The european water framework directive facing current challenges: recommendations for a more efficient biological assessment of inland surface waters

High quality water is vital for human life, and ensuring its availability is a basic requirement and a major societal aim. The Water Framework Directive (WFD; 2000/60/EC) is a key piece of legislation for the protection and sustainable use of water in the European Union. In this work we briefly review the WFD directive and the current status of European inland surface waters. Additionally, we summarize major challenges and threats for the biological assessment of inland surface waters under climate change effects and invasion by alien species, and highlight the emerging tools and approaches that might help improve biological assessments, including molecular indices based on environmental DNA (eDNA), to new data from the Earth Observation programmes, and data-sharing platforms. Finally, we present recommendations to improve monitoring systems and assessments in the context of the WFD. Developments in this field may increase the likelihood of assuring high quality water for societyFRESHING Project funded by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) and COMPETE (PTDC/AAG-MAA/ 2261/2014 – POCI-01-0145-FEDER-356 016824). AFF, AGR, and JPR were supported by FRESHING. FMSM was supported by FCT grant SFRH/BD/104703/2014. MJF was supported by the strategic project UID/MAR/04292/2013 granted to MAR

Water quality and its interlinkages with the Sustainable Development Goals

Interlinkages among the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) lead to important trade-offs and synergies among the goals and their underlying targets. The aim of this paper is to review the role of water quality as an agent of interlinkages among the SDGs. It was found that there are a small number of explicit interconnections, but many more inferred interlinkages between water quality and various targets. A review of case studies showed that interlinkages operate from the municipal to near global scales, that their importance is likely to increase in developing countries, and that new SDG indicators are needed to monitor them. The analysis identifies many different SDG target areas where a combined effort between the water quality community and other sectors would bring mutual benefits in achieving the water quality and other targets