Groundwater quality monitoring in Italy for the implementation of the EU water framework directive

In 1999 the Italian Parliament approved a law encompassing all the themes of the water cycle, including monitoring of groundwater. The new regulation takes into account the EU Directives, and charges the Regions to create monitoring networks, according to Art. 8 of the Water Framework Directive (WFD). The approach of the Italian regulation is, on the whole, coherent with the technical guidelines listed in annexes II and V of the WFD. On basis of the new law, the national environment agency (APAT) gathers data and produces assessment reports on the contamination of groundwater in Italy.