for derogations from the
parametric values set out in Annex I part B        parametric values set out in Annex I part B
for a limited period of time and up to a           up to a maximum value to be determined
maximum value to be determined by                  by them, provided that the derogation does
them, provided that the derogation during          not constitute a potential danger to human
such period does not constitute a potential        health and provided that the supply of
danger to human health and provided that           water intended for human consumption in
the supply of water intended for human             the area concerned cannot otherwise be
consumption in the area concerned cannot           maintained by any other reasonable
otherwise be maintained by any other               means. Derogations should not exceed two
reasonable means.                                  years after which a review must be
                                                   conducted      and forwarded        to the
                                                   Commission        to determine       whether
                                                   sufficient progress has been made. The
                                                   Commission may, on the basis of the
                                                    review, permit a further derogation up to
                                                    two vears.
                                           <"1l
 ---pagebreak---                                        Article 10(2) (d)
(d)     an appropriate monitoring scheme,           (d)     an appropriate monitoring scheme,
        with an increased monitoring                        with an increased monitoring
        frequency where necessary;                          frequency where necessary and
                                                            relevant, and earlier monitoring
                                                            results where avai I able;
                                          Article 14(1)
 1.     At least every \0 years, the                 1.     At least every five years, the
Commission shall review Annex I in the              Commission shall review Annex I in the
light of scientific and technical progress          light of scientific and technical progress
and shall make proposals for amendments,            and shall make proposals for amendments,
where necessary, under the procedure in             where necessary, under the procedure in
Article 189c of the Treaty.                         Article 189c of the Treaty.
                                          Article 16(4)
4.      The formats and the minimum                 4.      The formats and the minimum
information for the reports referred to in          information for the reports referred to in
paragraphs shall be determined having               paragraph 3 shall be determined having
special regard to the measures referred to          special regard to the measures referred to
in Articles 3(d), 5, 6(3) and 9, and shall if       in Articles 3(d), 5, 6(3). 8(2), 9, 10(5 and
necessary, be amended in accordance with            6} and 18(1), and shall if necessary, be
the procedure laid down in Article 15.              amended in accordance with the procedure
                                                    laid down in Article 15.
                                       4Z
 ---pagebreak---                                         Article 18(1)
1.      Member States may in exceptional           1.      Member States may in exceptional
circumstances and for geographically              circumstances and for geographically
defined population groups submit a special        defined population groups submit a special
request to the Commission for a longer            request to the Commission for a longer
period than provided for in this Directive        period than provided for in this Directive,
for complying with individual parametric          for complying with individual parametric
values set in Part B of Annex I. This             values set in Part B of Annex I. The period
provision does not apply to water intended        should not exceed two years after which a
for human consumption offered for sale in         review must be conducted and forwarded
bottles or containers.                            to the Commission which may, on the
                                                  basis of the review, permit a further period
                                                  of up to two years, providing the total
                                                  period does not exceed five years. This
                                                  provision does not apply to water intended
                                                  for human consumption offered for sale in
                                                  bottles or containers.
                                   Annex I, Part B, entry 5
Boron 300 j.ig/1                                  Boron 1.0 mg/1 (= 1000iig/l)
                              Annex I, Part B, entries 7 and 9
Bromodichloromethane          15 ug/1             Total Trihalomethanes (THM) 100 ug/1
Chloroform                     40 ug/1            2 chloroform
                               (Note 2)           - Bromoform
                                                  - Dibromochloromethane
                                                  2 Bromodichloromethane
                                                                           (Notes 1 and 2)
                                     13
 ---pagebreak---                      Annex 1, Part B, entry 21a (new), (after "pesticides")
                                                   Total pesticides       0.5     ug/1 (TSfote 5a)
                                   Annex I, Part B, Note 1
Applies to:-                                      Applies to:-
Boron                                             Boron
Copper                                            Copper
                                                  Nickel
                                                  Nitrate
                                                  Nitrite
                                                  Polycvclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons
                                                  Trichlorethene
                                                  Trihalomethanes       (in    respect     of
                                                  Chloroform)
Note 1 : The values and classification of         Note 1 : The values and classification of
           these parameters may be                           these parameters may be
           amended in the light of new                       amended in the light of new
           scientific evidence which is                      scientific evidence which is
           expected to become available                      expected to become available
           shortly.                                          shortly.
