Council Directive 91/271/EEC of 21 May 1991 concerning urban waste-water treatment

Priority question for written answer  P-000529/2021
to the Commission
Rule 138
Radosław Sikorski (PPE)

Polish legislation does not regulate with sufficient clarity the matter of assessing compliance with Council Directive 91/271/EEC of 21 May 1991 concerning urban waste-water treatment in a situation whereby urban waste-water from agglomerations is treated in an industrial waste-water treatment plant in which sewage from installations which require an integrated permit – other than biodegradable industrial waste-water – is treated. This applies, for example, to the treatment of urban waste-water from agglomerations which is treated in waste-water treatment plants in the pulp and paper industry.

The definition of the final discharge point used in the Polish legislation is stricter than that which appears in the Directive. On the basis of Article 86(3)(3) of the Water Act, an urban waste-water treatment plant in an agglomeration or a waste-water treatment plant in a neighbouring agglomeration is considered to be such a point.

• 1.Could the definition of the final discharge point which appears in the Polish legislation be extended to include an industrial waste-water treatment plant located outside an agglomeration if the amount of urban waste-water from the agglomeration does not exceed 10% of the total waste-water treated in the plant?
• 2.If so, could a mixture of such waste-water meet the parameters for an integrated permit issued for an industrial plant and constitute ‘industrial waste water’ within the meaning of Article 2 point 3 of Council Directive 91/271/EEC, i.e. ‘“industrial waste water” means any waste water which is discharged from premises used for carrying on any trade or industry, other than domestic waste water and run-off rain water’?