A harmonizing bill entitled "The Law on the Quality of Water for Human Consumption 2023" was approved by the Council of Ministers today.
In her statements, Minister of Health Dr. Poppy Kanari said that the purpose of the bill is to harmonize national legislation with the relevant directive of the European Parliament and the Council of 16 December 2020 on the quality of water for human consumption.
The Bill, the Minister noted, introduces additional provisions compared to the existing legal framework in order to ensure greater protection of consumer health and better management by all stakeholders, through a unified approach, which will now cover the entire water supply chain, from source to consumption.
The implementation of the bill will for the first time introduce a preventive approach with actions to reduce pollution at the source of water through the introduction of a "risk-based approach" (risk assessment). This is based on an in-depth analysis of the entire water supply chain.
The bill also aims to increase citizens' confidence in tap water, i.e. water supplied from the public network. This, she said, will result in an increase in the consumption of tap water and a reduction in the use of plastic bottles.
Through the bill, measures will also be taken to ensure better access to water as well as its supply to consumers by public services, public buildings, restaurants, canteens and catering services. Measures will also be taken to reduce water leakage and provide more detailed and effective information to citizens on the quality of drinking water. Finally, there will be the possibility of addressing emerging pollutants with additional controls.
Asked whether the aim of the bill is to make tap water drinkable, the minister noted that tap water is drinkable " People may think that bottled water is safer to drink than tap water, which is not the case. Our aim is to get the message across that tap water is of very good quality," she concluded.
(DK)
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