EU Revises Water Policy Directives: PFAS, Bisphenol A and Others Added to Priority Control List

On March 30, 2026, the European Parliament and the Council jointly adopted a draft EU directive proposing amendments to three key water policy directives (the Water Framework Directive (2000/60/EC), the Groundwater Protection Directive (2006/118/EC), and the Environmental Quality Standards Directive for Surface Waters (2008/105/EC)) to strengthen water body protection across the EU.

Key Amendments

I. New Priority Controlled Pollutants

1. PFAS (Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances)

Category	Control Measures
Surface Waters	Environmental Quality Standards (EQS) for the sum of 25 PFAS
Groundwater	Quality standards for the sum of 20 PFAS
Special Control	Individual sum standards for 4 most hazardous PFAS

Priority PFAS Substances of Concern:

Perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS): Already listed as a priority substance; control measures strengthened under this revision
Trifluoroacetic acid (TFA): Included in the sum of 25 PFAS due to its high toxicity, persistence, and widespread sources (fluorinated pesticides, refrigerants); separate standards may be established in the future

2. Pharmaceutical Residues (Medicinal Products)

Category	Control Measures
Surface Waters	Three estrogenic pharmaceuticals (ethinylestradiol, estradiol, estriol) added to priority substance list
Groundwater	Specific pharmaceuticals included in pollutant list
Effect Monitoring	Effect-based monitoring methods adopted to assess cumulative risks of estrogenic pharmaceuticals

3. Bisphenol Substances

Category	Control Measures
Immediate Implementation	Bisphenol A listed as priority hazardous substance with established EQS
Watch List	"Sum of Bisphenols" included in Annex III
Minimum Requirements	Member States required to identify and monitor Bisphenol B and Bisphenol S as river basin-specific pollutants

4. Other New Watch List Substances

Microplastics
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) indicators

II. Adjustment of Legal Definitions and Concepts

Original Definition	Revised Definition
"Chemical status" covering only priority substances	Expanded to include river basin-specific pollutants
River basin-specific pollutants under "ecological status"	Incorporated into unified "chemical status" management

III. Optimization of Standards System

New Annex: Retention list established for substances no longer posing widespread risks but still requiring attention
Standards Alignment: Groundwater PFAS standards automatically synchronized with parametric values under the Drinking Water Directive
20-Year Phase-Out: Discharges of priority hazardous substances must cease within 20 years of their listing

The revised draft directive will enter into force 20 days after its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

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