Explanatory Memorandum to COM(2012)147 - Requirements for the protection of the health of the general public with regard to radioactive substances in water intended for human consumption - Main contents
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This page contains a limited version of this dossier in the EU Monitor.
| dossier | COM(2012)147 - Requirements for the protection of the health of the general public with regard to radioactive substances in water intended ... |
|---|---|
| source | COM(2012)147  |
| date | 28-03-2012 |
Water is one of the most comprehensively regulated areas of Community environmental legislation. Early European water policy began in the 1970s with the adoption of political programmes as well as legally binding legislation.
On 3 November 1998 the Council adopted Directive 98/83/EC on the quality of water intended for human consumption. This new Directive had to be transposed into national legislation by the end of the year 2000, and had to be complied with by the end of 2003.
Drinking water contamination by radioactive substances may occur through accidental releases of radioactivity or through improper disposal practices. Water systems that are vulnerable to this type of contamination undergo extensive monitoring for radioactive contamination to ensure that the water is safe for drinking. There are many regions in Europe where the geological and hydrological features are such that the presence of naturally occurring radioactive substances is of concern.
So far the requirements for monitoring tritium and total indicative dose under Council Directive 98/83/EC have not been implemented, pending the adoption of amendments to Annexes II (monitoring) and III (specifications for the analysis of parameters). Technical requirements for the protection of the health of the general public with regard to radioactive substances in water intended for human consumption have been finalised for about six years now, after a consultation process involving the Group of Experts provided for under Article 31 Euratom, the Committee established under the Drinking Water Directive and the consultation of the Committee of Member State representatives established under Articles 35‑36 of the Euratom Treaty.
Indicator parameters set out in Annex I Part C relating to radioactivity and tritium and the related monitoring provisions in Annex II to Directive 98/83/EC actually fall within the scope of the basic standards as set out in Article 30 of the Euratom Treaty. As a result, it is justified to incorporate the requirements for monitoring levels of radioactivity into specific legislation under the Euratom Treaty in order to maintain the uniformity, coherence and completeness of radiation protection legislation at Community level.
Therefore the Commission adopted on 27 June 2011 a draft proposal laying down requirements for the protection of the health of the general public with regard to radioactive substances in water intended for human consumption based on Article 31 of the Euratom Treaty.
On 27 October 2011 the EESC adopted an opinion on this draft Commission proposal, calling amongst others for the inclusion of radon gas within the scope of the Directive. The EESC referred to a Commission Recommendation (2001/928/Euratom) for the protection against radon gas in drinking water. In 1998 radon gas had been excluded from the scope of the Directive in view of the fact that it constitutes a risk of inhalation rather than of ingestion as drinking water. The draft proposal for a Euratom Directive focussed on the change of the legal basis, without technical amendments, but the Commission agrees with the EESC recommendation and has now made provision for the inclusion of radon gas in the Directive. In order to address the specific feature of radon gas, it is included as a separate indicator parameter, while the long-lived decay products of radon are included in the evaluation of total indicative dose as defined in Directive 98/83/EC.
The EESC also advocated mirroring to the largest possible extent the general provisions of Directive 98/83/EC, so as to offer one coherent policy. This would require, amongst other, the inclusion of bottled waters. The Commission agrees with this recommendation but also needs to allow for the fact that after adoption of the 1998 EC Directive, specific legislation was adopted for the monitoring of bottled waters, in the overall context of food safety. Hence the new Commission proposal includes on the one hand bottled water within the scope of the Directive, on the other hand refers to the monitoring criteria laid down in Regulation (EC) No 852/2004.
Taking into account the implementation of the general principle in legal theory and practice that establishes that a law governing a specific subject matter overrides a law which only governs general matters ("lex specialis derogat legi generali"), the provisions of the Directive under the Euratom Treaty supersede those of the Directive 98/83/EC as regards radioactive substances in drinking water. In a second step, the Commission will propose the deletion of Tritium and Total Indicative Dose from the list of indicator parameters in part C of Annex I to Directive 98/83/EC and the repeal of all references to these parametric values.
2. Subsidiarity and proportionality
• Legal basis
The provisions of this Directive are related to the basic standards for the protection of the health of workers and the general public. Consequently, the legal base chosen is the Treaty establishing the European Atomic Energy Community, and in particular Articles 31 and 32 thereof.
• Subsidiarity principle
The subsidiarity principle applies insofar as the proposal does not fall under the exclusive competence of the Community. As the Community's legislative powers under Title II Chapter III of the Euratom Treaty are exclusive in nature, they are not subject to the principle of subsidiarity.
• Proportionality principle
The proposal complies with the proportionality principle for the following reason(s):
The proposal sets out minimum harmonised standards for monitoring radon, tritium and total indicative dose and adapts the requirements of Directive 98/83/EC related to radioactivity to the latest scientific and technical progress.
• Choice of instruments
While the Community is responsible for establishing uniform rules in the radiation protection field in order to achieve a high level of health protection of workers and the general public, it falls on the Member States to transpose into their national legislation such rules and to implement them.
A directive is therefore best suited to create a common approach on defining requirements for radioactivity parameters for monitoring the quality of water intended for human consumption in the light of scientific and technical progress.
As a consequence, harmonised requirements for the protection of the health of the general public with regard to radioactive substances in water intended for human consumption are defined.
The proposal has no implication for the Community budget.