Archive:SDG 6 - Clean water and sanitation (statistical annex)
Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all (statistical annex)
- Data extracted in August 2018. Most recent data: Further Eurostat information, Main tables and Database. Planned article update: September 2019.
This article provides an overview of statistical data on SDG 6 ‘Clean water and sanitation’ in the European Union (EU). It is based on the set of EU SDG indicators for monitoring of progress towards the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in an EU context.
This article is part of a set of statistical articles, which are based on the Eurostat publication ’Sustainable development in the European Union — Monitoring report - 2018 edition’. This report is the second edition of Eurostat’s future series of monitoring reports on sustainable development, which provide a quantitative assessment of progress of the EU towards the SDGs in an EU context.
Population having neither a bath, nor a shower, nor indoor flushing toilet in their household
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Source: Eurostat (sdg_06_10)
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Source: Eurostat (sdg_06_10)
This indicator reflects the share of total population having neither a bath, nor a shower, nor an indoor flushing toilet in their household. Data presented in this section stem from the EU Statistics on Income and Living Conditions (SILC).
Figure 1 shows that the share of the EU population having neither a bath, nor a shower, nor indoor flushing toilet in their household fell noticeably between 2005 and 2016, with an average annual decrease of 5.9 %. The short-term decline between 2011 and 2016 was slightly slower, at an average of 4.6 % per year.
Population connected to at least secondary wastewater treatment
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Source: Eurostat (sdg_06_20)
This indicator measures the percentage of the population connected to [Glossary:Wastewater|wastewater] treatment systems with at least secondary treatment. Thereby, wastewater from urban sources or elsewhere is treated by a process generally involving biological treatment with a secondary settlement or other process, resulting in a removal of organic material that reduces the biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) by at least 70 % and the chemical oxygen demand (COD) by at least 75 %. Data presented in this section stem from the Water Statistics of the European Statistical System (ESS).
Figure 3 indicates that in most Member States the percentage of the population connected to wastewater treatment systems with at least secondary treatment increased between 2010 and 2015. In 2015, connection rates ranged from below 40 % in Croatia and Romania up to 100 % in the United Kingdom.
Biochemical oxygen demand in rivers
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Source: Eurostat (sdg_06_30)
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Source: Eurostat (sdg_06_30)
This indicator measures the mean annual BOD5 in rivers, weighted by the number of measuring stations. BOD5 is a measure of the amount of oxygen required by aerobic microorganisms to decompose organic substances in a water sample over a period of five days in the dark at 20 °C. High BOD5 values are usually a sign of organic pollution, which affects water quality. The cleanest rivers have a five-day BOD of less than 1 mg/L. Moderately polluted rivers show values ranging from 2 to 8 mg/L. Data presented in this section stem from the EEA Waterbase database on the status and quality of Europe's rivers.
The BOD in European rivers has been almost steadily decreasing since 2000, indicating that water quality has been improving. BOD levels fell by 2.6 % on average between 2000 and 2014. In the short-term period between 2009 and 2014, the average yearly decline was slightly slower at 1.9 %.
Nitrate in groundwater
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Source: Eurostat (sdg_06_40)
This indicator refers to concentrations of nitrate (NO3) in groundwater measured as milligrams per litre (mg NO3/L). Data are taken from well samples and aggregated to annual average concentrations for groundwater bodies in Europe. Only complete series after inter/extrapolation are included. The data stem from the EEA Waterbase database on the status and quality of Europe's rivers.
As Figure 6 shows, in 2012 the nitrate concentration in European groundwater was at the same level as in 2000, indicating there has been no long-term progress. However, in the short-term period between 2007 and 2012 an average annual decrease of 1.3 % was observed.
Phosphate in rivers
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Source: Eurostat (sdg_06_50)
This indicator measures the concentration of phosphate (PO4) per litre in the dissolved phase from water samples from river stations and aggregated to annual average values. At high concentrations it can cause water quality problems, such as eutrophication, by triggering the growth of macrophytes and algae. The data stem from the EEA Waterbase database on the status and quality of Europe's rivers.
The average concentration of phosphate in European rivers fell significantly between 2000 and 2014, with an average annual decrease of 1.7 %. In the short-term period between 2009 and 2014, however, there was a slight average increase of 0.3 % per year.
Water exploitation index
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Source: Eurostat (sdg_06_60)
This indicator measures the annual total fresh water abstraction in a country as a percentage of its long-term annual average available water (LTAA) from renewable fresh water resources (groundwater and surface water). Total fresh water abstraction includes water removed from any fresh water source, either permanently or temporarily. Mine water and drainage water as well as water abstractions from precipitation are included, whereas water used for hydroelectricity generation (in situ use) is excluded. The indicator also illustrates pressure on groundwater resources. Water scarcity is noticeable above a threshold of 20 %, whereas severe scarcity regions show WEI values beyond 40 %. The indicator is based on data from the Water Statistics of the European Statistical System (ESS).
In the majority of the EU Member States for which data are available for both 2010 and 2015, there was a decrease in water exploitation index between 2010 and 2015.
See also
Further Eurostat information
Database
- Socioeconomic Development
Dedicated section
Methodology
More detailed information on EU SDG indicators for monitoring of progress towards the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), such as indicator relevance, definitions, methodological notes, background and potential linkages, can be found in the introduction of the publication ’Sustainable development in the European Union — Monitoring report - 2018 edition’.