Council of the EU adopts updated list of pollutants

The Council of the EU has formally adopted an updated list of pollutants affecting surface water and groundwater on 17 February in Brussels. The new list of priority substances includes pesticides, pharmaceuticals and PFAS. The directive also tightens environmental standards for several substances and strengthens monitoring across the EU. The European Parliament is expected to hold the final vote on the new rules by the end of March.

In September 2025, the Council presidency and the European Parliament’s representatives reached a provisional political agreement on the proposed directive to review and update the lists of pollutants affecting surface waters and groundwater. The new rules amend the Water Framework Directive (WFD), the Groundwater Directive and the directive on environmental quality standards, aligning EU water policy with the latest scientific evidence. EU countries will have until 2039 to comply with the new standards for both surface water and groundwater. For substances with revised and more stringent environmental quality standards in surface water, the compliance deadline is 2033.

Assessment of the cocktail effect

The EU-wide list of priority substances has now been expanded and updated, including pharmaceuticals, such as painkillers, pesticides, bisphenols, and per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). For the first time, the directive introduces effect-based monitoring to assess the cumulative risk of combined substances. The European Environment Agency warned in 2019 that the danger posed by the ‘cocktail effect’ of lower concentrations of chemicals in European lakes, rivers, and other surface water bodies needed to be addressed.

Stricter standards

Several pollutants that are already on the list will now be subject to tighter environmental quality standards, such as PFAS and pesticides. To support future reviews, the directive also adds microplastics and antimicrobial resistance indicators to the EU’s water watchlists, which help track substances of emerging concern.

New monitoring technologies allowed

The updated directive also strengthens monitoring and reporting obligations for EU countries, in order to improve water quality and transparency across the EU.  Member States may use remote sensing and earth observation technologies for their monitoring. They must report on biological quality, chemical quality, and also the overall status of water bodies for more reliable data across the EU.