30 Jan 2024

Interesting article that considers deterioration of ageing pipes, the position of World Health Organisation and research in the UK and across the world. Hundreds of thousands of miles of pipes made from asbestos cement deliver drinking water to people around the world, but are reaching the end of their lifespan and starting to degrade. Scientists […]

05 Dec 2023

The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), the cancer agency of the World Health Organization (WHO), has evaluated the carcinogenicity of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS). PFOA and PFOS are widely used chemicals in a large group of fluorinated compounds called per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), sometimes called “forever chemicals” because they […]

29 Nov 2023

Potentially toxic “forever chemicals” have been detected in the drinking water sources at 17 of 18 England’s water companies, with 11,853 samples testing positive, something experts say they are “extremely alarmed” by. Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) – a group of 10,000 or so human-made chemicals widely used in industrial processes, firefighting foams and consumer […]

15 Nov 2023

EurEau has published a position paper supporting the Drinking Water Directive’s (DWD) goal of reducing water leakage but emphasises the need for reliable data to underpin this effort. The body represents national drinking and waste water service providers from 32 countries, from both the private and the public sectors. The paper argues that, as the […]

26 Jul 2023

Study reported in the Guardian identifies about 900,000 households with service lines definitely or possibly made of lead, a known neurotoxin One in five New Yorkers may be drinking lead-contaminated water, a new report has found. Roughly 900,000 households – or 21% of the city’s residents – live in properties with lead or possible lead service lines, […]

19 Jul 2023

Annual reports for England and Wales for 2022 from the Drinking Water Inspectorate both showed that 99.97% of water supply quality tests were compliant with standards. Coliforms were responsible for the largest proportion of breaches in each country. The reports show that: Drinking water is, and continues to be, excellent by international standards. Public water […]

07 Jun 2023

Wessex Water has been hit with a £280,000 fine after it provided customers with undrinkable water for three weeks. The company has also agreed to pay out more than £21,000 to its affected customers. The fine was handed down by Swindon Magistrates following prosecution by the Drinking Water Inspectorate.