BRUSSELS, Aug 3, 2022 (BSS/AFP) - The European Commission on Wednesday 
urged EU member states to re-use treated urban waste water as irrigation on 
the continent's parched farms.

  Much of Europe has been hit by a lengthy dry spell this year, and the EU 
executive warns that climate change could see half of the river basins in the 
bloc short of water by 2030. 

  "Freshwater resources are scarce and increasingly under pressure," said 
Virginijus Sinkevicius, EU commissioner for the environment, fisheries and 
the oceans. 

  "We need to stop wasting water and use this resource more efficiently to 
adapt to the changing climate and ensure the security and sustainability of 
our agricultural supply."

  More that 40 billion cubic metres of waste water are treated every year in 
the EU, but only 964 million are reused, according to the European 
Commission.

  Places like Israel, California, Singapore and Australia already have better 
systems in place to redirect waste water to farms -- and Brussels thinks EU 
members could re-use at least six billion by 2025. 

  A new EU water use regulation will come into effect from June 2023, but the 
commission wants member states to move quickly to redirect treated water to 
irrigation.