Water and Plastic Pollution in Greece

The European Union ruled on June 5 that Greece is in breach of the Water Framework Directive and the Floods Directive for failing to complete a river basin management plan and for substandard treatment of municipal wastewater. According to the ECJ, Greek beaches are heavily polluted with plastic, with an average of 464 pieces of litter per 100 meters of coast, far exceeding the EU cleanliness standard of 20 pieces per 100 meters, 83% of which is plastic. The EU plans to invest €23 billion a year to support the upgrade of Greece’s water infrastructure and provide €15 billion in loans through the European Investment Bank.