Questions and Answers on the revision of the Drinking Water Directive. Why is the Commission revising the Drinking Water Directive? The European Commission wants to continue to ensure the provision of high-quality drinking water in light of the latest scientific advice, and to help consumers access this water and find reliable information about its supply. Safe drinking water is essential for public health and well-being, and water contamination or shortages can have serious social and economic costs. The proposal is also a response to the successful European Citizens’ Initiative, ‘Right2Water’, which received the support of 1.6 million Europeans. What is the Commission proposing and why? There are four main new elements: 1) Improved standards for the safety of water. The list of standards will be updated and extended in line with the latest scientific knowledge and based on recommendations by the World Health Organisation. This will guarantee that tap water is safe for drinking throughout the EU. 2) A reduced risk for Member States and citizens. By applying a risk-based water safety assessment in the entire EU, authorities will be able to identify possible risks to water sources already at distribution level. It adds an additional layer of protection and at the same time better protects supply sources in the long term. 3) Obligation to improve access to water. People without or with limited access to water will benefit. Overall consumption of tap water – a cheap, safe and environmentally-friendly option – should increase. This will help consumers save money, and it is good for the environment, helping to reduce plastic waste entering our rivers and seas and lowering greenhouse gas emissions. 4) Increased transparency, including on water services. Thanks to new transparency rules consumers will get information online, in a user-friendly way, about the availability of water services in their local area. Empowered consumers are better placed to request good quality services at a fair price. In parallel, the Commission accelerated work on standardisation to ensure that construction products in the water sector across the EU’s internal market, such as pipes and tanks, do not pollute drinking water. What are the new standards to indicate the safety of water? The Commission has worked with the World Health Organisation (WHO) to revise the list of standards (parameters) that define safe drinking water. The new list includes 18 new or revised parameters to better protect against: pathogenic bacteria and viruses; naturally occurring but harmful substances like uranium or microcystins; emerging contaminants from industry like perfluorinated compounds; disinfection by-products or distribution impurities like chlorate, haloacetic acids, or bisphenol A. How will consumers benefit from this proposal? The revised rules will improve access to water and water quality as well as further reduce risks to health, by improving water treatment and quality monitoring. According to estimatesthe new measures would reduce potential health risks associated with drinking water from about 4% to below 1%. More transparency on water supply can compel providers to improve resource-efficiency. Consumers will have online access to information on precious nutrients present in their tap water, such…