Malta has been mentioned in an EU report as one of the countries and regions with high nitrate levels in its 'fresh surface water' and groundwater.
The European Commission report published today reveals that nitrate levels in waters across the EU are falling. The report shows that the implementation of legislation to prevent nitrates from agricultural sources polluting ground and surface waters is proving effective.
Environment Commissioner Janez Potočnik said: " Safeguarding water quality is a top priority for European environment policy. Farmers have worked hard to improve fertilisation management, which is now yielding benefits and improving water quality trends. However, in some regions, meeting EU water quality standards remains a serious and continuing challenge."
The agricultural use of nitrates in organic and chemical fertilisers has been a major source of water pollution in Europe. While nitrates are a vital nutrient to help plants and crops grow, high concentrations are harmful to people and nature.
Despite encouraging trends, the report reveals a number of regions where nitrate levels are worrying. High nitrate concentrations are found in groundwater in parts of Estonia, south-east Netherlands, Belgium (Flanders), the UK (England), several parts of France, northern Italy, north-east Spain, south-east Slovakia, southern Romania, Malta and Cyprus. Particularly high concentrations are found in 'surface waters' in Malta, UK (England), Belgium (Flanders) and France (Brittany).
The average groundwater sampling site density was 13.7 per 1000 sq km with the highest density in Belgium, Malta and Denmark (99, 44 and 34 sites per 1000 sq km). The average fresh surface water sampling site density was 7.4 per 1000 sq km of land area with the highest density in Malta, Belgium and the UK (114, 29 and 36 respectively).
Member States have designated territories vulnerable to nitrate pollution to which specific action programmes apply. Some Member States (Austria, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands and Slovenia) have decided to apply action programmes to the whole territory to provide the same level of protection countrywide.
While actions to inform and train farmers have resulted in much better fertilisation management and agricultural practices, further work is still needed to achieve water quality goals in all EU waters. Many Member States need to step up efforts in a number of areas, including monitoring and identifying pollution hotspots as well as developing tougher action programmes, the EU said.