On 5 November 2024 the Council of the European Union adopted the recast Urban Wastewater Treatment Directive, following the European Parliament’s approval of the text earlier this year.  Of particular relevance to pharmaceutical and cosmetic companies, the recast Directive will introduce new extended producer responsibility (“EPR”)[1] obligations in respect of micropollutants from their products that end up in the urban wastewater stream. Background The EU’s previous Urban Wastewater Treatment Directive has been in place since 1991…