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What it is

Mandatory treatment of urban wastewater before discharge

BOE step 7 of 7 · Passed

It is a royal decree-law. It was introduced on 29 December 1995. Introduced by: Gobierno.

Official title: Royal Decree-Law 11/1995, of December 28, establishing the rules applicable to the treatment of urban wastewater.

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Source: Congreso de los Diputados, file 130/000035· updated 11 Nov

Automatic summary, not yet reviewed

  1. The rule complements the Water and Coasts laws to protect waters from urban discharges. It defines key concepts such as urban wastewater, urban agglomeration, population equivalent, and the types of treatment.
  2. The Autonomous Communities define urban agglomerations, which must have collecting systems and treat their wastewater depending on their size and the type of waters they discharge into, with deadlines between 1999 and 2006.
  3. In sensitive areas a treatment stricter than secondary treatment is required, while in less sensitive areas a simpler treatment may suffice if it does not harm the environment. Discharging sludge into the sea is banned from January 1, 1999, and into inland waters from the rule's entry into force.
  4. The Autonomous Communities must draw up an implementation program and notify it to the State before December 31, 1996. The Government will issue the regulations needed to develop the law.

Who it affects

  • Municipalities and urban agglomerations: They must install collecting systems and treat wastewater within the set deadlines.
  • Autonomous Communities: They define urban agglomerations, declare sensitive areas, and draw up the implementation program.
  • Industries and activities discharging wastewater: Their discharges are subject to the treatments and bans in the rule.
  • General State Administration: It declares sensitive areas in river basins larger than one Autonomous Community and forwards the programs to the European Commission.

Words worth knowing

Habitante equivalente (population equivalent)
A measure of pollution equal to the organic load generated by one person: 60 grams of oxygen per day.
Aglomeración urbana (urban agglomeration)
An area made up of one or more municipalities, or parts of them, that generates enough wastewater to justify collecting and treating it.
Sistema colector (collecting system)
Pipes that collect wastewater from municipal networks and carry it to treatment plants.
Fangos (sludge)
Residual sludge left over from treating urban wastewater, whether treated or not.
Zona sensible (sensitive area)
A water area formally declared especially vulnerable, which requires stricter treatment of discharges.

It summarizes the law as published in the BOE. It is written by artificial intelligence and may contain mistakes: the official text is what counts. Read the official text · How we make summaries

Where it stands

How far did it get?

It took 7 of 7 steps. It reached BOE, and today it is passed.

  1. Introduced29 December 1995Someone registers the text in the Congreso.
  2. Admitted17 January 1996The Bureau of the Congreso accepts it and, for a members’ bill, the plenary decides whether to consider it.
  3. Amendmentsno dateGroups propose changes.
  4. Committeeno dateA committee goes through the text in detail.
  5. Plenaryno dateAll 350 deputies vote.
  6. Senateno dateThe Senate can pass it, amend it or veto it.
  7. BOEno dateIt is published in the Official State Gazette (BOE) and comes into force.
See the 2 official steps on a timeline
Dec 199511. 29 December 1995: Presentación22. 17 January 1996: Calificación

Was there a plenary vote?

We have no plenary vote linked to this law in the Congreso’s data.

What happens next

What happens now?

It is law, or will be once published in the BOE. It comes into force on the date its own text sets.

Published in the BOE: Royal Decree-Law 11/1995, of December 28, by which the rules applicable to the treatment of urban wastewater are established.

Sources

Where does all this come from?

  • The data comes from the open files of the Congreso, the Senate and the BOE, unaltered.
  • Each deputy’s province is the one of their seat on the day of the vote.
  • We only say “passed” or “rejected” when the majority needed is certain; otherwise we say which side had more votes.

Read the full method · Report an error