FINAL REPORT European Commission Directorate General Environment Verification of Vulnerable Zones Identified Under the Nitrate Directive and Sensitive Areas Identified Under the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive Italy June 2000 Environmental Resources Management 8 Cavendish Square, London W1M 0ER Telephone 0171 465 7200 Facsimile 0171 465 7272 Email [email protected] http://www.ermuk.com FINAL REPORT European Commission Directorate General Environment Verification of Vulnerable Zones Identified Under the Nitrate Directive and Sensitive Areas Identified Under the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive Italy June 2000 Reference 5765 For and on behalf of Environmental Resources Management Approved by: __________________________ Signed: ________________________________ Position: _______________________________ Date: __________________________________ This report has been prepared by Environmental Resources Management the trading name of Environmental Resources Management Limited, with all reasonable skill, care and diligence within the terms of the Contract with the client, incorporating our General Terms and Conditions of Business and taking account of the resources devoted to it by agreement with the client. We disclaim any responsibility to the client and others in respect of any matters outside the scope of the above. This report is confidential to the client and we accept no responsibility of whatsoever nature to third parties to whom this report, or any part thereof, is made known. Any such party relies on the report at their own risk. In line with our company environmental policy we purchase paper for our documents only from ISO 14001 certified or EMAS verified manufacturers. This includes paper with the Nordic Environmental Label. 1 INTRODUCTION 1.1 BACKGROUND This Final Report presents the findings of a project carried out on behalf of the European Commission – DG Environment entitled: Verification of the Vulnerable Zones Identified Under the Nitrates Directive and Sensitive Areas Identified Under the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive Contract B4-3040/98/000705/MAR/D1 This report presents the results of the investigations carried out in Italy. 1.2 SCOPE This report is a review of the areas designated as Sensitive Areas in conformity with the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive 91/271/EEC and Vulnerable Zones in conformity with the Nitrates Directive 91/676/EEC in Italy. The review also includes suggestions for further areas that should be designated within the scope of these two Directives. Although the two Directives have different objectives, the areas designated as sensitive or vulnerable are reviewed simultaneously because of the similarities in the designation process. The investigations will focus upon: • Checking that those waters that should be identified according to either Directive have been; • in the case of the Nitrates Directive, assessing whether vulnerable zones have been designated correctly and comprehensively. The identification of vulnerable zones and sensitive areas in relation to the Nitrates Directive and Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive is carried out according to both common and specific criteria, as these are specified in the two Directives. 1.2.1 The Urban Wastewater Treatment Directive (91/271/EEC) The Directive concerns the collection, treatment and discharge of urban wastewater as well as biodegradable wastewater from certain industrial sectors. The designation of sensitive and less sensitive areas is required by the Directive, since depending on the sensitivity of the receptor, treatment of a different level is necessary prior to discharge. According to the Directive, discharges into sensitive areas require more stringent treatment, whereas for those into some less sensitive areas a primary treatment is considered to be sufficient. ENVIRONMENTAL RESOURCES MANAGEMENT EUROPEAN COMMISSION - DG ENVIRONMENT 1 Specifically, the designation of certain areas as sensitive is followed by the requirements that: • Collection systems should have been provided at the latest by 31 December 1998 for agglomerations of more than 10,000 p.e. (Article 3 (1)); • Discharge into sensitive areas be subject to more stringent treatment that that described in Article 4, by 31 December 1998 at the latest for all discharges from agglomerations of more than 10,000 p.e.; Under the terms of Article 5(5), more stringent standards than those required by Article 4 are also to be applied to discharges situated in the relevant catchment of sensitive areas and which contribute to the pollution of those areas. Article 4(1) of the Directive specifies secondary treatment as the norm for receiving waters which have neither been identified as a sensitive area nor as a less sensitive area. Urban waste water discharges from agglomerations of between 10,000 to 150,000 p.e. into coastal waters and those from agglomerations of between 2,000 and 10,000 p.e into estuaries, in areas designated as less sensitive, are subject to treatment less stringent than the one prescribed in Article 4. According to the Directive such discharges should receive at least primary treatment, while comprehensive studies should indicate that they will not adversely affect the quality of the environment. Sensitive and less sensitive areas are identified in accordance with certain criteria laid down in Annex II. The identification process should have been completed by 31 December 1993 and reviewed at intervals of no more than four years. The criteria set by the Directive for the identification of sensitive areas are given in Annex II, as follows: • Natural freshwater lakes, other freshwater bodies, estuaries and coastal waters which are found to be eutrophic or which in the near future may become eutrophic if protective action is not taken. The following elements might be taken into account when considering which nutrient should be reduced by further treatment: • lakes and streams reaching lakes/reservoirs/closed bays which are found to have a poor water exchange, whereby accumulation may take place. In these areas, the removal of phosphorous should be included unless it can be demonstrated that the removal will have no effect on the level of eutrophication. Where discharges from large agglomerations are made, the removal of nitrogen may also be considered; • estuaries, bays and other coastal waters which are found to have a poor water exchange, or which receive large quantities of nutrients. Discharges from small agglomerations are usually of minor importance in those areas, but for large agglomerations the removal of phosphorous and/or nitrogen should be included unless it can be demonstrated that the removal will have no effect on the level of eutrophication ENVIRONMENTAL RESOURCES MANAGEMENT EUROPEAN COMMISSION - DG ENVIRONMENT 2 • surface freshwaters intended for the abstraction of drinking water which could contain more than the concentration of nitrate laid down under the relevant provisions of Council Directive 75/440/EEC concerning the quality required of surface water intended for the abstraction of drinking water in the Member States, if action is not taken; • areas where further treatment than the prescribed in Article 4 of this Directive is necessary to fulfil the Council Directives. For the purpose of this Directive eutrophication is defined as “the enrichment of water by nutrients, especially compounds of nitrogen and/or phosphorous, causing an accelerated growth of algae and higher forms of plant life to produce an undesirable disturbance to the balance of the organisms present in the water and to the quality of the water concerned”. 1.2.2 The Nitrates Directive (91/676/EEC) The Directive concerns the protection of water against pollution caused by nitrates from agricultural sources. The Directive has the dual objective of reducing water pollution caused or induced by agricultural sources and to prevent further pollution. Since certain zones, draining into waters vulnerable to pollution from nitrogen compounds, require special protection, the Directive requires (Article 3) all Member States to identify waters that are affected or could be affected by pollution and designate as vulnerable zones all known areas of land which drain into these waters. The designation process should had been completed within two years of the notification of the Directive and reviewed whenever necessary, or at least every four years, to take into account changes and factors unforeseen at the time of the previous designation. For the purpose of realising the objectives set by the Directive, Member States are requested to establish action programmes in respect of the designated vulnerable zones and which may be related to all vulnerable zones in the territory or may be different for different zones or parts of zones. Action programmes should be established within a two-year period following the initial designation or within one year of each additional designation. The criteria for identifying nitrate-polluted waters, referred to in Article 3(1), are given in Annex I, as follows: • “whether surface freshwaters, in particular those used or intended for the abstraction of drinking water, contain or could contain more than 50mg nitrate/l (if action pursuant to article 5 is not taken); • whether groundwaters contain more than 50mg/l nitrates or could contain more (if action pursuant to article 5 is not taken); • whether, natural freshwater lakes, other freshwater bodies, estuaries, coastal waters and marine waters are found to be eutrophic or in the near future