MEPs will vote 23 October on rules to further improve the quality of and access to drinking water for all people and reduce plastic waste from water bottles.
Most people in the EU have good access to high quality drinking water.
According to a report by the European Environment Agency (2016), more than 98.5% of tests carried out on drinking water samples between 2011 and 2013, met EU standards.
The legislation aims to further increase tap water quality by tightening the maximum limits for certain pollutants such as lead (to be reduced by half), or harmful bacteria.
Levels of microplastics will also be monitored.
The new rules would also increase transparency and provide consumers better access to information.
Drinking tap water is cheap and environmentally friendly.
Members want measures such as installing free fountains in public places – including shopping centres and airports – and encouraging the provision of tap water in restaurants.
According to the European Commission, access to better quality water could reduce bottled water consumption by 17%.
The Right2Water citizens’ Initiative gathered more than 1.8 million signatures, which shows how strongly Europeans feel about drinking water.