The Groundwater Directive 2006/118/EC (GWD) defines groundwater as a valuable natural resource that should be protected against pollution and deterioration. It also considers groundwater as the most sensitive and the largest body of freshwater in the European Union and, in particular, a main source of public drinking water
supplies in many regions.
The EU Working Group on Groundwater (WGC), established under the umbrella of the Common Implementation Strategy for the Water Framework Directive (WFD), has identified as one of the main tasks for the period 2010-2012 the exchange of best practices and recommendations resulting from the experiences gained by Member States and the European Commission during the implementation of the WFD and the GWD.
Establishment of threshold values, compliance regime for groundwater chemical and quantitative status
assessment, implementation of measures to prevent or limit inputs of pollutants into groundwater, risk
management and programmes of measures are the basic topics under consideration.
In addition to the effective integration of different
environmental policies, the development of a sound groundwater management and protection at EU level and the successful implementation of both directives require active multi-disciplinary cooperation and effective
transfer of scientific results to policy-makers.
In this context, the Madrid 2010 Groundwater Conference and the Spring 2010 plenary meeting of the WGC, organized under the auspices of the Spanish EU Presidency, aim at providing a forum to present the main elements that will drive the protection and sustainable management of groundwater resources in Europe until 2015 and contribute to the exchange of best practices between Member States and stakeholders involved in the
implementation of the WFD and GWD.