Industrial and wastewater facility exposure to floods

About this analysis

In recent years, Europe has seen more record-breaking rainfall events, often causing severe floods that damage critical infrastructure. These extreme weather events threaten water quality and human health, as pollutants from industrial and wastewater facilities can contaminate the environment during floods, leading to health risks.

This analysis examines the location of urban wastewater treatment plants (UWWTPs) and industrial sites in flood-prone areas using data from the European Pollutant Release and Transfer Register and the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive. The analysis is carried out at regional level (NUTS 3).

Key findings

• Across Europe, nearly 15% of industrial facilities are located in areas prone to fluvial flooding. Facilities in sectors such as paper and wood production and processing, the chemical industry, and waste and wastewater management are particularly exposed.
• Nearly 36% of wastewater treatment plants are located in flood-prone areas. The highest proportion of UWWTPs potentially exposed to riverine floods are in Austria and Slovakia — nearly two-thirds of the total number of UWWTPs in each country are located in potential flood-prone areas.
•  Regions combining a high number of urban wastewater treatment plants (UWWTPs) with a high share of UWWTPs located in potential flood-prone areas are present in Austria (e.g. Südsteiermark) and France (Dordogne). Two regions in the Netherlands and three regions in Germany have more than 10 UWWTPs, of which over 90% are located in potential flood-prone areas.
• Regions with a high number of industrial facilities, most of which are located in areas at potential flood risk, include Zuidwest-Gelderland and Arnhem/Nijmegen in the Netherlands, as well as Rovigo in Italy.

Explore the analysis here.

For information about the impacts of droughts, floods, and worsened water quality under climate change, see the EEA report Responding to climate change impacts on human health in Europe: focus on floods, droughts and water quality.