The intensity of fertilisers use and the pressure on water quality varies across Europe and has changed over the last two decades as a result of technological improvements and implementation of environmental policies protecting water resources

Groundwater plays a key role in sustaining human life and activities, however it is put at risk by overexploitation and water quality degradation

By the use of fertilisers and pesticides for growing crops and the water abstraction for irrigation, agriculture exerts significant pressures on aquatic systems, altering their ecological functioning and biodiversity

Water reuse has been identified by the European Commission as a relevant solution to be further promoted in the EU to address water scarcity

When pesticides end up in soil and aquatic ecosystems they become a potentially significant ecological stressor and may cause risks for the environment as well as for human health

Nitrogen and phosphorus emissions from soil to freshwater differs across various agrosystem types in Europe, as well as management strategies to reduce nitrogen leaching

Agricultural activities affect water quantity and quality in aquifers across Europe

Eutrophication of marine and freshwater results from high inputs of anthropogenic nutrients and their imbalance in coastal waters