Ensuring all citizens have access to safe drinking water has been a priority for the EU for decades.
It’s crucial for public health and wellbeing, and shortages or contamination can lead to serious social, health and economic problems.
The EU believes that high quality drinking water should be guaranteed for all consumers, which is why it’s one of the main principles included in the European Pillar of Social Rights.
In light of this, the commission has announced its plans to revise legislation to improve the Drinking Water Directive.
Thanks to current legislation, the majority of EU citizens already have very good access to high quality drinking water.
We have heard and heeded their call and carried out a thorough analysis of our existing legislation.
Today we are therefore proposing to modernise our EU law, improving the quality of drinking water and increasing the access of citizens where it matters most.
Ensuring a high level of health protection is crucial, and the EU strives towards making sure that water quality is controlled and monitored based on the latest scientific evidence.
Among the changes are rules that will require all member states to improve access for all their citizens, and especially for vulnerable and marginalized groups in society, who currently have more limited access than the general population.
It’s been predicted that these measures would reduce the potential health risks associated with drinking water from 4% to less than 1%.