                                                     IV,
 ---pagebreak---                                   Annex I, Part B, Note 2
Note 2: The samples for these parameters         Note 2: The samples for these parameters
          are to be taken after any                        are to be taken at the tap and
          chlorine contact time and at the                 must be met at the latest 10
          outlet of the water treatment                    calender years from the date of
          plant. Where necessary, the                      entry into force of this
          parametric        value      for                 Directive. When implementing
          bromodichloromethane can be                      the measures to achieve this
          increased to 25 ug/1 provided                    value. Member States shall give
          that the parametric value for                    priority to those areas where
          chloroform is reduced to 30                      THM concentrations in water
          f.ig/1.                                          intended        for;        human
                                                           consumption are high-
                                                           Member States shall ensure that
                                                           all appropriate measures are
                                                           taken       to     reduce       the
                                                           concentration of THMs in water
                                                           intended         for        human
                                                           consumption as much as
                                                           possible during the period
                                                           needed to achieve compliance
                                                           with the parametric value.
                                                           The parametric value for total
                                                           THMs from 5 years after the
                                                           entry into force of this directive
                                                           until 10 years after it has entered
                                                           into force is 150 ug/1 to be met
                                                           at the tap.
                                                           Member States must produce a
                                                           report and forward it to the
                                                           Commission, in accordance
                                                           with .Article 16(5). on areas with
                                                           high THM values and come
                                                           forward within 5 years with a
                                                            plan to reduce THMs to 100
                                                            ug/1.
                                                  1S
 ---pagebreak---                        Annex I, Part B, Note 3, paragraph 3 a (new)
                                                Where water sampled at a tap within a
                                                household does not comply with the
                                                parametric value, and in accordance with
                                                Articles 2(2) and 7(3), Member States
                                                need not oblige individual householders to
                                                replace or permit the replacement of those
                                                lead pipes or components containing lead,
                                                where the non-compliance is due to the
                                                domestic distribution system.
                       Annex I, Part B, Note 3, paragraph 3b (new)
                                                The sampling and monitoring methods
                                                 shall be carried out and defined in a
                                                 harmonized fashion.
                                Annex I, Part B, Note 5(a)
(a) Pesticides means ;                           (a)   Pesticides means :
    - organic insecticides,                            - organic insecticides,
    - organic herbicides,                              - organic herbicides,
    - organic fungicides,                              - organic fungicides,
    - organic nematocides,                             - organic nematocides,
    - organic acaricides,                              - organic acaricides,
    - organic algicides,                               - organic algicides,
    and related products         [growth               and related products [growth
    regulators].                                       regulators and metabolites with an
                                                       effect similar to pesticides!.
                                       ic
 ---pagebreak---                              Annex I, Part B, Note 5a (new)
                     New note to new line in table (Total pesticides)
                                                 Note 5a: (a) Pesticides means :
                                                               - organic insecticides;
                                                               - organic herbicides;
                                                               - organic fungicides;
                                                               - organic nematocides;
                                                               - organic acaricides;
                                                               - organic algicides;
                                                                  and related, products
                                                               ["growth regulators and
                                                               metabolites which are
                                                               pesticides!
                                                          (M Only those pesticides
                                                               which are likely to be
                                                               present in a given supply
                                                               need to be monitored.
                                Annex I, Part B, Note 5(d)
(d) The Commission shall examine                Deleted.
    whether an individual value can be
    set for a given substance, after an
    evaluation of the available scientific
    information.
                                                ^
 ---pagebreak---                                                                   ISSN 0254-1475
                                                           COM(97) 228 final
                                              DOCUMENTS
EN                                                                       14 05
                                    Catalogue number : CB-CO-97-218-EN-C
                                                             ISBN 92-78-19723-8
Office for Official Publications of the European Communities
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