Risk Governance in EU Wastewater Reuse Law

Abstract Increasing water scarcity forced the European Union to investigate the possibility of supplementing natural water sources with reclaimed wastewater. Regulation (EU) 2020/741 sets minimum requirements for the safe reuse of treated urban wastewater in agricultural irrigation. The risks that wastewater reuse presents are further regulated in the numerous EU law instruments that concern the protection of human health, the environment and the European waters, including both laws and principles. This paper applies the widely applicable framework for risk governance that was developed by the International Risk Governance Council to the EU regulatory framework on wastewater reuse. The analysis identifies regulatory gaps – unclear pollutant regulation, incomplete division of responsibilities, and insufficient attention to the science-policy interface – and concrete means of improving the regulation of risks associated with wastewater reuse.