WATER FRAMEWORK DIRECTIVE

The Water Framework Directive considers certain aquatic environments or areas in a specific way in view of the reinforced protection which it provides for them, as well as that which results from other European legislation (Article 6). This relates inter alia to waters used for the abstraction of water for human consumption providing more than 10m3 a day, or serving more than 50 persons, as well as to bodies of water intended for such future use (Article 7(1)).
The “framework” dimension of Directive 2000/60 is confirmed in that it relies, for its own purposes, upon certain areas designated for special protection under directives providing for the protection of surface water and groundwater, for the conservation of habitats and species, as well as bathing waters or those deemed vulnerable for the purpose of urban waste-water treatment (see below, Section 2).
In each river basin district, registers must be established, updated, and inserted in the river basin district management plan (see below, § 2), and they must include maps showing the location of each protected area (Article 6 and Annex IV). The register (or registers) of all areas lying within each river basin district was to be completed at the latest four years after the date of entry into force of the WFD (2004).
In Case C-559/19, the Court concluded that the Kingdom of Spain did not fulfil its obligation under article 11 read in conjunction with article 4 (1) “by failing down in the programmes of measures established in the context of the Guadalquivir basin hydrological plan (2015-2021), any measure to prevent disturbance of the protected habitats types located within the Donana protected area (…) caused by the abstraction of groundwater for the needs of the tourist area of Matalascanas” .