In the last twenty years it has become more difficult to make drinking water from the water from the Rhine. Although it was agreed that the Rhine water would be cleaner, the quality has actually deteriorated. This is partly because more and new unwanted substances were discovered.
Today, the ministers of the countries that the Rhine flows through meet in Amsterdam to make new agreements.
In the Netherlands, five million people drink tap water from the Rhine. The river was once so dirty that it smelled and sometimes had strange colors. Water quality has improved in many areas: some chemicals no longer occur.
But new problems have come in its place, says RIWA, the river water companies association, says Gerard Stroomberg. “What we see is that the substances we encounter are increasingly difficult to remove. And the quantities are also getting bigger.”
Chemical industry
Most problems are waste from the chemical industry and medicine residues. “Companies in the Ruhr area receive permits to discharge these substances into the Rhine. We must then remove that again.” Stroomberg believes that the regulations do not take sufficient account of the drinking water function of the Rhine.
Medicine residues are peeed out and end up in the Rhine via sewage water, but there are also people who flush unused pills down the toilet.
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