Addressing the challenges of climate change in the water and sanitation sector in Europe.
On behalf of SUEZ, Paul Bourdillon participated in the European Policy Centre's Brussels Dialogue "Strengthening water resilience for wellbeing and industry - The role for EU policies and investments". This conference was an examination of the environmental challenges in relation to water and how EU policies can contribute to water resilience in Europe.
It was an opportunity to welcome the recent appointment of the Commissioner for Water Resilience, Environment and Circular Economy, the future Water Resilience Strategy announced by the European Commission, and the revised Urban Waste Water Directive to be finalised in the coming weeks.
There was a clear recognition that climate change, with its associated water stress and excessive flooding, is forcing us to move from a logic of abundance to one of sobriety and preservation of water resources, especially in a world where European industrial policy is encouraging the development of water-intensive industries such as data centres, renewable hydrogen and electric vehicle battery production.
At SUEZ, we are committed to providing our customers with access to water and sanitation services through resilient and innovative solutions that are readily available:
🔹 Encouraging and rewarding efforts to reduce water consumption,
🔹 Improving the performance of water networks (leak detection through AI, smart metering and other digital solutions),
🔹 Promoting alternative water resources, in particular wastewater reuse for industrial and agricultural customers, while preserving scarce drinking water resources,
🔹 Investing in sustainable desalination solutions with mineral recovery from brine according to local needs,
🔹 Supporting local capacity building in the water sector and seizing the opportunity for nature-based solutions.
Veronica Manfredi, Director of Zero Pollution, DG Environment, European Commission, stressed that "we are just in time to turn the tide, but only if we use the best of our skills to massively support those who bring clean, resource-efficient, nature-positive solutions to the forefront".
Paul Bourdillon emphasised that "the revised Urban Wastewater Treatment Directive will result in the need to upgrade many plants in Europe, which will lead to a much better quality of treated wastewater, thereby reducing waste pollution in the environment and creating an additional water resource.
I would like to thank the European Policy Centre for organising this constructive event and my fellow panellists for the passionate exchange!
